Categories
Books Faith

Book: Catalyst Leader by Brad Lomenick

Click to check out Catalyst Leader on Amazon!
Click to check out Catalyst Leader on Amazon!

For more than a decade, Brad Lomenick has led Catalyst, the premier leadership brand for young Christian leaders. He’s finally distilled his 20+ years of leadership experience and his time at the helm of Catalyst into a simple, accessible and straight-forward guide to what it takes to be a next-generation leader.

Brad defines a Catalyst Leader as a “change maker”:

A leader who wants to make a difference. To make your life’s work count. To leave the world better than you found it. A change maker is someone who leverages his or her influence for the betterment of the world, to collective good of others, and the greater glory of God. And living out the 8 essentials of a Catalyst Leader is crucial for a leader to be a change maker.

What are the 8 essentials of a Catalyst Leader?

Cat50pics_C7According to Brad, anyone who wants to lead must cultivate eight essential skills and traits. They are:

  • Calling: discover God’s unique calling on your life
  • Authenticity: embrace your true identity and share it with others
  • Passion: develop an insatiable hunger for a vibrant relationship with God
  • Capable: chase after a level of excellence that will stretch you and astonish others
  • Courageous: learn to push through fear and take risks
  • Principled: root yourself in unchanging principles rather than shifting circumstances
  • Hopeful: create and cast a compelling vision for the future
  • Collaborative: build bridges with others for the purpose of learning and cooperating

Brad devotes a chapter to each of these essentials. He clearly defines each, then illustrates how challenging cultivating each of these qualities can be by using stories from his own life. Next, Brad tells story after story of leaders who embody this quality.

Each chapter also includes lots of questions and conversation starters to help you think through each of these qualities, along with some clear next steps.

Catalyst Leader‘s greatest strength is that it is very practical.

Catalyst LeaderThe Evangelical Leadership movement takes heavy criticism for how heavily its leaders draw from the business culture. That charge will be much harder to levy against Brad and Catalyst Leader. While some of the 8 essentials are certainly also valued in the business world, several are also uniquely Christian (Calling and Passion, for instance). But Catalyst Leader grounds even those essentials that seem to be more business-oriented in Brad’s specifically Christian experience.

That’s not to say that Catalyst Leader is a theological text. Though Brad brings Scripture into his discussion of the essentials, he relies more heavily on his own experiences and the stories of other leaders to illustrate the Catalyst Essentials. This is not a book for those who are looking for a theological grounding of Leadership Culture. It’s probably not going to win over any skeptics.

Who should read this book?

It's hilarious because it's terrifying!Anyone can benefit from Catalyst Leader. But it’s written specifically to people in the first half of their vocational lives who are trying to figure out how to make a difference. Intentionally working your way through the 8 Essentials will set you on a great path. Better yet, use the book with a group and hold each other accountable to make a difference in the organizations and communities you’re a part of.

When should you buy this book?

If you buy Catalyst Leader before April 21, you get over $600 of other resources! Get the book on Amazon, then check out the bonuses here! So if you’re thinking about getting it, I’d get it ASAP!

BOTTOM LINE: The Catalyst Leader distills over a decade of top-shelf Christian Leadership into a practical, easy-to-read book.

YOUR TURN: What did you think of Catalyst Leader? Which of the Essentials resonates with you? Which seems hardest?

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free for review purposes from the author. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

By JR. Forasteros

JR. lives in Dallas, TX with his wife Amanda. In addition to exploring the wonders that are the Lone Star state, JR. is the teaching pastor at Catalyst Community Church, a writer and blogger. His book, Empathy for the Devil, is available from InterVarsity Press. He's haunted by the Batman, who is in turn haunted by the myth of redemptive violence.