Wednesday, September 15, 2004

With a Coach

I am currently trying to implement a training program at my work. The basic idea is that it is more valuable to have your best worker not doing the actual work but instead training others to do the work better and helping them to solve problems. I work in a machine shop and the machines are very old and have lots of problems. A newer guy will struggle for a long time with a problem and often only really make the problem worse as he tries to do his job. If instead an experienced worker helps and teaches, the learning curve should be greatly accelerated. This mentor/coach can make many workers good and create a great deal of value for the company.

Sound familiar!!!

Lets take child rearing for example. How many families say, "If I knew then what i knew now I would raise my kids different." Well, guess what. There are many people in your church community who probably already know now what you will know later. What about ideas like the way of the cross as I spoke last post? Many older guys know the craziness of the quest for success or the damage hypocrisy causes. Somehow it is the American and European way to say, "He will learn by his own experience." But that is stupid. Why not say learn from your mentor's experience. It is much more painless.

The Hebrew method and the bible teaches that learning happens in the context of mentoring relationships. We could have different mentors for different issues. Are we struggling with the same things year after year. Are we taking risks by going it alone when we could be learning those lessons before the damage is done.

Learning happens: In the home (the place where life happens), with a coach, that's the biblical model.
brad

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