Professional Coaches » Skills coaching

No More Mr. Nice Guy (or Ms. Nice Girl)

admin — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 10:46:17 +0000

In the last job I worked at before starting my own business, I had a manager who was – ahem – not a great person to work for. When he wasn't yelling or making rude or obscene comments, he was harshly critical of everyone in the office. It's no wonder that during my 9 months of tenure in that office, our staff went from 7 full-time and 5 part-time staff to 3 full-time staff only. After I left, leaving the office with the same amount of work for 7 full-time and 5 part-time but only 2 people, my manager was finally let go. It's a shame that it went that far.

It's difficult to pinpoint just one problem and there were other issues at play here (such as how the company didn't seem to notice that the office went from 7-plus-5 staff down to 3). But clearly, leadership was an issue. The manager thought he could lead but he relied on a leadership model of berating, humiliating, and yelling.

If you are a leadership coach, your clients are facing the challenge of how to lead effectively. It was while thinking about this that I came across an article in a Harvard Business School blog that talks about humility as a leadership trait. It was a great find – particularly as I read it in light of my previous negative experience – and considered how different the office would have looked with that kind of leader.

Humility is a terribly misunderstood trait. When we think of humility we often associate it with weakness. After all, a strong, dominant, persuasive Type-A personality may be successful and may be able to dynamically lead the troops but is probably not humble. (Gosh, if I had a nickel for every time that has turned out to be true in my experience…).

Humility, however, is not weakness. Sure, one can go too far to the other side of the spectrum and become a weak and dithering leader who can't make a decision or convince a stapler to staple. But humility done correctly is compelling and magnetic and people want to be around those who are "correctly" humble.

You can read the Harvard blog post here but I'll summarize it quickly for you:

First, they point out that just because a leader has authority doesn't mean that they need to wield it with full force. Second, promote others. This is a great piece of advice to leaders and it makes sense: If leaders take all of the credit for things, they look good. But if their team hits one homerun after another, they look even better. Third, acknowledge others. This was an interesting one and they brought in a great sports analogy to illustrate it.

This blog was a great read and should be on the "must read" for all of your leadership clients.

Brought to by you by: Contemporary VA - Run your business instead of running in circles.

@ContemporaryVA on Twitter. Follow the team to stay updated on business resources we deliver that cover strategies and tips, social media and more!

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Three Skills Everyone Should Have

admin — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 02:53:58 +0000

Murphy’s Laws says that whatever can go wrong will go wrong. Recently, I was reminded of this during a particularly crazier-than-usual week. It was a veritable flurry of mini-disasters. Now, I realize that in the big scheme of things, my flat tire or missed appointment or forgotten tasks are minor compared to the struggles and trials of other people in the world. However, when taken together, it was still an exhausting week for me!

It’s funny that we know things and then forget about them only to be reminded of them again. (If only it would stick!!!). During this past week I was reminded of 3 skills that everyone should have. And believe me, I covet these skills and wish that I reflected them more often!

Skill #1: Acceptance of adversity. When things go wrong – and they will – we need to accept it. That doesn’t mean that we have to like it, but it does mean that we have to simply acknowledge that it has happened and move on from there. There have been plenty of times in my own life and in the lives of people I coach where we face adversity and fly off the handle. Tempers flare, frustration mounts, and there’s yelling, swearing, and tension. It happens and I admit it here because I know this happens to other people, too.

But our lives will dramatically improve when we respond in a more constructive, accepting position when we are face adversity. Rather than flying off the handle, we need to accept that something challenging has happened and then we need to move on from there.

Skill #2: Flexibility. When things go wrong – and they will – we need to get flexible. Once we’ve accepted the adversity as having happened (skill #1) we need to move off of it and start working toward a solution. Flexibility means that we get creative to develop a solution to solve the problem or at least to keep us going in spite of it.

Flexibility in the face of adversity also means that we need to continue on with other things in life, too, even if part of our life is impacted by adversity. (For example, when I got a flat tire last week, I still had to get dinner ready and get the kids to bed regardless of the added tire stress).

Skill #3: Asking "What can I learn from this?". When things go wrong – and they will – we need to ask ourselves "what can I learn from this?". I was reminded recently during a huge rainstorm we had when our neighbor’s pool overflowed and ran down our sloped backyard and into our basement. Until then, we didn’t even know that our backyard sloped ever so slightly toward our house. So we did something about it.

In trying to figure out what you can learn from each situation, you can transform every experience into a personal coaching experience and you will grow from it.

Possessing these three skills – accepting adversity, being flexible, and learning from the situation – will transform how you face challenges. These skills are must-have skills for anyone and they make ideal coaching topics to help your clients, no matter what kind of coaching you might do.

Contemporary VA

@contemporaryva on Twitter. Follow us to stay updated with our many resources that include business, accounting and bookkeeping, social media, and much more!

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International Coaching Federation

admin — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 15:41:54 +0000

The International Coaching Federation (ICF), is an organization that not only awards credentials for professional coaches, but also offers a goldmine of information and resources to its members.

According to the ICF, the following are the core competencies of professional coaches:

Setting the Foundation
Co-Creating the Relationship
Communicating Effectively
Facilitating Learning and Results

Regardless of what type of coach you are, these core competencies ring true. Without them, it would not be possible to support or guide clients toward an appropriate goal. But, do these competencies look the same in all types of coaching? Are they applied the same by life coaches and executive coaches? Or is it more about the individual coach rather than the type of coaching? Every coach implements these competencies in one way or another, but depending on the coach, more focus may be given to one competency over another.

Members of the ICF are also listed in a directory on the website. A potential client can enter in several pieces of qualifying information including geographic location and type of coaching desired, and then a list of ICF member coaches is displayed.

This added marketing benefit may be reason enough to join, the additional credentials notwithstanding. For many potential clients, additional credentials can be a relief. There has been some buzz over recent years regarding the regulation of the coaching industry. As such, having additional credentials may put potential clients at ease.

They are in the process of updating and redesigning their website so we’ve found that a few of the links aren’t working but we’re sure they’ll be fixed once they get the kinks ironed out.

Lisa on behalf of Contemporary VA

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Choice Magazine

admin — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 16:38:08 +0000

The December issue of Choice Magazine analyzes the differences between individual coaching, group coaching, and team coaching. Choice Magazine, if you’re unfamiliar with it, touts itself as “The Magazine of Professional Coaching.” The magazine itself has recently celebrated it five year anniversary.

If the topic really interests you, I suggest you check out the article. It is not available to read on the magazine’s website, but subscriptions are inexpensive. For a one year subscription to the hard copy of the magazine, the cost is $39.95. If you wish to receive an electronic version, the cost is $19.95 for a one year subscription. Of course, the longer you subscribe, the less you cost per year will be. The magazine releases issues quarterly.

Of course, whether to use individual, group, or team coaching is dependent entirely upon the type of coaching you do and the context. Each of the three types will be successful in any arena, if done properly.

There are coaches who prefer individual coaching regardless of the situation, and there are coaches who prefer the opposite. It is best to take into consideration what may be best for the client, rather than what we personally prefer.

Either way, Choice Magazine is a good resource for coaches and worth taking a peek at.

Lisa on behalf of Contemporary VA

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Time Management Coaching Resource

admin — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 15:46:15 +0000

All coaches have their own strategies and methods. Of course, all coaches have to focus somewhat on time management. Maybe some more than others, such as organizational coaches, but their secrets can be useful to us all.

No matter what the specialty, all coaches have clients with organizational or time management issues. This can be especially trying if you’re a new coach or if you are not particularly used to dealing with the issues. We can research methods, share our personal experiences with clients, and do any number of other things, but sometimes it takes something concrete, on paper, for a client to find it useful.

Someone recently shared with me an amazing resource, and I hope you’ll check it out. The site is a goldmine of resources, with articles, blog posts, and printable documents as well. The author is David Seah, who writes about “productivity and other methods of empowering ourselves.”

There are some amazing resources in Seah’s Printable CEO Series. The resources in this series would be perfect to give to clients with issues or concerns over time management and organization.

Take a look at the series and decide for yourself if it’s worth passing on to clients. As with many resources, it may not be perfect for every client, but it will likely be just right for others.

Lisa on behalf of Contemporary VA

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Putting Stress into the Proper Perspective

admin — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 02:18:35 +0000

When life’s little stresses get to be a bit too much, have your clients ask themselves: "Will this really matter five years from now?" You’ll find that this quick tip can really help place any immediate stressors into proper perspective. Finding out you’re wearing two different colors of socks or running out of an ingredient for tonight’s dinner may still be stressful at the time, but relatively unimportant in the grand scheme of thing. This is a great coping technique which will allow your clients to give themselves a break and focus on what really needs immediate attention. Another way to keep life’s little stressors in perspective is to have your clients find something to be grateful for or to divert their attention. Sure – the different color of socks can be embarrassing, but when these things happen (and can’t be immediately changed), advice your client to purposefully look for something else to focus upon. If he can place his attention upon the new falling snow or the colorful holiday lights, it takes his mind out of the immediate situation. Learning how to properly handle stressors is so very important today, especially when there are so many external pressures that can’t be changed. Using a few tips and tricks can certainly help everyone get through a tough day.

Linda for Contemporary VA

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The 3 S’s of Personal Finance

admin — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 16:58:37 +0000

Turn on the TV or read the news and you’ll see stories of the millions of Americans struggling financially. As a culture, we remain blind to the devastation of bad financial decisions until we are completely overwhelmed. And, when the economy is shaky, the chance that families will break apart and lives will shatter just increases.

Because finances play such a large role in a person’s well being, coaches must definitely address the subject by bringing a plan with them to the table. I like to use 3 S’s to explain how financial goals should be set and believe other coaches could use this same system with great results. The 3 S’s are: stabilize, standardize and simplify.

Stabilize
In the step of stabilization, families need to quit adding to debt, especially credit card debt. Because debt can easily grow large and create stress fractures in any family unit, stopping the outflow of money that hasn’t even been earned yet is a priority. Another step in the stabilization process is to track cash spending for a month’s time.

Once the spending habits have been stabilized, it’s time to determine how to standardize finances.

Standardize
In the standardization process, the family creates a spending plan by putting essential spending first. This includes the rent or mortgage, utilities and taxes. This is similar to creating a budget, but should be flexible enough to handle emergencies and should include “fun” spending money. Using the tracking done in the stabilization step can help a family create a realistic plan they can live with.

This step also includes building a savings plan. Since savings is the financial rock upon which families need to stand upon, this step needs to be implemented as soon as possible.

Simplify
Once the plan has been built, it’s time for families to simplify their financial choices. Help families understand how important it is to determine the difference between wants and needs. Yes, a family might need a car for transportation, but the choice of a BMW versus a Chevrolet is a want. If the family is really struggling financially, helping make some changes to simplify and downsize might be a great longer term option to get the family back on track.

By implementing the 3S plan, families can begin to make their money work for them – instead of having to spend all their time working for their money.

Linda at Professional-Coaches.com Similar Posts:

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Skills Coaching

admin — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 21:24:04 +0000

Skills coaching has some commonalities with one-to-one training. Skills coaches combine a holistic approach to personal development with the ability to focus on the core skills an employee needs to perform in their role. Skills coaches should be highly experienced and competent in performing the skills they teach. Job roles are changing at an ever increasing rate. Traditional training programs are often too inflexible or generic to deal with these fast moving requirements. In these instances one-to-one skills coaching allows a flexible, adaptive, just-in-time, approach to skills development. It is also possible to apply skills coaching in live environments rather than taking people away from the job into a classroom where it is less easy to simulate the job environment. Skills coaching programs are tailored specifically to the individual, their knowledge, experience, maturity and ambitions and are generally focused on achieving a number of objectives for both the individual and the company. These objectives often include the individual being able to perform specific, well-defined tasks whilst taking in to account the personal and career development needs of the individual. Skills coaching is not the same as the approach to on the job training. What differentiates it is that like any good personal or professional development intervention, it is based on an assessment of need in relation to the job-role, delivered in a structured (but highly flexible) manner, and generates measurable learning and performance outcomes. This form of skills coaching is likely to focus purely on the skills required to perform the job function even though it may adopt a facilitative coaching approach instead of a ‘telling’ or directive style. Are you a ‘Coach’? Are you a business personal or professional coach? we would like to hear from you, write us at admin@contemporaryvacom Professional-Coaches.com

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