Effective Coaching Part 2: Moving Into Action

In our previous post, we introduced what we find to be an extremely effective coaching model—W.I. N. B.I.G. It involves six steps, three to build awareness, and three to move the coachee to action. To read in detail about building awareness, including applicable examples, check out part-one of our series on the W.I.N. B.I.G. formula. 

 

Today we are going to discuss moving a coachee into action. As a quick review, here are the six steps in this formula, starting with how to build awareness:

 

Build Awareness

·         W-onder About Root Cause

·         I-nvestigate Wants

·         N-ame Possible Solutions

Move to Action

·         B-uild a Plan

·         I-nsure Action

·         G-ive Affirmation

These steps help you create a dialogue that will increase your employee’s effectiveness and improve your management skills. Everyone involved wins big!

Let’s take a look at how to move an employee to action using three steps:

Move to Action – B.I.G.

After you helped someone Build Awareness, they are ready to implement a winning course of action and make a commitment to follow through with the plan.  Action is the key here. You can Build Awareness all day long, but if you never Move to Action, you’ve done nothing but had nice conversations with your employee. The goal here is concrete action—doing things differently to reach higher levels of success.

B-uild a Plan – Action

People love this stage.  Now you can start moving and grooving.  You can finally Build a Plan that gets you to some action. An important thing to note here is that most of this decision will come from the coachee, not you.  What is it going to take for them to implement the solution that they have chosen?  What are the tangible steps that they will take so that things look differently in the future? Your goal in this stage is to help the employee devise a realistic plan that gets them where they want to go in a do-able manner and timeframe. 

This is the stage where you get down and dirty. Vague and abstract ideas don’t work here. Remember your high-school-writing teacher who taught you the 5 W’s? Polish them off because they get lots of use in this stage.  To Build a Plan, you’ll want to ask questions like:

·         What are you going to do?

·         What steps do you have to take to get there?

·         When will you do that?

·         Who do you need to bring into the process?

·         What will you have to say, “no” to in order to make this happen?

As a coach, it’s OK to challenge your employees during this stage. The reason you’re coaching them is because they’re in their own way of success. Getting out of one’s own way can be a tremendous challenge that is usually approached with some degree of trepidation. For that reason, watch and listen to your coachee. Do you get the sense they are not believing in themselves enough or holding back somewhat? If so, challenge them by upping the ante of their actions.

As your employee is creating their plan, help them to make it SMART: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time-specific. Find a way to make things measurable—even if they are measured by ‘yes, I did it’ or ‘no, I didn’t do it.’  The action steps also need to be achievable so the people can see the progress they are making and feel good about it. Goals and tasks often need to be chunked down to manageable pieces; otherwise the person gets overwhelmed and gives up. So if necessary, break the actions into achievable pieces so they can do a little every week and be able to report on progress. The action steps also need to be realistic given the employee’s circumstances. Having someone say they are going to increase annual sales by 80% in a week is probably a bit of a stretch. Finally, be sure to have a timeline in place. 

I-nsure Action – Accountability

One of the most important things a manager can do as a coach is hold the person accountable for the actions to which they’ve committed. As the person leaves the effective coaching conversation and gets sucked back into the black-hole that is their busy life, it is natural for the insights they gained to become blurred and for their planned actions to become a bit more daunting. Left to their own devices, most people will let things slip back to the status quo and then fall back into their old routines. That’s what makes this stage of the coaching process so important. Your goal here is to Insure Action by establishing an accountability system. Having the coachee say they are going to do something is not enough. Here, you want to ask specific questions like:

·         How will I know?

·         When will you let me know how it goes?

·         How much time do you need before checking back in with me?

·         How will I know if you need a nudge?

·         What’s the best way for you to circle back to me?

It can be great to follow-up these questions with a conversation about what you should do if the person doesn’t follow through on their commitments.  Questions like these are good ways to start off the conversation: 

·         What should I do if you don’t get back to me?

·         How would you like me to follow up if I don’t hear back?

·         If you don’t follow through, how should I bring it up?

Some people prefer an email reminder, some want you to come and give them a hard time. The key here is to do it compassionately and matter-of-factly. 

Many managers say at this point, “Why should I have to worry about them following through?  If they really want to make the changes or right the problem, then they will do it. . . if they don’t, it’s their loss.” That’s understandable.  And be realistic for a second—everybody’s human. How many times have you said you were going to stop procrastinating your expense reports until the last minute, or you were going to do a better job at standing up to your boss and not backing down as quickly?

The whole point of accountability is that eventually the employee becomes accountable to herself, not you. 

Follow Up to Insure Action

The ‘action’ of an effective coaching conversation does not happen during the conversation; it begins the moment the conversation ends and the coachee leaves your office to go out and do something differently than before. Depending on the situation, after a few days or weeks, be sure to check in to see how the person is doing on their commitments.  Here are a few examples of questions you can use to get the ball rolling as you follow up.

·         How is it working?

·         How would you summarize the work/effort so far?

·         What’s working well?  What are you thinking of altering?

G-ive Affirmation – Validation

The final stage of the coaching process is one that can be used anywhere during the coaching conversation, but especially at the end.  This is very important step and one that most people forget to do.  Take the time to Give Affirmation and acknowledge their hard work and desire to grow and change.  Your purpose here is to validate the goals, efforts, and plans that the person is putting forth and to validate the strengths or qualities that you see, think, or know will make them successful as they move forward.  These statements are a time for you to encourage, inspire, and motivate by saying things like:

·         I’ve seen progress in your goals. I want you to now take a second and point out how much progress you’ve seen in the past 3 weeks. 

·         You know, you’re really stepping up to the plate.  It takes a lot of courage to look at yourself and see how you can be more effective.  It’s a sign of a real leader.

When you Give Affirmation, be prepared to follow it with a brief pause.  People are not used to hearing good things about themselves, and for many people, receiving validation is actually an uncomfortable experience.

Putting it all Together to W.I.N. B.I.G.

You are now set to WIN BIG! Using this formula will not only help you succeed but more importantly, it will help you help others succeed. Once you have determined the coachability of a situation, focus on asking questions that create a dialogue that builds awareness and then move the person to action. To do that, use the W.I.N. B.I.G. model to help you wonder about root cause, investigate wants and name the possibilities. When you have narrowed down your possible solutions, build a plan, insure action, and give affirmation to the employee as they go out to be more successful. 

Let’s share experiences. Leave a comment below, send me an email, or find me on Twitter.

 

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How to Merge Creativity and Business

 

Business is so much more than ROI and numbers. It is also about creativity and compassion. The truth is, you cannot run a successful business if you are not creative.

Bringing creativity into your leadership is more than just supplying the Playdough at a company retreat.  It is about fostering innovation and allowing mistakes to happen.

In the video below, I talk about a student who is both an artist and a business major. She was concerned that her creativity had no place in the business world and was unsure how to reconcile this.

Here is what I told her:

Have you noticed creativity playing a large part in your leadership? If you aren’t a leader, do you feel the leader at your organization is creative? I am very interested hear your experience with this.

Let’s share experiences. Leave a comment below, send me an email, or find me on Twitter.

 

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Five Tips for Effective Coaching Questions

 

People always ask me, “What exactly is coaching and how is it different from any other conversation?”

A coaching conversation is different from other conversations due to the amount of questions asked, and the type of questions asked.

In general, a coach should be doing 80% listening and 20% talking. If a coach is doing more talking than listening, then the coach is training or lecturing. There’s nothing wrong with training or lecturing, in certain situations. However, it’s not coaching. But if a coach is asking some powerful questions and then listening most of the time, you have a situation where the coachee is finding the solutions herself, instead of being told what to do. This frees up the coach to work on other projects and empowers the coachee to move forward on her own.

So what makes a good coaching question? Here are five tips to keep in mind:

1.    Keep them Open

2.    Keep them Short and Stupid

3.    Keep them Advice-Free

4.    Keep them Forward-Focused

5.    Keep them Thought Provoking

1. Keep them Open

A coach wants her coachee to determine the problem and solutions by himself. Asking open questions that start with what, who and how allows this to happen; using questions that start with did, will, have and why actually shut down a conversation. Here is an example:

Coachee:
I missed my deadline again.

Typical manager reply:
Yea, I know. Why did you do that?

Better coaching question:
What got in your way?

The typical manager reply puts the coachee on the defensive, making him defend himself. The coaching question opens up the situation, without judgment or blame. It allows the coachee to focus on what got in the way, and then eventually what he wants to be different in the future and then eventually what steps he’ll take to get there.

In my next blog, I’ll go through the other four tips for good coaching questions. In the meantime, give it a try…. when you’re next talking to an employee, student, child or colleague, practice asking questions that begin with what, who or how and see what happens. You’ll be surprised to see how the conversation opens up!

 

Let’s share experiences. Leave a comment below, send me an email, or find me on Twitter.

 

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Have You Ever Wondered How People Define Success?

Success seemed really simple in elementary school. You get an A on your math test—success! You win a game of foursquare—success! You play a solo in your band concert and don’t miss a note—success!

Adult life is much more complex than acing a spelling test every Friday. As a result, each person’s definition of success is unique.

I wanted to know how others define success, so I turned to my peer groups on LinkedIn and asked them just that. I started by sharing my definition of success in order to open up the dialogue.

What was the result? I learned that many of us hold similar ideas about success. In fact, I noticed four trends in people’s definitions of success: relationships, purpose, contentment, and the importance of striving for goals. Take a look at the wonderful responses below, and you will see what I mean.

What is Your Definition of Success?

 

1.  Success is About Relationships

David Morlah

Teamwork & Leadership Guy/Baseball Scribe

Success is making a lot of money and having power and control over other people. Okay, just kidding. I believe success is all about relationships with people. It’s maintaining long term friendships and being at peace with all in your family. It’s about forgiving those who may have done you wrong and harboring no bitterness or deep regrets. If you are loved, and if you love others, you are successful.

Ed Gilbert

Vice President Business Integration at Truven Health Analytics

Success is being able to look back in life and note the influence and guidance that you have provided to others. It is the long list of people that seek out my advice about career, business or personal matters. That is when you know you are successful.

2. Success is Finding Peace and Contentment in Life

Allan Griff

Independent Plastics Engineer/Anthropologist

David’s kidding shouldn’t be dismissed so easily. Altho its unPC among us levies to go after money and power to make more, we are surrounded and often dependent on people who have those values, and need to understand how they tick, and not just toss their values into the trashosphere. I want to free myself from such goals as “success” and prefer the idea(I) of contentment. Good health (no extremes) and good genes help. Please remember that some of us (not just us engineers) don’t thrive on personal relationships, but somehow muddle through them and find contentment in believing what we see (science) and not seeing what we believe, observing from the outside, and thinking on the inside. Yes, I want to earn enough money to free me from economic anxiety, and I want power, but over myself and not others. Anne, thank you for asking us this question. I hope lots more of us are thinking about it even if they don’t post.

Rhyz Buac

Vice President – Finance and Operations at Alenter Resort Hotels Corporation

When you are happy and satisfied/contented of what you have then you are already successful

Kathy Barany, PHR

Principal, Strategic Management Solutions

Love David’s definition…all except that first line that had us going! To me, success is personal and professional. personally, it is being healthy and happy; healthy being physical and emotional, and the happy part is all that David said. Professionally, it is being happy with what we do and having a healthy attitude towards mistakes along the way; we learn from them.

3. Success Starts With Identifying Your Purpose

Ruth M.Schimel

at Career & Life Management Consultant

 

I don’t believe there’s one definition of success because each of us has unique interests, goals, and needs. Once there is a sense of purpose, defining success becomes more accessible, varying with time and experience.

Ruth Schimel, Ph.D.

Author of “Step Into the Success You Want: Sparking Your Powers”

 

For 10 years or so I did not do much with music, which had always been probably my favorite way to find peace but also energy. I sang in an a cappella group in college and in church choirs and community choruses after that. When I moved to Texasin the late 90’s I stopped singing for various reasons. In the last two years I have begun to sing again with a barbershop chorus and a quartet or two as well as an excellent choral group associated with, but not part of, the church where I used to belong. I find that I missed that chance to perform more than I realized. It need not be singing, of course. Painting, crafts, dancing, acting, public speaking or playing an instrument are all equally rewarding depending on your talents.

Spiritual satisfaction is perhaps harder to come by. I believe, however, that “success” includes some philosophical reflection on why we are here. Without getting too preachy, we could all benefit from some soul searching about our place and purpose in the world. Many find that in a church or other religious organization but meditation or a walk in the woods or volunteering at a youth or senior center also provide insight.

Best wishes to your readers for success however they define it.

4. Success is a Process, Not a Specific Goal

Larry Smith

Business Development, The Belt’s Corporation

Success describes the fulfillment and peace of mind people acquire from nurturing and developing their minds(perpetually learning), bodies(physical/emotional wellness), and spirit(discovering maximal perspectives that yield lifelong and immediate purposes). It requires developing, implementing, and refining three strategies at once. Then the Magic happens…

Mark C. Miller

International (Latin American) Financial Risk Management

I would say that success is the process of identifying, and striving to reach, our own aspirations…perhaps we can repeatedly halve the distance to meeting those aspirations; in any case, the real success seems to come from striving for or toward something that we find meaningful, not from a final result of actually having arrived there.

Good luck to all.

Emilly Filloramo

Success & Happiness Catalyst | Confidence Coach | Author | Speaker | Nutritionist

Success is giving all that you’ve got, knowing that you did go outside of your comfort zone, pushed through the obstacles, picked yourself up after failing and doing it over and over again. All in the name of leaving this world a better place than you have found it.

Karen Fox

Environmental Research/GIS Analysis

Knowing that I have the power to turn a potential disappointment into an opportunity for gratitude.

Acknowledging that, what I might have done better today, is something I can always strive for again tomorrow. (No room for regrets)

Being there for my friends and family and allowing them to do the same for me.

(…and having my mortgage paid off!!!)

Let’s continue the dialogue.

As I mentioned in my interview with Cornell University, success to me is working with fully engaged clients, giving back to my community in the form of teaching and mentorship, and living my purpose. But what about you? How do you define success? I’d love to know.

 

Let’s share experiences. Leave a comment below, send us an email, or find us on Twitter.

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