Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Bobby Hulme-Lippert. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Bobby thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear about a time you helped a customer really get an amazing result through their work with you.

Tom came to me after 2+ decades of building a successful career. He had titles, degrees, and awards that declared to all around that he was quite successful. And yet he felt lost. When he tried to give expression to how he felt, he sent me two songs. “These lyrics say it all,” he said. One was “The Logical Song” by Supertramp, which includes the following poignant lines, “Logical, oh, responsible, practical. Then they showed me a world where I could be so dependable
Oh, clinical, oh, intellectual, cynical… Please tell me who I am.” The other song was “Working Man” by Rush, which repeats the lament, “it seems to me I could live my life A lot better than I think I am.”

The particular challenge that was bringing this to the fore was this: a large corporate company had offered him an incredible position that would take care of him and his family for the rest of his days. But he worried deeply that taking the offer would feel like ‘more of the same’ with regard to being lost in work that he did not really care about while always wondering what he truly was about. Plus, he had this nagging sense that this was a season to risk his own creative, entrepreneurial endeavor where he could have meaningful freedom to express his gifts and control the direction.

My coaching method involves walking along trails, remaining compassionately curious, and helping clients return to their core, essential, and unique selves – and then live and lead from that center. And so, for six months, we walked local trails every other week.

Early on, he spoke of the ‘waves of society’ pressing behind him – telling him that taking the corporate job is what he has to do. Must do. Everybody does! The pressure felt relentless. We explored what ‘voices’ were behind the pressure and why it felt so acute.

Eventually, after many walks, he emailed the corporate group and declined their offer. He was going to risk his own endeavor.

“What about those waves, Tom? How are they feeling right now?” I asked a few days after his decision.

“I feel like Aquaman,” he responded, grinning. “I mean, the first 48 hours after naming the decision felt pretty scary. But now, honestly, I feel I can move the waves how I want. Or at least work with them. Surf them. Navigate through them.”

Rediscovering his true self and acting in integrity with that was deeply empowering for him! From there, he began building the action steps while making plans for how to return to this inner clarity once some of the waves grew challenging again.

A couple of days later he sent me another song. “This is what I feel like now,” he said.

The song?

“Freewill” by Rush.

The chorus declares time and again, “You can choose from phantom fears and kindness that can kill. I will choose a path that’s clear, I will choose Freewill.”

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

For nearly two decades, I served in professional ministry. I was in the US Army Chaplaincy, and I served diverse congregations of in Atlanta, GA, Richmond, VA, and Georgetown, TX (just north of Austin). During that time, I discovered that the most essential ingredients for helping people truly change and grow involved:

1. Space where people trust they can be vulnerable and honest
2. Space where stories are shared and heard
3. Space where active listening and thoughtful questions are prioritized (as opposed to lot of advice-giving or a deluge of information)

More, I continually discovered that the busyness of our culture is not only deeply exhausting for many – it is almost like a tornado that separates people from their true, essential selves (I know, it happened to me). Many have titles, attire, or even zip codes that suggest ‘success,’ but they feel disconnected and even alienated from who they are, and they don’t know where to turn. All they know is that they feel a dull, on-going ache that they often try to numb or bury as they continue with their outward success. Or at least continue with the script they feel they have no choice but to live.

How could what I knew about change/transformation help people who felt stuck, exhausted, or lost on their path?

While I loved serving in the church, leading services of worship and unique programs, I found myself wanting to be true to my unique gifts, especially as they relate to helping people truly come back home to themselves – a gift that frees people for profound levels of vitality, clarity, and conviction when it comes to their life and leadership. So, a year ago, I left my position as a Pastor/Head of Staff to begin BHL Coaching, LLC where I help professionals of every kind lead and live from their true selves.

– This kind of work is not about helping people get more information but discover transformation.
– This kind of work is not about me providing answers but rather me facilitating thoughtful, contextualized questions.
– This kind of work is not ‘one and done’ but is a journey of growth, much of it on hiking trails where there is time and space for the essential ingredients of transformation to occur (see above). Most of my offerings are 3, 4, and 6-month journeys.

Fundamentally, this kind of work requires people who are naturally creative, courageous, curious, and driven – and who realize that their growing edge is not another conference, book, or package – but an inner journey that transforms everything on the outside, too.

What is unique about my approach?
– I begin my coaching process with a One Day (morning/afternoon) Immersive hiking through the outdoors (even for remote clients, who fly to Austin for this). This allows for deep trust, growth, and momentum to build significantly right off the bat.

– I do most of my coaching outdoors – recognizing that nature itself is part of the healing, discovering, and teaching method.

– After nearly two decades of pastoring, which involved a lot of counseling and preaching, I am uniquely attune to metaphors that people use for their own lives. I help clients see and hear their own metaphors, which became compelling anchors for helping them see their unique story – where it’s been and where they want it to go.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

I have learned to be me.

When I first began as an entrepreneur, I was captivated by all the glitzy posts on social media that promised 10x growth etc. I often felt I needed to find my key tagline and ‘beyond belief’ promise and then keep saying it over and over with great graphics. Then I learned a little more and heard I needed to focus my efforts toward an ideal client avatar toward whom I should highlight my work and reputation. This never sat great with me because, while I can certainly appreciate the aim of the idea, it also feels like it lessens/cheapens the people we serve.

I have since continued to learn more and more about building a reputation via social media, email, personal relationships etc… and, honestly, what I have finally come to see is this – just be Bobby.

It’s like my coach told me, “your brand is others’ experience of your soul.” I love that.

“Let me help you experience my soul and let’s see if it feels like a season where my work can help your work,” is the sensibility I began finding within based on his comment.

Or again, it’s not unlike Rick Rubin said recently in an interview about his most recent book: “Something I say in the book is that the audience comes last. And I believe that. I’m not making it for them. I’m making it for me. And it turns out that when you make something truly for yourself, you’re doing the best thing you possibly can for the audience.”

At this point, the most important things I to do build my brand are these:
– Taking quiet space at the front end of the day to re-ground into who I am. The inner work allows the soul to be clear for expression in all the outer conversations, content creation etc.
– Take a few deep, centering breaths before potential client conversations. I don’t want to ‘sell something.” I want to connect, to serve, to show up fully as myself – and if there is something that is helpful in that then the ball can and does move forward.
– Write content that is fully ‘me,’ which means it is often story-ified because I am a storytelller at heart
– Be regular about content in four key arenas – my email list, Instagram, Linkedin, and Substack. That might sound like a lot but…1) I repurpose content and 2) I don’t do content if it feels like I am ‘pushing.’ Content creation is work, yes, but it’s work I truly enjoy when it’s an expression of me. So ‘regular’ feels good and right.

How do you keep your team’s morale high?

Last year our two-year-old, Logan, was getting fussy, and I was confident what the issue was.

“You’re getting hungry, huh?!” I asked.

He nodded vigorously. Immediately put together his favorite – lukewarm oatmeal. I stirred it just so, scooped a spoonful out, and began delivering it directly to his mouth. Problem solved in less than a minutes time!

Except…except this time Logan began screaming at the top of his lungs, waving his hands wildly, and eventually finding a way to grab the spoon from me and chuck it across the room. The first couple of times he did this, I was completely lost.

He really was hungry. He really did (and does!) love oatmeal. Eventually, it dawned on me…

“Oh, you want to feed yourself.” He nodded. I let him. It was a complete mess but… you know what? He had a huge grin as he fed himself for the first time. And he got better each time, too :)

The gift of children is that they often have a way of reminding us of the very simple but very fundamental things that go into great leadership (and parenting, and relationships etc)… in this case, it was clear as day: the thing people from crave from birth all the way through life is a sense of agency. A sense that they are trusted to take ownership or a project.

People desire to be creative. To make a mess and maybe even ‘fail’ – but always in service of growth.

One of the best things a leader can do to maintain high morale is to entrust each team member with their own ‘spoon,’ and not dictate how things need to go. Even better? Give the whole team a collective ‘spoon’ (project) where they really get to own the process.

A couple other things that help maintain high morale (they also relate to what children teach us)?

1. Play – find creative outlets for the team to bond/grow over things like a cooking class, a gardening project, or something that the team itself chooses and helps design (this is frequently the most effective option because, again, there’s that agency/ownership piece at work, too). Play has an expansive effect on our brain, problem-solving abilities, and team-building/strengthening.

2. Practice Recognition – find ways to offer gratitude regularly to those on the team. Pro Tip: be specific about what you appreciate and how that thing contributes to the values and direction of the organization. What gets rewarded gets repeated.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://bhl.coach
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bhlcoaching/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bolippert
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hulmelippert/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCT4Oz9W_JXm2BXi2eDMnZRg
• Other: https://bobbyhulmelippert.substack.com

Image Credits

Photo with the bridge is by Tim Swaan