How to Harness The Power Of The "Aha" Moment
Think about the last time you experienced a "Eureka" moment.
Likely, you saw something in a new way. You realized that this new understanding would have a tangible impact on your life.
Here are a few "Aha" moments I've had and how they affected my life:
- I realized that making disciples was less about my ability to teach and more about helping people connect with what God had already put in their hearts.
- The weight of another person's spiritual growth was lifted from my shoulders, and I was more easily able to have conversations about decisions, relationships, or any number of issues without feeling like I needed to make something happen or come up with the right answers.
- I saw that not only the person being coached's decisions, and their consequences, but mine as well were choices to be made.
- This helped me see that my growth, or change, or whatever kind of forward movement I was looking for was possible, but I needed to own it. It wasn't on someone else to show me the way, to open a door for me, or to guide me.
- In the same ways, others have an option to connect with God in their own personal journeys and can walk with Him if they seek Him and follow Him.
- I learned that helping someone see "it" for themselves was a skill, an art form even, that Jesus used, and I wanted to follow suit.
- Jesus often chose to tell stories or ask questions to create "Aha" moments.
Let's look at one of my favorite passages. This is one where Jesus is ready for His disciples to see Him for who He is. Think about other approaches Jesus could have chosen. He could have come right out with the facts and backed them up with the prophecies that were written about Him. He could have given them a teaching about honor and respect and how they should be acting toward Him. Instead, this is what happens in Matthew 16: 13-16.
When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”
“Well,” they replied, “some say John the Baptist, some say Elijah, and others say Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.”
Then he asked them, “But who do you say I am?”
Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
By asking them what they thought, He offered the power of an "Aha" moment where they got something for themselves, and it stuck!
Asking what they thought was brilliant.
If He had simply shared the truth about who He was, they may or may not have had a personal response or life change. Saying out loud, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God," was a life-changing moment for Peter and is still life-changing for those who claim Him today.
Harnessing the power of an "Aha" moment means asking a question when you could just give an answer. It means trusting the Holy Spirit is alive and well able to lead another person without your weighing in. It means honoring free will as God does with us.
Next time you are in a significant conversation, try backing up and, instead of telling the other person what you think is happening or what they should do, use coaching questions like these:
- What is a goal you would like to accomplish?
- What will it take to make steps forward?
- What's holding you back?
- How will you decide?
- What do you need to feel more confident?
- What will happen if you don't try?
- What will it cost you to wait?
Coaching is all about empowerment.
Who do you want to have empowering conversations with?