Coaching is a partnership between two people- usaly the manager and a direct report-in which both parties share knowledge and experiaence in order to maximize the coachee's potential and help him or her achiev agreed upon goals.
This is an excellent definition of coaching & to me the emphasis is upon the idea of a "partnership." It really needs to be treated in this way.
Ryan
Rick,
Good point & I also saw your other question regarding a strict line. There is not a strict line but one that you must determine where it should be. I think the key to remember is that coaching is not about being a "buddy" to the employee but being a "friend." I compare it a little bit to parenting. I want to be my children's friend, but I am not their buddy. I'm not the person they hang with, etc. But I'm their friend in that I want what's best for them & sometimes that means giving the unvarnished truth & helping them work through that. Hope that helps.
Ryan
Coaching is a shared act of experiences, knoweldge, and opinions between the supervisor and the direct report to enhance learning and development of the employees.
Great definition & I would always encourage coaches to do more listening than sharing. Definitely look for the opportunities to share, but make sure you maintain focus on the other person.
Ryan
I think good communication is key in becomming a good coach. Coaching is more than just verbal communication. Sometimes we have to know when to stop talking and just listen.
I also try to Mentor by using my strongest attributes and sharing my experiences,good & bad, because i think it shows my team that im human too, and that goes a long way in building that trustful relationship that i think will be so important on our journey as we all grow together.
I agree that listening is a major factor in being a good coach. And it is some important to listen at multiple, deep levels, not just so we can answer a question.
Ryan
Effective coaching to me includes making sure the team(or individual) believes in themselves. If you don't believe that you can reach a certain goal, then you probably won't. Keeping things positive and reassuring them is important.
Yes that confidence is important. Fred Luthans has done extensive work in developing the idea of Positive Psychological Capital & one of those main elements is Self-efficacy. Based on Bandura's work this has proven to be a very vital quality in all workers & students.
Ryan
As I read a lot of these posts, I do agree. What I feel as a new manager myself (less than 6 months) effective coaching is to
1. Understand what I desire or expect from my direct reports,
2. What is expected from me by my direct reports and supervision.
3. And what are the variances between the two, and are the expectations realistic.
What I mean by all of this gibberish is that I would not expect my direct reports to do anything that I myself should not be doing. I would also have to find creative ways to learn all of my team member’s personalities, and how to get the results required and give them the tools that are needed.
It is just simply, figure out what needs to be done, effectively plan with the team and not to expect anything that I would never do.
Yes, knowing your individual team members is a key to effective leadership.
Ryan
For effective coaching to take place, you need to lead by example. Actions are more effective than words. If your actions develop a sense of trust than you have the framework to be an effective coach.
Absolutely & the action of listenting is a very powerful action for a coach to take.
Ryan
My defination of effective coaching is to rally your team to do the best, effective job they can do. To let them know that they are supported and to also bolster morale during the rough patches at work.
This is a great place to start with coaching those you lead. Along with this being there to listen to their concerns & helping them to push themselves further than they would normally.
Ryan
Couching is a way to guide someone to reach his/her goals. To share and exchange ideas to generate positive outcomes
Good point Dario. Coaching is definitely helpful in helping another person to reach his/her goals & to listen to them as they are encountering new situations & to learn from these.
Ryan
Coaching to me is a discussion about an individual's strengths, areas for improvement, and setting goals. When coaching the key is to work together to identify an individual's strengths. A manager should not only provide their opinion and suggestions but should also listen to the coachee's opinion and suggestions. I think effective coaching should end with goal setting on how to continue doing what works and look at ways to improve / enhance performance. Overall coaching should be a positive experience that furthers an individual in his/her career.
I totally agree. And along with this, we also need to make sure that we are keeping the coaching free from judgement. If we start doing too much of this, then the coachee will shut down.
Ryan
Great point. I think one way to monitor the effectiveness of coaching sessions would be to keep an eye on non-verbal behaviour (e.g., at any time does the coachee pull away?).
