wonders if you’re a “Next Level Leader”—and what’s your default coaching style? Didactic or Socratic? Plus,
. And
to download four lists of books I’ve reviewed over the last 20 years.
Are You Managing or Coaching?
but—
oh, my—where do I start? When reading a book, I often write a Big
“S” on a page that is perfect for starting my review. But Big Problem: I’ve made four
Big “S” notations for:
BIG “S” #1. “A direct support makes a mistake.” (Note: Chris Lambert is very precise with language. “Just as we refer to those in leadership positions as coaches rather than managers, we refer to those they lead as ‘direct supports’ rather than ‘direct reports.’”)
The problem: “David sends an email to a major donor with incorrect information. The donor is confused and offended, and calls you directly.” How do you coach your direct support?
•
The Didactic Response: “David, you can’t make mistakes like this with our major donors. From now on, I need to review every major donor email before it goes out. This is unacceptable.” •
The Socratic Response: “David, I need to talk with you about the email you sent to that donor. Can you walk me through what happened?” Note: read the three scenarios on “Practical Coaching in Action” and the five additional questions the coach asked David—without interrupting!
(Chapter 7 on the “Socratic Coach” is worth the price of the book X 100. Honest!)BIG “S” #2. “The Problem with Didactic Leadership.” The author, who also wrote
Next Level Nonprofit (
read my review), lists
five problems “when we default to telling instead of asking.” 1. Our teams stop thinking for themselves.
2. We become the bottleneck.
3. Our team doesn’t develop capacity.
4. Dependency increases.
5. We can’t scale.
On the bottleneck problem, Lambert adds, “Every decision has to go through us. Every problem lands on our desks.
We’re working sixty-hour weeks while our team works forty, and we resent it—but we created this dynamic.”BIG “S” #3. “Cozy Culture or Thriving Culture?” The author wrote this book for nonprofits. “Instead of writing a business book that nonprofit leaders can adapt, I’ve written a nonprofit book that business leaders can’t afford to ignore.” You’ll immediately begin using the 2x2 matrix on page 57 on the “Four Leadership Cultures” addressing Affirmation and Challenge.
Brilliant! • Low Challenge, Low Affirmation:
“Apathetic Culture” • High Challenge, Low Affirmation:
“Stressed Culture” • Low Challenge, High Affirmation:
“Cozy Culture” • High Challenge, High Affirmation:
“Thriving Culture”And get this! Every 90 days, Lambert pulls out the “Affirmation/Challenge Matrix” during his quarterly one-on-ones and invites his direct supports to score him honestly. “Where was I on each axis over the past quarter?” He asks for specific ratings (from +5 to -5) and to be “completely candid.” (
Yikes! The author shares his ratings!)
“Culture is revealed under pressure—when deadlines are looming, when stress is high, and when leaders feel the urge to step in and fix what isn’t working.” So how do you respond when a stressed team member gives you bad news?
The cozy culture response sounds like this: “Don’t worry about it. I’ll take it from here. You focus on your other work. I’ll get this done.”
Lambert then sticks the knife in: “You’ve rescued your direct support by shouldering the challenge yourself. It feels kind in the moment. But here’s what actually happened: You solved the immediate problem, they felt relieved, and you just reinforced that when things get hard, you’ll swoop in to save them. Next time they’re overwhelmed, they’ll come straight to you again.
You didn’t coach them, you comforted them.”BIG “S” #4. “Culture & Capacity Assessment.” Noting the
bus metaphor by
Jim Collins, Lambert delivers a brilliant chart. “While culture fit answers
who belongs on the bus, capacity fit answers
where they belong.” (Good news: maybe you don’t need to fire that employee. Read Chapter 4, “Right People, Right Seats.”)
This is simple—and revealing. List your
Culture values and
Capacity criteria across the top of the chart. Then list your direct supports in the left hand column. Color-code performance for each person in all six categories:
Green,
Yellow, or
Red. Lambert uses these categories:
CULTURE (Right Person) • Community First
• Always Find a Way
• Bold Humility
CAPACITY (Right Seat) • Understands what the job requires.
• Committed to passionately do everything the job requires.
• Has all abilities necessary to do the job with excellence.
What if there are too many yellow and red scores? Read this chapter and learn why the right kind of coaching might help a team member.
But if needed, read the five-point outline for a dismissal conversation, including #2: “We let the Culture & Capacity Assessment do the talking.”
“Constrained by Unhealthy Leadership Systems.” In the foreword, Jim Brown, author of the new book,
The Imperfect CEO (
read my review), adds this wisdom: “Many nonprofits are fueled by noble purpose but constrained by unhealthy leadership systems. The mission is worthy. The team cares deeply. The vision inspires. Yet somewhere along the way, exhaustion replaces energy, confusion weakens execution, accountability becomes inconsistent,
and leaders find themselves carrying burdens they were never meant to bear alone.” Did I mention? Next Level Leader is in the running for 2026 book-of-the-year. In just 136 pages, plus “Coaching Calendar Templates” and info on the
Next Level Leader certification program, you’ll keep this book close—and buy copies for others.
It’s the perfect book for your next senior team retreat: 12 short chapters and convicting questions at the end of every chapter. Example:
“Who is one person on your team who is capable of more than you’ve been allowing them to do? What would it look like to start developing them instead of directing them—and what’s one conversation you could have with them this week?”But this caveat: is Socratic Coaching for everyone—every time? I sensed that Lambert chuckled when he wrote this:
“Let’s be honest. There are moments when Socratic coaching is incredibly frustrating—when asking questions feels inefficient, exhausting, or pointless. I can almost picture Socrates himself occasionally wanted to scream, ‘This is how you should do it!’”
LOL!TO ORDER FROM AMAZON, click on the title for
Next Level Leader: Beyond Manager. Beyond Coach. A New Leadership Paradigm for Mission-Driven Organizations, by Chris Lambert. Listen on
Libro (4 hours, 41 minutes).
View the new series, John Pearson's Buckets Podcast, with AI-generated summaries of John's book reviews, including
Podcast #16, "Mastering the Weekly Meeting," a 7-minute chapter from Chris Lambert's book,
Next Level Nonprofit.
YOUR WEEKLY STAFF MEETING QUESTIONS:1) Chris Lambert notes that “Most people have never been asked these questions by their managers:
• “What kind of work makes time disappear for you?”
• “And what kind of work leaves you feeling more alive at the end of the day than when you started?” (Note: Lambert loves the
Working Genius assessment.)
How would you answer these questions?2) Pop Quiz! Describe how the following coaches would define success: Traditional Manager, Sports Coach, Executive Coach, and Next Level Leader. (Answers: page 23.)
3) Think of a new team member.
What kind of coaching do they need? • I do, you watch.
• I do, you help.
• You do, I help.
• You do, I watch.
(Answers: Chapter 10, “One Size Fits None.”)
BONUS! Visit the
Pails in Comparison Blog for a list of
27 coaching books (soon to be 28!).
SECOND READS: Fresh Solutions From Classic BooksYou have changed—and your problems have changed—since you read this the first time!Book #55 of 99: The Minister’s MBAFor your team meeting this week, inspire a team member to lead your “10 Minutes for Lifelong Learning” session by featuring Book #55 of 99 in our series, “Second Reads.” The big idea:
REREAD TO LEAD! Discover how your favorite books (and articles) still have more to teach you and the people you’re coaching and mentoring.
The Minister's MBA:
Essential Business Tools for Maximum Ministry Success
by Michael Zigarelli and George Babbes (Sept. 1, 2006)
The authors quote Charles Kettering with this poignant reminder for churches and organizations, “If you have always done it that way, it is probably wrong.”
Ouch! •
Read my review (Issue No. 9, Oct. 30, 2006)
• Order from
Amazon.
• Management Bucket #15 of 20:
The Budget Bucket.
Most of my readers are long past the so-called divide between sacred and secular (which is not biblical), especially as it relates to ensuring effectiveness in ministry. Should churches use “Madison Avenue” techniques to “
market” to their communities? This book quotes A.W. Tozer, “It is not what a man does that determines whether his work is sacred or secular,
it is why he does it.
The motive is everything.”
The book features 12 “courses” (chapters) including: your mission, creating a high performance DNA, retaining great people, leading with shrewd stewardship, and how to use the balanced scorecard for measuring strategy.
The “Strategy Map” chapter is excellent and every pastor, staff member, and key church volunteer must read it. You’ll learn how to get beyond lagging indicators (past performance) and onto leading indicators like member satisfaction (where you’re headed).
AND...OH, MY! You must
view this 7-minute video by Professor Zigarelli from 2014, "The Case of Marsha and The Apprentice."
CLICK HERE FOR BOOKS BY JOHN
For more on the Budget Bucket, read Chapter 15 in Mastering the Management Buckets Workbook, and why you must budget for an annual surplus and a growing reserve. Also read Mistake #6 in The 8 Big Mistakes book—“Encumbering Your CEO With 25 Annual Goals!”
NOTICE! As of Oct. 1, 2025, all 657 eNews issues archived on Typepad.com are slowly (!) being moved to this blogsite.
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