Manage like a Coach Effective managers and owners use a number of different approaches and strategies to support employees. Professional sports managers understand that athletes sometimes need a direct and blunt talking to and, at other times, patient understanding. The great managers understand which approach is wanted and needed in a given situation.
When supporting my clients as a professional business coach, I incorporate a number of strategies designed to move managers and owners toward their goals. The coaching model can be used effectively by owners when working with their staff. It can also work beautifully within a family framework. The keys to managing like a coach... Collaborate, instead of confront: The context of coaching is collaborative/cooperative as opposed to confrontive. A coach seeks to view the playing field from the same perspective as the client. When working with a client, I imagine I'm looking at the playing field over his/her shoulder instead of face to face. This can be a profound shift for many owners when approaching a difficult conversation with a staff member. Most owners dread corrective conversations with employees. Shifting the focus toward collaboration can produce a very different mood and lead to more successful results. It is more important to ask than it is to 'know': A coach asks open ended questions and genuinely explores the situation with the client. Two heads are better than one. The goal is to open new conversations that open possibilities, new thinking and new solutions. The more open ended the question, typically, the better. Fix the process and not the person: Changing people is difficult work. It is the domain of psychiatrists and the judicial system. For owners it is an ineffective strategy. It takes too long, it requires special skills few owners possess and too often the results are nonexistent or temporary. An effective option is to focus on the process. Change the way the work is done, gain the agreement of the employee to change his/her approach to the work and you stand a better chance of producing a result that supports business efficiency and success. Make clear agreements, get buy-in and follow up in a timely manner: A coach makes clear agreements with his/her client, making sure the client understands the request, has the tools, resources, and education/training to be successful. Once a clear agreement is made, the coach follows up with the client on a consistent basis to support the promise being kept. This works equally well with owners and employees. If there are a couple of areas where owners with whom I work have difficulty implementing this strategy in their business it is in setting a date for completion and immediate and consistent follow-up if an agreement is not kept. A promise to perform without a date or time for completion is a sure fire recipe for disappointment and failure. The sooner correction is made when a promise is broken, the more likely the behavior and result can be corrected. Time is of the essence. Like any skill, to effectively implement new tools and strategies can take time and practice. For many owners, supporting staff like a coach is foreign territory; for others it is a natural fit. When implementing any of these strategies, give yourself time and cut yourself some slack to learn these new approaches. Be willing to make mistakes as part of your personal growth and improved skill set and be sure to acknowledge your own small successes along the way. Warmest regards, Right-click here to download pictures. To help protect your privacy, Outlook prevented automatic download of this picture from the Internet. Dennis DuRoff Contact Dennis if you are a semi-custom or custom home builder and would like information about our turnkey newsletter for your business. <mailto:den...@dennisduroff.com?subject=please%20contact%20me%20about%20the% 20newsletter%20for%20home%20builders.> Click here and press send. (206) 722-6067 - Phone (206) 725-2263 - Fax <mailto:den...@dennisduroff.com> den...@dennisduroff.com - Email <http://www.dennisduroff.com> www.dennisduroff.com - Website --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "BETTER PERSONALITY GROUP" group. To post to this group, send email to better_personality@googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send email to better_personality+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/better_personality?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
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