Ep. 117 Four Reasons Not to Take Our Mastermind Training

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Shows Main Idea – We have a consistent interest in our Mastermind Training, as more folks benefit from our resources. The primary reason they want our training is that they love the content we produce, and they want to go deeper into it. But most of them don’t finish.

Show Notes

You may want to read:

• More About Our Mastermind Training
• There Is No Passing or Failing In Our Program
• 12 Characteristics of a Good Counselor

Ninety percent of the individuals who enroll in our training quit. The primary reason is that people do not understand the purpose of our training. Think of it like enrolling in a two or three-night a week school to earn an Associate’s degree.

What you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also. – 2 Timothy 2:2

Our Mastermind Program is a leadership development course because my mission is to develop leaders who can go out and train leaders. That aim is the heartbeat of this ministry.

The term “leadership development” does not mean we are making leaders with no leadership gifting, to become leaders. Leadership development is developing future leaders who have a pre-existing “leadership skillset” (or gifting).

The kind of leader assumed here is a person who can lead a small group, ladies group, men’s group, pastor, elder, ministry leader, formal counselor, and so forth. I’m talking about the leadership positions in a local church or para-Church ministry.

And other people within the church have affirmed this person as having a distinct leadership gift, no matter how undeveloped it may be.

We have a lot of individuals who think our program will help them grow in Christ, similar to how they feel many curricula will help them. They may equate it to a Bible study, men’s program, or ladies Bible training course.

Perhaps they see it as a way to receive “counseling” help because they’ve had a hard life or they are in a difficult marriage. None of these reasons will be enough to do our program, especially if you have not proven yourself to have a leadership skillset.

The leaders that I’m developing can do a course like this because they have the gift-mix and skillset to do the training. Part of their gifting is personified by how they “lead themselves” through this course. Our program is not just a bunch of assignments for them to do.

I go to great lengths putting up hurdles, trying to “talk potential students out of doing our program” because it’s not just another study program. There is a ton of information on our “promo page” that talks about what the program is.

While the coursework is part of what we do, it’s the process of plodding along through the course that is just as important. Any leadership vocation is this way; it’s the ability to do the job–in part–that affirms your gifting. Here are four things that may disqualify you from doing our program.

1. Reason One: Fear – Even undeveloped leaders must know how to take fearful thought captive while employing courage to press on to the next thing.
2. Reason Two: Procrastination – Putting off doing hard things or things you don’t like will significantly hinder your ability to lead anyone, let alone yourself.
3. Reason Three: Perfectionism – Leadership requires doing things you’ve never done before, even if it’s a bad idea. Without imagining, exploring, and doing, you’ll go nowhere.
4. Reason Four: Lack of Time Management – They say if you want to get something done, give it to the leader who does not have the time to do it. Leaders know how to do things.

Still yet, they come into the program and meet the fire hose. Our training will quickly identify if you have the gifting or not.

Please understand that leaders have not perfected these four problems in their lives, but they know how to work through them. They persevere. Counselees become stuck and cannot move forward. Again, this course is about leadership development, which implies preexisting leadership gifting regardless of how small that gifting may be.

Self-Paced

Our program is self-paced because most of the folks who do it are already doing life. If you have a leadership gift, you will know how (or learn how) to place this program into your “life-stream” so it becomes part of your routine.

Finishing in 18 months is possible. That timeframe is exceptional, but one student did that. Others have completed around the three-year mark. Self-paced is perfect for leaders because they know how to manage their time, they don’t procrastinate, they’re comfortable with imperfection, and they have courage.

I am not trying to be unkind here at all, but my goal is not to take your money for a course that you’re not qualified to complete. If you’re ready to go to “night school” to work on an Associates that will rock your world, and you believe you have the skillset and mindset to do this, you will want to talk with me to explore that possibility.

1. Do you believe God is calling you to a leadership position in your local church or para-Church ministry where you’re going to lead a group of people into a more significant maturity in Christ?
2. Internal Calling – Do you believe you have the skillset to accomplish either one of those things?
3. External Calling – Have several other folks, without talking to each other, mentioned to you about the positive, spiritual impact you’re having on others?

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Rick Thomas

Rick launched the Life Over Coffee global training network in 2008 to bring hope and help for you and others by creating resources that spark conversations for transformation. His primary responsibilities are resource creation and leadership development, which he does through speaking, writing, podcasting, and educating.

In 1990 he earned a BA in Theology and, in 1991, a BS in Education. In 1993, he received his ordination into Christian ministry, and in 2000 he graduated with an MA in Counseling from The Master’s University. In 2006 he was recognized as a Fellow of the Association of Certified Biblical Counselors (ACBC).