Business has ‘borrowed’ coaching directly from sports. It’s not an interpretation of what happens in sport, it’s not ‘inspired by’ coaching in sports – it is directly, and absolutely used for the same reasons;
- We want every person on the field to perform their role to the very best they can deliver.
- We want everyone on the team to know what’s really important for them to do individually for the team’s success.
- We want every player to make innovative and instinctive decisions depending on what situations come up.
- We want our teams to be mindful of the outcome they want, before they ‘run out on the pitch’ for the game.
The first thing you need to do in developing a coaching culture in your workplace is to make sure EVERYONE understands that coaching is only for our high performers. Coaching is only for people that want to be at the top of their game. It’s only for someone that wants an edge. It’s only for players who want to review their last game, and look for improvements. If your people aren’t open to coaching, it will always feel negative and is unlikely to get traction.
Spending time to individually know your players, their motivations, their strengths and weaknesses all gives you a coach’s advantage. Make sure you know what pushes their buttons – what truly drives them as an individual. You’ll then know what levers to pull to get the very best from them.