Leadership Styles Series: Coaching
Coaching is one of the most effective leadership styles that can transform, empower and unlock people’s potential - Farshad Asl
Learning to Lead returned live this week after a break last week. We came back to an engaging live discussion as part of our continuing series on the 6 most common leadership styles. This week we discussed the coaching leadership style, what it is, the traits and characteristics, and how to utilize this style. I highly recommend listening to the full replay below, but here are some takeaways:
What is Coaching Leadership?
A leader who works with team members to develop them, building engagement and focusing on improving team members to become better professionals in the long term. Coaching leaders focus on bringing out the best in their teams by guiding them through goals and obstacles.
Characteristics of the Coaching Leader:
Fosters a Collaborative Environment: Spend a lot of time with team members and provide clarity on the purpose as well as the long term goal and how the goal will be accomplished.
Mind Set: Think creatively about how to approach the coaching process so that each team member is developed and the team collectively aches the best results.
Scaffolding: Coaches function as teachers as they guide team members towards honing their skills, gradually reducing coaching so each team member develops a greater sense of autonomy
Feedback: Coaching leaders provide timely, specific, actionable, and constructive feedback that is necessary for growth.
Self Motivation: Coaches invest time to motivate team members to hone their skills and become the best version of themselves
Empathy & Trust: Building trust fosters belief & sincerity in formulating how the individual can grow personally & professionally
The benefits of this style:
Helps people improve their skills so they can perform at their best
Creates a work environment where people are highly motivated, eager to learn and willing to collaborate
Team members know what is required of them in developing skills needed to accomplish their tasks & goals
Creates promotional opportunities
Builds a highly-skilled workforce
Lots of Constructive Feedback - Creates awareness of weaknesses and a plan to transform these into strengths
“Leadership is about making others better as a result of your presence and making sure that impact lasts in your absence” ~Sheryl Sandberg
Challenges with this style:
This style requires a lot of time and energy
Lack of time can ruin the best of intentions and ultimately impact the team’s confidence and trust
It can be challenging and many may struggle with being effective coaches and ineffective coaching can threaten the organization
Requires confidence, experience, intuition and the ability to give good advice/direction
Not ideal for high-pressure strictly results-driven organizations as this style does not always lead to the fastest most efficient results
How to use this style:
Ask empowering questions (who, what where, when) versus closed-ended (yes/no) questions. This builds confidence and rapport to openly discuss their thoughts, ideas and concerns.
The best ways to develop coaching skills are to practice them every day, receive training or ask for feedback from your team on how you can improve. Remember it is about two-way communication so be equally receptive to answering questions as well.
Help team members find the solution - they have the answer - and you can help bring it to the surface
Foster trust and safety with belief in your team member’s potential, intentions and active listening and feedback
Apply this style in one-on-ones, during evaluations, or when working with a newly promoted team member or leader
Leadership can feel far more like art than science, but understanding and exploring tools and resources can help us along the way. Understanding leadership styles is one way for us to practice self-awareness as leaders, know when to flex between styles, and how to teach our teams these same lessons.
A coach is someone who tells you what you don’t want to hear & who has you see what you don’t want to see so you can be who you always knew you could be. -Tom Landry
Listen to the Full Replay
Resources
Leadership Styles discussion and takeaways from a past live Learning to Lead event
The 6 most common leadership styles covered in Daniel Goleman’s book, Leadership That Gets Results
The Leader as the Coach - The authors explain the merits of different types of coaching—directive, nondirective, and situational—and note that sometimes no coaching at all is appropriate. They describe how managers can use the four-step GROW model to become more skilled at listening, questioning, and drawing insights out of the people they supervise.
What is your leadership style quiz - a short quiz to assess what leadership style is
Leaders who coach are creating better workplaces, and so can you. - A Ted Talk that unpacks how coaching leaders are creating better workplaces
Events
Barnes & Noble is hosting many live and virtual events this month
Camp Victore - April 2022: an all-inclusive, intimate in-person workshop, salon, creative bootcamp, exclusive retreat, and wholly transformational ass-kicking experience that is designed to take you to the next level in your life and business.
FORTUNE Brainstorm Health 2022 - May 2022: Join the Brainstorm Health community-- a powerful gathering of leaders at the crossroads of business, health care, technology, and innovation.
Learning to Lead LIVE
The next Learning to Lead Live event will be on Saturday, April 9 @ 9:30 am PDT. The topic will be announced on Wednesday (March 16) so be sure to subscribe for updates!
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