Leadership coaching is a professional relationship focused on your development as a leader. A good coach will listen, evaluate, and apply their skill and experience to encourage you, and at times push you. For leadership coaching to work, you will need to be open to new ideas and strategies, learn new skills, and practice them.
Reading books, attending classes, and getting insights from others may inspire and inform you, but only you can take action. Nobody else can do leadership for you. So your effort, your courage, and your actions as a leader are your laboratory. Now, can you lead while observing your leadership? Can a finger point at itself?
If you think hiring a coach means you are weak, ask Steve Ballmer, Jack Welsh, or Oprah Winfrey. Read the biography of Abraham Lincoln, The Dalai Lama, or Margaret Thatcher. Then ask yourself why you should climb the leadership mountain without a Sherpa.
When to hire a leadership coach?
A leadership coach is rarely hired while everything is going well. Usually, there is a trigger event that causes a leader to look for help. Some of the more common drivers are:
* Your organization is under-performing. You have tried bullying, pleading, workshops, or consultants and still you aren’t happy with results * Your board or your team is dysfunctional, and you need a safe place to vent, evaluate, and discuss options * You love your work and your position, but your personal life is now suffering because you have not been able to strike a balance * You recently accepted a leadership role, and need a private place to openly explore your ideas, concerns, or weaknesses with a trusted, experienced confidante * You have been leading for years and are wondering about a career shift What kind of goals can a coach help me achieve?
Every leader has a set of goals; sometimes those are clear and sometimes they appear only after some exploration. Many goals are related to business challenges, for example – building a team, performing a turn-around, changing a strategy, dealing with rapid growth, divesting a business, retrenching, shutting-down, etc.
Some goals are more personal, for example – * You need an experienced confidante as a sounding board * You want to sort out or better balance your life priorities * You are exploring career options * You have led small teams and want to build skills and confidence How does coaching work?
Have you ever had a coach for a sport or performing art? Did you connect well with them? Did they have a track record of coaching teams or individuals to success? If you answered yes to these questions, think back on that coach and then ask yourself “what did they do for me?” Now ask yourself, what exactly is Tiger Woods’ coach doing for Tiger? What is Serena Williams’ coach doing for her?
Coaching at this level eliminates barriers and brings out your best. A good coach will be completely present with you, observing and learning all about you and your skill, your style, and your talents. A good coach will use the insights from that meticulous attention to help you perceive your strengths and areas for development. Finally, a good coach will motivate you to build confidence, technique, and unleash your talents to attain the highest levels of performance you can achieve.
A good coach should:
Listen actively. The focus should be on you. The coach should carefully listen to what you say, what you don’t say, and what you might not realize you are saying.
Ask questions. A coach should ask you a lot of questions. Some questions will push you into new insights. Some questions will clarify what you are saying. And some questions will explore new ideas that arise in the moment.
Give honest feedback. Leaders often are the ones from whom praise is wanted, and therefore rarely receive an honest endorsement or acknowledgement of their achievements. Leaders also rarely get insightful critiques due to their position of power or authority. A good coach will always give you a sincere assessment of what you do well and what you might consider doing differently.
Console, consider, and celebrate. Leaders typically cannot afford to openly explore half-baked ideas or vent their frustration. A good coach will give you a safe haven to brainstorm, dream, and freely express both your joys and your frustrations.
Challenge. The best leaders inspire greatness achieved by others. You have what it takes, or else you wouldn’t be reading this. From time to time, your coach should ask you to try new things and push you to stretch. You must choose when and how far to go.
Confidentiality In order for a coach to be of value, you must be sincere, honest, and direct. Therefore, the relationship must be private and completely confidential. If you choose to speak about our coaching to anyone, it is entirely up to you. If you have been referred to a coach by a colleague they might inquire with the coach as to how you are doing. The coach’s response to them should always be limited to thanking them for the referral and to reminding them they should ask you directly how you are doing.
If your organization is sponsoring your coaching, and if they are paying for the engagement, your organization may require a “progress-report” from the coach. If that is the case, you and the coach should jointly design the content and frequency of the reports and present it jointly to your sponsor. You should be in control of disclosure at all times.
How do you pick a leadership coach?
You can try polling your trusted friends or use a professional network like linkedin for a referral. You can also go to a professional coaching organization like the ICF to get a referral. Regardless of where you find a potential coach, you really should spend a few sessions with the coach. They should be willing to meet with you without charging you. If your potential coach is any good, they will want to evaluate your openness and sincerity before signing up with you.
How much does a coach cost?
That depends on what kind of coach you hire. A “life coach” can be had for as little as $300 per month for a weekly one-hour call. A seasoned executive who specializes in coaching CEOs and executives often works on a monthly retainer or prepaid contract and, depending on the scope of the engagement, can end up charging the equivalent of $300-500 per hour depending on the situation.
(C) 2007 BlueSeven Partners LLC, all rights reserved.
Leadership Coaching Overview - To learn more about this author, visit Michael Schutzler's Website.
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