Coaching has taken a large part in the everyday activity of today’s leader. From mid-level managers with 12-15 leading individual contributors, to more senior-level managers leading leaders, coaching has become an essential tool in any leader’s toolbox. Effective leaders, who place emphasis on this tool, understand that doing this the right way dictates the sustainability of success in their organization.
Leaders who are effective coaches not only inspire personal growth and development for these individuals, but they also contribute to optimal performance of their teams and the overall organization. In my experience, an effective coaching session gives equal time to both “personal aspirations” and “organizational goals.” The equal “air-time” of these two paths, with clear sincerity of the coach’s intent, ensures that the individual feels valued and it also provides a roadmap for this individual on how to be successful in their current role in your organization.
About 15 years ago, when I was in a role of a senior designer in my current organization, I wasn’t exactly in the ideal role I wanted to be in. My vice president, at that time, was instinctively great in coaching. She was relentless in driving organizational goals, yet she’s good in recognizing the individual aspirations of those reporting under her. She knew then that my goal was to get into our marketing department, which is my field of study and my interest. That year, our organization was just about to join the social media space like the other large financial organizations in the U.S. As a leader of a large part of our retail banking operations, she had a seat in our organization’s “social media steering committee.” Instead of taking on this compelling role, she gave her seat to me to represent her department. Though it added so much responsibilities on my plate, the sheer joy to have a voice on how our social media channel would evolve inspired me to work even harder. I represented our department well, and I became a vital player in launching our social media channels. But the most important part of this situation is that I became twice as productive in my current role as a senior designer, regardless of the extra amount of work I was absorbing. That same year, I was awarded a “president’s award” for my work as a designer. This is an award given to around 50 individuals out of about 20,000 employees in our organization. My success that year, both as a designer and a member of our social media steering committee, is attributed to how my VP who gave equal air-time to my personal aspirations and the company’s organization goals.
Now that we were able to frame the importance of coaching in any manager’s toolbox, let’s now talk about the five steps leaders should take, during the coaching session, to become great coaches:
1. LISTEN WITH CURIOSITY
Listening with curiosity is not only a mindset. An effective coach is great in making the subject see and feel that they are curiously being listened to. Visually, you need to show that you’re listening:
· Remove all distractions – phones, watch, tablets, etc…
· Lean forward – show that you’re eagerly awaiting what they’re about to say.
· Eyes on the ball – watch your subject, not just looking straight at their eyes. You’ll need to read their body language, micro expressions, and other gestures that would help you paint a better picture of their point-of-view.
· Watch your reactions – be mindful of your facial expressions and body language as well. You don’t want to stir the subject’s messaging based on your visual reactions. Gently nodding is a great way to show that you’re listening.
2. REFLECT WITH ACCURACY
As you take in every word your subject is sharing, reflect on it without any judgement. Framing your mindset to their point-of-view will help you understand where they’re coming from. Avoid assessing just one part of the narrative, but instead reflect on the total narrative so you can accurately reflect on their situation.
3. ASK PROBING QUESTIONS
This part of the coaching works in tandem with Step #2. Asking several and well-thought questions shows the subject that you’re truly interested in their message, and it also helps you accurately assess what the situation is. It may help you fill in the blanks and further define the narrative that is being presented to you.
4. PROVIDE FEEDBACK
Many leaders think that coaching is all about “providing feedback.” Though it’s an important part of coaching, it can be a vehicle for destructive messaging if the other steps were not done properly. Provide feedback without judgement. Be honest, without being demeaning. And, be clear and concise with your messaging. Don’t fall into the trap of doing your own narration. Be specific in providing feedback to their situation.
5. ANALYZE RESPONSE (THEN BACK TO STEP #1)
This step starts while you’re providing feedback (Step #4). Similar to Step #1, “watching” your subject for micro-expressions and other gestures is key to analyzing their response. This gives you an idea if you’re hitting the right talking points or if your message is comprehended in the way you intend to. After doing the analysis, and if further exploration is required, you’ll have to go back to Step #1 to go over the entire process, again. Do the cycle allover until you both reach a mutual conclusion for that particular session.
These steps, done properly, does not just help address the particular situation being shared with you, but it also creates a bond of trust between you and your direct report. This trust is the backbone of any team and of any organization’s success. An organization built above the foundation of hundreds or even thousands of these bonds of trust between leader and direct report at any level creates an environment for growth which is an essential element for any organization to achieve and sustain success.