Notes For Pastors Who Lead
Honest, practical writing on pastoral health, building a team, and leading a church that grows without grinding you down — the same ground I walk with the pastors I coach.
The Gap No One Warns You About
You can't just keep increasing your leadership responsibility without also increasing your emotional resilience. Those two have to grow together in order for your leadership to be sustainable. If they don't — if responsibility climbs and resilience stays flat — the we...
The Assumption That's Quietly Costing You
What if one of your assumptions about how to be effective is actually working against you?
Here's the one I want to put on the table: competition. Not the healthy kind that sharpens a team, but the quiet, low-grade version that lives inside most of us — th...
Most pastors do not set out to become the bottleneck in their ministry. It usually happens for good reasons. You care deeply. You know the people. You can solve the problem faster than anyone else. When something is important, you step in and make sure it gets done.
That instinct may help a ministr...
Most of us assume our teams are shaped by the big moments (the vision series, the strategic offsite, the all-hands meeting where we finally get everyone on the same page). But after years of leading, I've become convinced the truth is quieter than that. Teams are built, or broken, in a handful of or...
We often think courage is something we’re either born with or we’re not.
But after years of leading people, coaching pastors, and navigating difficult decisions myself, I’ve become convinced that courage usually isn’t the problem.
Avoidance is.
Most of us know what we need to do. We simply don’t ...
Not all mistakes are created equal.
As a mission-minded leader, you know risk comes with the territory. You’re building something that doesn’t exist yet. You’re stepping into uncharted waters, trying to multiply good in the world—and in that process, you’re going to mess up.
The question isn’t if ...
What does your team actually need from you this week?
It’s a question every leader wrestles with—whether you’re leading a church, a business, a nonprofit, or your own household. You’ve probably had moments of uncertainty, asking yourself:
“Am I doing the right things? Are they getting what they
...
Ever feel like you’re stuck in a frustration loop?
You’re grinding through your schedule, checking boxes, showing up—but something feels off. You’re busy, but not fulfilled. Productive, but not purposeful. I’ve been there more times than I’d like to admit.
The good news? There’s a way out.
Over t...
Have you ever felt guilty for wanting more?
Maybe you’re the kind of person who constantly sees potential—things that could be improved, goals yet to be reached, ideas waiting to be built. You feel the pull to push harder, go bigger, stretch further.
But then you wonder: Shouldn’t I just be conten...
The Real Reason You're Stuck (And What Great Leaders Do Instead)
by Gabe Kolstad | Leadership Coach | gabekolstad.com
Let’s get real for a moment:
You’re not stuck because you’re lazy.
You’re stuck because you’re solving the wrong problem.
Most leaders I work with aren’t struggling with apat...
Recently, while working on a ministry project at a coffee shop, I ordered a 12-ounce light-iced coffee with cream and two Stevia. Pretty simple. Except it came out with way too much cream. I noticed right away, but I didn’t say anything. Instead I grabbed the coffee when they called it out, went ba...
