Meet Carlyle Naylor | Pastor and Life Coach

We had the good fortune of connecting with Carlyle Naylor and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Carlyle, looking back, what do you think was the most difficult decision you’ve had to make?
Closing my business – a church. It was a long, drawn out decision. In reality, it took a couple of years to make the decision. It was hard because it was a death of a dream. – my dream – one that was God-given. It was obvious decision to make because the dream wasn’t coming to a reality. My dream to be a resource to people and a community, was being realized in part, But the people were taking more resource than the dream was providing. In today’s words, it was not sustainable. Although, I did feel feel responsible for the people – I was their spiritual shepherd and leader. Finally, we closed the crunch and helped people find other places to worship – I “out-shepherded” them. Eventually my dream became reignited through other venues (churches) and is still being lived out today.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I consider myself a weird bird. I have a unusually blending of the artistic and the practical, the emotional and the pragmatic, the dramatic and the realistic, an extroverted introvert…. I don’t fit. neatly any any of those categories exclusively, but am a blending of each of them. Currently I am most proud of the book I wrote about Emotional Intelligence call Emotalerting: The Art of Managing the Moment (available on Amazon). I blend some technical, (albeit layman) knowledge of neurophysiology and emotions into a practical guide to move forward with the many lessons of the past, but not to be controlled by the emotional learning that often holds us back. I tap into my troubled upbringing and how I learned to access my past to have a empowered future. Currently I am working on my second book about how important meaningful friendships are for men.

I used to think I was a change-agent. But now I realize I am a wake-maker. I make wakes in people’s lives. Picture a person standing comfortably in a pool – maybe waist deep. I am the guy who makes some waves that cause them to be off—balance so they consider some things they may be missing. What they do with the discoveries/ possibilities that “splash” onto them is up to them.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I love the outdoors – especially Arizona where I live. Depending on their physical abilities, I would take them on a hike in the Grand Canyon, mountain biking in Sedona, kayaking in the regional lake by my house. I also love to eat, so I would find places, with the help of my wife, that appealed to my friend. I also love coffee, so there would be morning coffee runs. I would try to find new coffee places to enjoy together. I would throw in a movie or two since movies it’s are one of the only things that totally enthrall me. Then we would sit around and discuss the movie – just a little bit – so as not to make the movie too much of an “assignment”.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My wife of 37 years is my second biggest inspiration. (I am a follower of Jesus and he is the first). We are very different in many ways. But as is the case for many couples and teams, we balance each other out. I usually describe the productive tension in our life and relationships this way: Tina does not hold me back, but she definitely reigns me in – and I need reigned in. I am too energetic, creative and spontaneous to gain momentum and be cohesive. She helps me be be more strategic, thoughtful and focused.

Website: Carlylenaylor.com

Linkedin: Carlyle Naylor

Facebook: Carlylenaylor

Youtube: Dr Carlyle Naylor

Other: Emotalerting: The Art of Managing the Moment available on amazon