Wow. Now hiring a coach is an investment in people who are seen as very solid performers. A July 2011 American Management Association survey shows half of the respondents use coaching to prepare individuals for a promotion or new role. While 1/2 provide coaches to mid level or senior staff only, 38% make them available to anyone

So it looks like coaching is here to stay. But is it right for you? Let’s dig a little deeper into this subject this month.

And since it is Thanksgiving month, I’d like to say Thanks For Giving to all my clients who helped me have a record year. It’s not about money, but the opportunity to serve and make a difference in people’s lives. And for that I am very grateful!

To gratitude and abundance!

Who Gets Coached?

Coaches seem to be everywhere. Many see them as a personal trainer for business. My all time favorite coach is Marshall Goldsmith.

I got to be a coach for him back in the 90’s and I was impressed enough to continue coaching and developing my whole career! Goldsmith and his associates recommend that a coach work only with leaders who:
• Are considered good coaching candidates.
• Have high potential within the organization.
• Have not committed an integrity violation.
• Are willing to make a sincere effort to change.

His model for behavioral coaching outlines a reliable process to help leaders achieve positive, measurable changes in themselves, their staffs, and their teams. First, the coach secures an agreement with the client (the organization) and the leader being coached with respect to two key variables:
1. What are the key behaviors that will lead to the greatest positive change in leadership effectiveness?
2. Which key stakeholders should determine (one year later) if this change has occurred?

There are specific behaviors that can be identified through the use of multi-rater assessments (360), where people in the leader’s world give feedback on their perceptions in different areas. It’s important to note that a coach will encourage and work in only a few areas that lead to growth:  focusing on a few behaviors that would have the greatest impact in effectiveness and by leveraging the strengths of the client. It’s not about addressing every little behavior that could be better, but just a few!

Why Do Leaders Give Up?

I’ve seen situations where coaching has been ineffective. When it comes to change, some leaders lose motivation and fail to “stick with the program.” Regardless of a coach’s competence, failure to achieve goals may occur for several reasons:

• The leaders was forced into the relationship (they needed “fixing”) and they have no skin in the game, ownership, so they play games.
• They get impatient. Behavior change takes time, especially for others to notice, even after change has been made!
• Distractions appear! By planning for distractions in advance, leaders can set realistic expectations for change.
• Rewards are often later. Achievement of one goal doesn’t immediately translate into achievement of other goals.  They may give up when these things fail to materialize instantaneously.
• Ongoing maintenance is required. Leaders must recognize that professional development is an ongoing process, with a lifelong commitment. Leadership involves relationships. Relationships and people change. Maintaining positive relationships requires long-term effort.

Ground Rules of Coaching

There are things to consider when contemplating offering coaching to your leaders.

• Some things must remain confidential to the company in order for trust to be allowed in the relationship. Aligning coaching goals with the organization’s principal objectives is crucial, as coaching isn’t merely an exercise in personal improvement!
• The different relationships must be clear: boss (or HR), person being coached and the coach
• Method of information collection (360 or observation) needs to be explicit and supported.
• Judgements, objectives and progress need to be objective, and there must be honest sharing.
• Define the parameters of the engagement. Usually this lasts from 12-18 months. The coaching relationship requires discipline and boundaries for progress to occur.
• Key stakeholders need to let go of the past and offer “feedforward” rather than feedback. They need to offer support and complete honesty.
• It takes a village–stakeholders should know what the leader is working on and offering suggestions, a two-way street, allowing stakeholders to serve as “fellow travelers” in the quest for self improvement (as opposed to singling out one leader who must change). It also greatly increases the value the corporation gains throughout the entire process.

Long fascinated with Buckingham and Rath’s work on strengths, I got to attend a local coach group of organizational development folks. The topic was using StrengthsFinder 2.0 for leadership development. Wake Forest shared their experience with the group of having their leadership take the Gallup assessment as millions of others have done and then identifying everyone’s top strengths on a large grid.

It’s interesting to see a composite of a group when you have 34 different themes or strengths available. You can see if there are any similarities or commonalities in this profession.

I’d like to take it further though.

The concept, as Rath so vividly states, it that from the cradle to the cubicle, we devote more time to our shortcomings than we do our strengths. From grade school report cards (didn’t your parents want you to bring up your lowest grade?) to required courses in college you HAD to pass in order to get your degree ( even if the subject was so foreign to you) to  performance reviews at work that focus on “development plans”, we have all experienced the joy of having to improve in areas we’re just not that passionate about. Even Einstein was labeled a poor student because of his shortcomings! What about what we are good at along with our passion too? Why take the road of most resistance?

The key  to human development is building on who you already are!

I have VISION. What if we did focus on everyone’s genius and gave them a chance to use that talent often? What would happen then? Join me as I explore this topic and please do comment. I want to hear all you have to say about this approach!!

What are strengths ?

Let me explain the differences in terms. Talents come naturally, but strengths are earned.:

• A strength is the ability to have near perfect performance in a specific task to produce a positive outcome over and over again. At work, it can be the ability to consistently recommend the perfect products and services for a customer’s needs-that is a strength! At home, it can be the ability to always meet your family’s grocery needs on a tight budget.

A strength is made up of the following:

1. Skills: your basic ability to perform the steps of a task. We aren’t born with them; we acquire them through formal or informal training and practice.
2. Knowledge: What you know. Again, knowledge doesn’t naturally exist within us; we acquire it through formal or informal education.
3. Talents: The ways we naturally think, feel, and behave. Talents must come into existence naturally and cannot be acquired like skills and knowledge. We all have unique talents within us.

Your most powerful talents represent the best of your natural self and are your best opportunity to perform at levels of excellence through strength. You have dominant talents which are always at play and you have supporting talents when their support is needed, although they aren’t as powerful. Your lesser talents seldom contribute to strength.

You can take the Gallup’s Clifton StrengthsFinder 2.0 assessment by buying the book, $11 at Amazon, and using the code at the back of the book for the online assessment. Also keep in mind your yearnings (from childhood on that lead you to a particular activity or environment time and time again), rapid learning (that spark that comes when you’re in a new challenge or environment), satisfaction (the psychological fulfillment that results when you engage your talent and get energized),timelessness (“flow” state where you lose track of time because you are engaged at a deep, natural level), and glimpses of excellence (flashes of outstanding performance).

If you’ve ever worked with a coach, you may have been asked to recall these times in order to figure out your life purpose. They are important clues to your greatest talents and potential for strength.

What is next? Are you IN?

If you’ve been wondering how to harness the power of strengths in your business or personally, let me know your interest.

On an individual basis, self awareness is a powerful cornerstone for growth. Coaches can help you on this journey.

In business, imagine how strengths can provide you with a huge competitive advantage. When employees get to use more of their strengths, they are more engaged, productive and easier to retain. It’s a win-win for everyone because this can create a culture of happiness and intrinsic satisfaction.

Soft Solutions is embarking on using a strengths-based approach in leadership by providing a talent portal for labor deployment. Creating an ad hoc team on a short-term mission can enable powerful results in quicker time if the right strengths are used on the team.

Interested? Email Corliss@HRMomma.com for a free consultation of how this can be accomplished at your organization.