Coaching Skills for Leaders And How to Overcome the Obstacles

01/25/24 • 41 min

Applying coaching skills as a leader is one of the best ways to develop people and boost employee engagement. And in fact, many leaders have attended "coaching skills for leaders" or "manager as a coach" trainings. Why then, we might ask, is not everyone in every organisation fully engaged, yet. Is coaching not working, after all?
We are convinced coaching does work, but there are factors that keep leaders from applying them.
What is coaching?
Coaching should not be seen as a remedy to fix underperformance. Coaching is not about telling people hat to do. According to Sir Joh Whitmore, "Coaching is unlocking a person’s potential to maximise their own performance. It is helping them to learn rather than teaching them."
A simple recipe for applying coaching skills at work: tell less, listen more, ask powerful questions — and all this on a foundations of trust-based relationships.
Tell less: Leaders can’t have all the answers; instead, they need to utilise the collective intelligence of the people.
Listen more: Listening is more powerful than most people think. Who people feel listened to, they feel taken seriously as a person, and this in itself can boost motivation.
Ask powerful questions: Asking triggers thinking, taps into a person’s own intelligence and leverages potential. It can create buy-in and build self-leadership. Good questions are open and often start with "how" or "why." They encourage solution-focused thinking rather than analysing problems.
Trust: Coaching is not a mechanical process. The relationship between coach and coachee is as important as a the “technique”. Without trust, coaching won’t work. Seeing the other person full of potential removes the obstacles that keep them for utilising their potential.
Not every situation at work calls for coaching though. Coaching is for longer-term development, and also depends on a persons "readiness."
Leaders can apply coaching skills informally during 1:1 interactions or team meetings, or in a more formal coaching setting.
It is paramount for leaders to invest the time necessary for coaching to work. This can be challenging because while coaching is important, it rarely ever becomes urgent.
Lastly, there is no shortcut to mastery in using coaching skills for leaders. You can't become perfect without passing the beginner stage during which you need to live with making mistakes and learning from them.
Reflection Questions for Leaders:

Suppose a miracle happened overnight, and all these obstacles that prevent you from using more coaching at work are removed. How will you start discovering that the miracle actually happened? And after that then, what will you be doing then that you are not doing now?
On a scale of 1 to 10, how confident are you today that your team members are capable to deliver outstanding work? Now, suppose you fully believed that your team members are truly full of potential. How would you then interact differently with them?
How satisfied are you with the proportion of time that you spend as a leader in the urgent but not important quadrant versus the not urgent but important quadrant?

More info about us and our work is also on our website secondcrackleadership.com
Do you have any questions, feedback, or suggestions for us? Would you like to explore how we can help you to drive results in your organisations through a company-wide initiative or individual executive coaching? Then email us at [email protected].
To connect with us on LinkedIn:
Martin Aldergård
Gerrit Pelzer

Suppose a miracle happened overnight, and all these obstacles that prevent you from using more coaching at work are removed. How will you start discovering that the miracle actually happened? And after that then, what will you be doing then that you are not doing now?
On a scale of 1 to 10, how confident are you today that your team members are capable to deliver outstanding work? Now, suppose you fully believed that your team members are truly full of potential. How would you then interact differently with them?
How satisfied are you with the proportion of time that you spend as a leader in the urgent but not important quadrant versus the not urgent but important quadrant?

Previous Episode

How to Motivate People: A Practical Guide for Leaders

Leaders often ask us, “How can I motivate my team?” or “How do I enhance employee engagement?”. Unfortunately, there is no simple answer, as motivation is a highly individual and complex subject.

But the challenge of motivating people is also what makes life interesting as a leader. Wouldn’t it be boring if we were all like robots, needing three pushes of a button, to be motivated?

Nevertheless, there are common motivational “themes”, or guidelines, that every leader can benefit from.

Key moments

[04:37] A common misconception is that people are motivated by money. While it's certainly true that people have jobs in order to earn money, once individuals feel fairly compensated, other aspects take precedence.

[09:36] Daniel H. Pink emphasises three fundamental drivers:

Autonomy is about freedom how to do the work, when to do the work, and, ideally, who with. While there are of course limits to autonomy at work, it is crucial for leaders to act as autonomy supporters.

[17:42] Mastery entails the joy of honing skills and receiving recognition for expertise. Viewing people development as an investment rather than an expense is a testament to organisational wisdom.

[23:26] Purpose extends beyond monetary gains. People yearn to contribute to something meaningful, transcending the singular pursuit of increasing shareholder value.

[25:52] In addition to “finding meaning”, the “Socio-Analytic Model of Values, Interests, and Motives” identifies two additional “master motives”:

Getting along: Humans have always lived in groups. Getting along with others has been critical for our survival as a species. Furthermore, “at a deep and often unconscious level, people need attention and approval.”

Getting ahead: At the same time, every group or social unit always has a hierarchy with an unequal distribution of power. Individual strive for status differs, but from an evolutionary perspective, a higher status allows better choices in many areas of life.

[30:04] Björn Ekenvall said, "You can't motivate people to perform. It's actually the other way around". Helping people to be successful, will generate motivation and ignite a self-reinforcing cycle of performance and motivation.

[31:15] As motivation is so highly individual, leaders need to understand the individuals they are working with: What excites them? What do they like to learn? What are their aspirations?

[34:04] Recognition and feedback signify a leader's care, fostering involvement and a sense of importance among team members.

[38:00] A leader's attitude directly impacts motivation and performance: Leaders who look at their people as heroes increase the chances they become heroes. Leaders who treat people like children might find they behave like children.

[41:30] Reflection Questions.

Reflection Questions

Autonomy: How can I give people more freedom regarding how they work, when they work, and who they work with?
Mastery: How can I nurture individuals’ development?
Purpose: Does our company have a compelling purpose and vision that goes beyond profit-making?
Personal Motivation: What motivates me as a leader? And how might this differ from others?

Next Episode

The GAPS Grid: How to Accelerate Your Development as a Leader

In today's episode, we delve into the GAPS Grid, a dynamic tool designed to propel your leadership journey forward. Crafted by David B. Peterson, the GAPS Grid offers a structured approach to self-reflection, fostering clarity and alignment crucial for impactful leadership.*
At its core, the GAPS Grid is a straightforward 2-by-2 matrix. You can visualize it by clicking here: https://bit.ly/GAPS-Grid. The 'G' quadrant represents Goals & Values, prompting introspection into what truly matters in your life. We explore reflection questions to unearth your core values and aspirations, emphasising the importance of documenting these insights for ongoing growth. [2:56]
Next, we explore the 'A' quadrant—Abilities—focusing on identifying and leveraging your strengths and capabilities. We discuss the significance of assessing whether your abilities align with your goals, so that you can choose the critical skills to develop for success. [10:30]
Moving to the 'P' quadrant—Perception—we examine how to identify how others perceive you and the critical role perception management plays in leadership success. Understanding and actively managing these perceptions is essential for navigating professional relationships effectively. [14:55]
In the 'S' quadrant—Success Factors—we delve into organisational goals and values, highlighting two critical components. [21:00] Firstly, we discuss the pivotal link between perception and success factors for career advancement. Do decision-makers perceive you as possessing the qualities necessary for higher-level roles? This perception greatly influences opportunities for progression within the organisation.
Secondly, we explore the vital connection between goals & values and success factors for intrinsic motivation. When your personal aspirations align with your organisation’s goals and values, you will find purpose and fulfilment in your work. Conversely, misalignment can lead to a sense of dissatisfaction, turning daily tasks into mere obligations rather than fulfilling contributions to a meaningful cause.
Join us as we unravel the interconnectedness of Goals & Values, Abilities, Perception, and Success Factors, empowering you to navigate the complexities of leadership with clarity and purpose.

*see also: Peterson, D.B. (2006). People Are Complex and the World Is Messy: A Behaviour-Based Approach to Executive Coaching. In: D.R. Stober and A.M. Grant, eds., Evidence Based Coaching Handbook. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, pp.51–76. The chapter is currently also available online here.
More info about us and our work is also on our website secondcrackleadership.comDo you have any questions, feedback, or suggestions for us? Would you like to explore how we can help you to drive results in your organisations through a company-wide initiative or individual executive coaching? Then email us at [email protected].
To connect with us on LinkedIn:
Gerrit PelzerMartin Aldergård

Second Crack — The Leadership Podcast - Coaching Skills for Leaders And How to Overcome the Obstacles

Transcript

Second Crack – The Leadership Podcast (Episode 30)

This transcript is AI-generated and may contain typos and errors.

[00:00] Gerrit: And to me, the answer to this question, and also the key to becoming an autonomy supporter as a leader, we can use coaching skills.

[00:12] Martin: But Gerrit, this is such an age old recommendation, and I think we've been talking about coaching skills for a long, long time, and many