It’s extremely accessible. Coaching can effectively be done by phone or Zoom. It’s extremely cost-effective. There’s virtually no ongoing cost, operational challenges, space requirements, or budgetary impact. It’s extremely teachable. Coaching is a learned skill. To expand your coach- ing footprint, your ministry leaders can learn in a group setting. Challenges to the Coaching/Mentoring Connection model It’s hard to overcome stereotypes. “Coaching” can evoke images of a sports coach barking orders or bossing people around. And “mentoring” often con- jures up something geared more toward children and teens. It can be hard to get the chemistry right. Since this is often one-on-one, the interpersonal dimension is crucial. Personality, age, style, gender, cultural, and racial aspects all can make personal fit challenging. Gender appropriate matching is a prudent best practice and can help avoid the appearance and/ or the reality of inappropriate or unsafe relationships. It’s hard to make enough connections. Because of the reasons just stated, there’s not likely to be a long line of returning citizens waiting to be coached or mentored. It’s hard to stay in your lane. Despite our best efforts, it’s easy, in our desire to be helpful, to revert to advice-giving or playing the role of someone’s case manager. Pairs well with every one of the other models Besides being a viable model in its own right, think of coaching as a capaci- ty-building investment that can make you and your ministry leaders more ef- fective in their work with returning citizens. If you use it in your ministry, the coach approach will provide a massive return on your investment in training. Here are some helpful resources... Hall, Chad, Bill Cooper, and Kathryn McElveen. Faith Coaching: A Conver- sational Approach to Helping Others Move Forward in Faith. Hickory, NC: Coach Approach Ministries, 2009. Logan, Robert E. and Sherilyn Carlton. Coaching 101: Discover the Power of Coaching. St. Charles, IL: ChurchSmart Resources, 2003. Miller, William R. and Stephen Rollnick, Motivational Interviewing: Preparing People for Change. 4th Edition. New York: Guilford Press, 2023. Stinson, Jill D. and Michael D. Clark. Motivational Interviewing with Offend- ers: Engagement, Rehabilitation, and Reentry. New York: Guilford Press, 2017.
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