Your Next Big Play: Gaining Clarity on What’s Next as a High Performing Man of Faith

Feeling Stuck? It’s Time for Your Next Big Play

Back in 2016, I found myself in an online coaching community, filled with aspiring coaches from all walks of life. The space created by a world renown coach hosted a slew of high-performing men and women all looking for ways to transition their talents, skills, and experience into creating a career from coaching.

Now, in order to go from one career to another is scary. To do so from corporate to entrepreneur, well, that leaves many people feeling as if they are stranded on an island.

So there we were, all ears, waiting to extract a golden nugget (or two) from a teaching and/or a live coaching demo that would help us get on path.

In one teaching, I remember something this coach said that has stuck with me till this day and has been a guiding light for me ever since….

"Achievement is not your challenge, alignment is."

Talents, Strengths, Beliefs - Oh My!

You're a leader. You're a provider. You are a high-performing man of faith who wants all of you both personally and professionally to converge on your next big play (and if you are honest, it's both exciting and scary).

Perhaps lately you are wondering things like:

Where is God leading me next?

Am I making decisions based on faith—or just fear?

How do I know if this move is right for me, my family, and my calling?

The answer isn’t in grinding harder in what you are doing now, it’s in aligning your next move with God’s voice.

That’s where the 4 Filters of Decision-Making come in.

The 4 Filters of Kingdom Decision-Making

Every decision you make whether in business, leadership, or within your family can be tested through these four filters.

Faith: Does this align with God’s word and His plan for me?

As an ambitious man of many talents, you are not short of creating opportunities. This is a blessing (and sometimes, can even be a curse). The art of saying "no" even when the opportunities are appealing is a skill that will separate distraction from destiny.

Some faith-aligning questions to ask:

Am I making this move out of obedience or pressure??

Does this honor God in how I show up as a leader??

Does this opportunity increase or decrease my spiritual growth?

Family: Does this strengthen or strain my relationships?

Family first is a mantra many men hold dear and is the driving force behind their decisions. For some men however (me included), this foundational messaging was not integrated into our childhood homes.

When our examples of what it means to be a father and a husband were poor, making our families THE driving force behind every decision doesn't come naturally.

Some family first questions to ask:

How does this impact my wife, kids, and home life?

Will this pull me away from the people I'm called to lead first?

Does it create marginal or more stress in my personal life?

Future: Does this move build the long-term life I want?

When we are talking about the future and how we want our lives to fit into it, we are usually forecasting out 5, 10, and maybe even 20 years out. Many people get caught up in the "big picture." Don't get me wrong, I LOVE big picture thinking and thinking about the future.

But what I have found is that the vision isn't as important as the strategies and objectives that will help you get there. In fact, our visions are so malleable that our focus and energy is better spent breathing life into our goals and taking action on those goals every day.

For example: I want to help 100k men of faith align their work with the talents and gifts God has designed them for while becoming the husbands and fathers they've dreamed of becoming.

How will I do that? I mean, 100k?! Well, there are a variety of ways it can be done. Through speaking engagements, authoring a book that shares my insights, tools, and frameworks, running intensives, etc.

The goals that align to the 100k vision would be to: become an author, become a speaker, course creator.?

Each one of those goals has their very own timelines, objectives, and tactics to make a reality and there is no guarantee I will even make my EXACT vision come true. BUT, something will come of achieving them and it will be amazing.

See how the vision isn't as important as the goals? Here are some questions to ask:

Is this goal "worthy" enough to be considered thrilling, daunting, and important?

Is this a short-term win or a long-term investment in my purpose?

Is this pushing me forward or just keeping me busy?

Fulfillment: Does this energize or drain me?

About 3 years ago I went through a 2-day Spiritual gifts workshop. It was awesome. It helped affirm my professional motivations. For me, I always wanted my work to be a natural extension of who I am - an outpouring from my spirit.

A perspective I like to lean into when it comes to doing God's work is this:

"Spiritual gifts create spiritual outcomes".

I really like that and if you do to, here are some questions to ask:

Will this next big play light me up and align with how God designed me?

Am I excited about this path or just doing it out of obligation?

How will this allow me to serve and lead from a place of presence, peace, and purpose?

Sometimes, it's hard to discern understanding our next move because a long time ago our logical mind hijacked the "dream" - either that or fear (or if you want to 'there"), the Enemy.

When that happens, think about the perspective I proposed above and then think about the fruits from the Holy Spirit. Would your work within that project, new business, new role be fertile ground for you to experience that fruit so that others can share in the harvest?

Action Step: Define Your Next Big Play

Grab a journal, answer the questions presented about in the 4 F's and after that, finish off with the questions below.

What decision am I facing right now?

Which of these 4 filters do I feel the most tension?

Which one of the 9 Fruits (of the Spirit) do I need to lean into to a develop most now?

As a high-performing man of faith, getting ready for your "Next Big Play" is supposed to be equal parts - thrilling, daunting, and important.

Just. Like. You.

When you align your faith, family, future, and fulfillment, the decision making process becomes easier. All that is left to do is come up with a doable plan and execute on it one tiny action at a time, day in - day out.

Rooting for you brother!

Biceps & Blessings,

Coach Chris