The skill escalator for serious #2s.
If you’re an Executive Pastor (XP), Associate Pastor, Executive Director, Ministry Leader, or trusted #2, this space was built for you.
The Second-Seat Collective is a 12-week skill escalator for executive pastors, associate pastors, directors, and trusted #2s who translate vision into reality.
Not charisma. Not guesswork.
Clarity and structure to advance your church’s mission.
▶︎ Starts Wednesday, January 14 @ 1 p.m. EST ◀︎
Learn the skills that every second-seat needs…
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Lead With Clarity Under Pressure
By the end of 12 weeks, you’ll make decisions with greater confidence, speed, and consistency — especially when stakes are high.
You’ll develop clearer judgment around priorities, timing, and tradeoffs, so you’re not reacting to urgency or emotion. You’ll leave better equipped to think calmly in complex situations and to lead from clarity rather than second-guessing.
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Support Your Pastor With Confidence
Second-seat leadership requires trust, alignment, and discernment.
Through the Collective, you’ll learn to take on responsibility without overstepping, challenge vision without undermining it, and provide support that strengthens the senior leader rather than creating tension. The result is a healthier partnership and clearer leadership lanes.
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Build Systems That Scale
Participants leave with a sharper understanding of how systems support people — not replace them.
You’ll learn how to design and evaluate structures for staff, Sundays, and workflows that reduce friction, create alignment, and sustain momentum. The focus isn’t theory — it’s building systems that function in real churches with real people.
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Lead Staff With Consistency and Care
Clarity isn’t just strategic — it’s pastoral.
You’ll grow in your ability to lead staff with clear expectations, healthy accountability, and appropriate care. Leaders leave better equipped to handle conflict, coach underperforming team members, and protect culture without avoiding hard conversations.
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Operate With Greater Authority and Trust
Leaders who lead with clarity earn trust.
Participants consistently report increased credibility with staff and senior leadership because their decisions are more thoughtful, consistent, and aligned. Authority grows naturally when leadership becomes predictable and principled.
The Highest-ROI Growth Environment You’ll Ever Join
Curated for Only High-Capacity Leaders
Most leaders spend their lives pouring out—rarely getting poured into at their own level. The Collectives give leaders a room where they’re finally surrounded by peers who understand the weight, the pace, and the responsibility of leading real organizations. This environment alone elevates thinking, sharpens instincts, and accelerates growth.
Peer Insight That Multiplies Your Perspective
The power of the Collective is the diversity of experience in the room. Leaders bring their challenges, wins, and breakthroughs, creating a shared pool of wisdom that expands everyone’s capacity. You don’t just hear one voice—you gain the insights of an entire circle of builders.
Strategic Guidance You Can Apply Immediately
Each session delivers clarity that leaders can use the same week. No theory. No filler. Just actionable insight grounded in organizational design, systems thinking, and leadership practice. Leaders walk away with tools, frameworks, and next steps they can confidently implement.
Accountability That Drives Measurable Progress
Leaders grow faster when someone is watching their progress and pushing them to follow through. The Collective provides built-in accountability rhythms that keep leaders focused, aligned, and consistently moving forward. Momentum stops being accidental. It becomes inevitable.
Real-Time Consulting on Your Real Problems
Leaders don’t just learn—they get direct input on the issues blocking their progress. Sheldon provides immediate clarity, diagnoses hidden barriers, and offers solutions tailored to each leader’s context. This is the equivalent of having a strategist in the room every month
A 12-Week Window Proven to Create Transformation
Most of the Collectives are structured around a 12-week rhythm because that’s where real change takes root. Leaders have time to absorb, implement, refine, and grow—without losing urgency. It mirrors the depth of a college semester, giving leaders the perfect balance of learning, application, and measurable improvement.
“The second seat doesn’t get the spotlight — but it carries the load. I’ve lived that reality, and it’s shaped how I lead.”
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Second-seat leadership breaks down fastest when roles are unclear.
This module helps leaders define their lane, authority, and responsibility — so they can lead with confidence without overstepping or shrinking back.
Focus areas include:
Defining the second-seat role in your specific context
Understanding authority vs. responsibility
Navigating trust with the lead pastor
Leading without competing
Clarifying decision rights and ownership
Avoiding role drift and silent resentment
Outcome:
Leaders leave with a clear understanding of where they lead, how they lead, and where they don’t. -
Vision fails when it stays abstract.
This module equips leaders to translate vision into strategy, plans, and action — without losing heart or momentum.
Focus areas include:
Turning vision into executable priorities
Aligning staff and ministries around shared direction
Communicating vision across levels of the organization
Managing tension between pace and patience
Protecting vision while adjusting tactics
Outcome:
Leaders gain confidence turning big ideas into clear, executable plans their teams can actually follow. -
Second-seat leaders often lead teams they didn’t hire — and inherit dynamics they didn’t create.
This module focuses on leading people with clarity, consistency, and care.
Focus areas include:
Leading staff through change and growth
Coaching vs. managing vs. correcting
Handling conflict without avoidance or escalation
Building trust and accountability
Developing leaders without micromanaging
Protecting team health during pressure seasons
Outcome:
Leaders leave better equipped to lead staff with firmness and empathy — without losing authority or relational capital. -
Most leadership problems are actually system problems. This module helps leaders design and evaluate systems that support people, reduce friction, and sustain momentum.
Focus areas include:
Identifying system gaps vs. people problems
Designing repeatable workflows
Ownership, handoffs, and clarity
Reducing bottlenecks and friction
Measuring what actually matters
Outcome:
More consistent execution, fewer fires, and systems that support people instead of exhausting them. -
Financial leadership is often assigned without training. This module builds confidence and clarity around budgets, forecasting, and financial decision-making.
Focus areas include:
Budgets as leadership tools
Forecasting and financial planning
Aligning resources with priorities
Managing constraints with discipline
Communicating financial realities clearly
Outcome:
Greater confidence leading financial conversations and decisions with stewardship and clarity. -
Culture doesn’t drift by accident — it drifts when leaders stop paying attention.
This module equips second-seat leaders to steward culture through clear expectations, consistent reinforcement, and courageous correction.
Focus areas include:
Defining the behaviors that actually shape culture
Reinforcing values through decisions and systems
Addressing cultural drift early
Navigating misalignment without creating fear
Holding leaders accountable without damaging trust
Modeling the culture under pressure
Outcome:
Leaders leave better equipped to protect culture intentionally — even when it’s uncomfortable.
Collective Journey
12 Weeks · 6 Core Modules
Not just talk, tools.
Annual Calendaring & Planning
Ministry calendar, rhythms, seasons, and priority planning
Budget & Forecasting Templates
Clear, defensible financial planning tools
Staff Handbooks & Employee Manual Frameworks
Expectations, policies, and clarity that protect culture
Meeting Agendas & Leadership Cadence Templates
Staff meetings, 1:1s, executive rhythms
Metric Tracking Worksheets & Dashboards
Visibility into what’s working and what’s not
Team Playbooks for Staff and Volunteers
How work actually gets done
One-on-One Meeting Guides
Coaching, development, and accountability
SOPs for Key Operational Workflows
Repeatability without micromanagement
Organizational & Leadership Assessment Tools
Clarity before change
Decision-Making & Accountability Frameworks
Consistency under pressure
FAQs
When and where do we meet?
Sessions take place on Wednesdays at 1:00 PM (EST) via Zoom, making it easy for leaders to join from anywhere. All sessions are recorded, and participants retain lifetime access to sessions.
How long is each session?
Each weekly gathering lasts 75 minutes — long enough for real strategic work, short enough to fit a high-capacity schedule.
What do I get access to?
You receive lifetime access to all session recordings, tools, frameworks, templates, and playbooks.
What makes this different from typical group coaching?
This is a hands-on, problem-solving environment where Sheldon uses your real challenges to build practical, customized solutions — not just theory or lectures.
How many leaders are in each Collective?
Enrollment is intentionally limited so leaders get direct attention, real interaction, and an environment where everyone’s voice matters.
What’s the weekly commitment outside the session?
Most leaders invest minimal additional time because the work is built directly into what they’re already leading. You’ll apply tools inside your real workflow, not add more to your plate.