The Coaching Question

Welcome to this bonus episode, where we reflect on changes that have occurred since our recording on these topics, this time in Season 2, and some insights we’ve had since!

When we came back to look at Season 2, we noticed a theme around investment in time, effort & money. 

Some of the things we look at include:

How the UK’s performance in recent Olympic games has benefited from the above mentioned investment. This relates to how making coaching accessible to everyone, or at least more of the population can get a great return.

One of our reflections from both seasons 1 & 2 is that the future, and the situation with Covid is uncertain, so coaching can prove an even more useful tool (as opposed to interventions like training). Leaders need to develop agility and resilience, another reason people need coaching to help them navigate uncertainty. 

The Environment section of John Anderson’s Performance Coaching model, which he has used so well with Olympians.

How we missed diversity of thought when it comes to Diversity & Inclusion agendas and this was reflected in a recent government report.

Resources:

PinkCast on FeedForward - https://www.danpink.com/pinkcast/pinkcast-4-13-this-is-how-big-time-performers-get-the-feedback-they-need/ 

Linking Developmental Action Logics to Transformational Leadership Behaviours - shorturl.at/djnC0

Welcome to this bonus episode, where we reflect on changes that have occurred since our recording on these topics and some insights we’ve had since. We started Season 1 in November 2020 when Covid cases were rising rapidly again with lots of uncertainty and we’d finished recording before Christmas and it was after this that cases took off in the UK so things have developed a lot since our initial episodes.

Some of the things we look at include:

How a return to work - or not is impacting on our clients - and the issues of the so-called great resignation.

Since we talked about team coaching, there’s been some interesting data that comes from The Team Coaching Studio, which we look at.

We also look back at mental health with some interesting data coming from McKinsey and Microsoft. 

Resources:

YouGov Survey on Returning to Work - https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-58559179

The team coaching studio  - 6 Team Coaching Trends for 2021 - https://teamcoachingstudio.com/6-team-coaching-trends-for-2021/

McKinsey - Returning to Work: Keys to a Psychologically Safer Workplace -​​ shorturl.at/aiAG2

Microsoft - The Work Trend Index - shorturl.at/vwER4

In this episode we discuss how coaching can stop leadership derailment. If you are interested in understanding how increased self-awareness of blind spots can help prevent leadership derailment - listen to this episode.

We explore how the use of tools such as the Hogan Development Survey (HDS) (the Dark Side tool) can provide insight into how strengths can be overused such that they become a hindrance to effective performance. Used as part of a coaching programme HDS, alongside other tools in the Hogan suite, can provide valuable insight and depth of understanding of why clients behave in the way they do, and why, when under pressure, their behaviour might negatively impact those around them.

Email us at [email protected]

In this episode we discuss the use of psychometrics in coaching.

We use the Myers Briggs Type Indicator quite a lot to illustrate our points, as we believe the MBTI is one of the most popular tools in use in coaching. Other psychometrics mentioned include Insights Discovery™ and the Hogan Development Survey (the Dark Side tool).

Oftentimes, coaches are selected because they are trained in how to use a particular psychometric. An organisation might have a preference for a particular tool and this becomes part of the language of that organisation, and so it helps to be able to understand and share in this as a coach and be able to use this to add value to the coaching relationship. This also helps in team dynamics.

You can argue that a coach and coachee investing time at the start of the coaching relationship taking a deep dive into the coachee’s personality is time very well spent. It helps explore self-awareness and generally inform the goals for the coaching.

We share when it is appropriate to use psychometrics in coaching as well as our top tips!

Resources:

• Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) - https://eu.themyersbriggs.com/en/tools/MBTI
• Insights Discovery™ - https://www.insights.com/products/insights-discovery
• Hogan Development Survey - https://www.hoganassessments.com/assessment/hogan-development-survey/

Email us at [email protected]

In this episode we are joined by the massively experienced coach Kim Gregory to discuss why a head teacher should invest in coaching.

Kim Gregory has been coaching in education since 2009. She works with all sorts of leaders, typically Directors and CEOs in Not-for-Profits, but she especially enjoys working with Head Teachers and Senior Leadership Teams. What matters most to her is to work with clients who yearn to grow and learn; who are seeking effective challenge and support and who want to broaden, deepen, consolidate and grow their range of leadership capability and thinking capacity around complexity.

This is an area that neither of the hosts have any experience in so it was enlightening to hear about what coaching can bring to this area that is of so much importance to so many.

Resources:

• Kim Gregory Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kimgregory1/

Email us at [email protected]

In this episode we discuss adult vertical development and how an understanding of a leader's developmental stage can radically enhance/impact on their performance and what change that might make to the coaching you do.

"Exceptional leaders in even moderately complex environments outperform their average peers by 225% " This was research by Mckinsey that confirms that the difference between average and top performing leaders becomes radically amplified as the challenge becomes more complex.

We talk about Robert Kegan’s metaphor: Fill the Cup AND Expand the Cup and share Nick Petrie’s content about Vertical Leaders.

Resources:

• HBR article Seven Transformations of Leadership - https://hbr.org/2005/04/seven-transformations-of-leadership
• David Rooke: "We are meaning making beings" - https://vimeo.com/407582498
• Nick Petrie: Vertical Leaders Part 1 - https://www.ccl.org/articles/leading-effectively-articles/developing-talent-youre-probably-missing-vertical-development/
• Nick Petrie: Vertical Leaders Part 2 - https://www.ccl.org/articles/leading-effectively-articles/developing-talent-youre-probably-missing-vertical-development/

In this episode we are joined by Sasha Scott and Jen Morris of Inclusive Group to discuss how coaching can support Diversity and Inclusion in organisations.

The role coaching might play in supporting behavioural change in organisations is a relatively new development, and one that is still taking shape.

Listen to this episode if you’d like to learn more about the difference between Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging and the different kinds of coaching that can support this work. We explore why many organisations fail to make meaningful progress in this space and examine the role coaching can play in supporting and embedding behavioural change.

As Sasha highlights, mindset is key. We talk about growth mindset, reverse mentoring, leadership, role modelling psychometrics and more.

Resources:

• Sasha Scott Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sashascott/
• Jen Morris Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-morris-she-her-a3297b15/
• Inclusive Group - https://www.inclusivegroup.co.uk/
• McKinsey: Why Diversity Matters - https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/why-diversity-matters
• The Diversity and Inclusion Revolution - https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/insights/us/articles/4209_Diversity-and-inclusion-revolution/DI_Diversity-and-inclusion-revolution.pdf
• How Diverse Leadership Teams Boost Innovation - https://www.bcg.com/publications/2018/how-diverse-leadership-teams-boost-innovation

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In this episode we discuss the Great Training Robbery and whether training or coaching is a better investment. If you’ve only got so much money, how should you be splitting your budget to get your best return?

What is the Great Training Robbery?

The Harvard Business Review article ‘The Great Training Robbery’ states that in 2012 U.S. corporations spent $164.2 billion on training and education. Overwhelming evidence and experience shows, however, that most companies are unable to transfer employee learning into changes in individual and organization behaviour or improved financial performance. A meta analysis of many training studies finds that only 10% of training programs are effective. The authors’ main premise is that a system must be changed before individual behavior can be changed through training programs.

The article present a list of ‘silent killers’ questions and if the answer to any of these is ‘yes’, the idea is that you shouldn’t start with training, but consider a coaching led intervention first. We share these questions in the episode.

Resources:

• Harvard Business Review: ‘The Great Training Robbery’ - https://www.hbs.edu/ris/Publication%20Files/16-121_bc0f03ce-27de-4479-a90e-9d78b8da7b67.pdf

Email us at [email protected]

In this episode we talk about coaching culture, what it is and the benefits of creating one. We share and discuss the five things that the coaching culture magazine says that are needed to create a coaching culture.

“Culture eats strategy for breakfast.” is a quote attributed to Peter Drucker and we agree. The only way you can be nimble enough to succeed in a VUCA world is to have a culture fit for it - and that means a culture where a coaching leadership style is valued.

Simply training managers in coaching skills often doesn’t aid in transforming a culture and we talk about the changes that need to be made, including how we need leaders to model the attributes of coaching leaders.

We’d like you to know that we offer Coaching Culture Programmes to help organisations transform in this area using our very own coaching cards. If this is of interest then please do get in touch for a conversation: [email protected]

Resources:

• Harvard Business Review Article: The Leader as Coach - https://hbr.org/2019/11/the-leader-as-coach
• November–December 2019 issue: Harvard Business Review - https://hbr.org/archive-toc/BR1906

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In this episode we are joined by Charlie Warshowski, a coach and coach-trainer and founder of Love Your Coaching to talk about growth mindset and why it matters in coaching.

This is an episode that should not only be of interest to coaches and HR, but also to any parents who are interested in how to best enable their children to be successful in what they do.

We both met Charlie through the Guildford Coaches Group where he ran a session on Mindset and confirmed how important this concept is for coaches, HR and leaders.

What is mindset?

Carol Dweck, the originator of Mindset has a much-viewed TED talk; ‘The Power Of Believing You Can Improve’, which is a quick and easy introduction. Her book Mindset, should in our humble opinion, be required reading for every teacher, educator and parent. It’s an easy read.

Neuroplasticity, also known as neural plasticity, or brain plasticity, is the ability of neural networks in the brain to change through growth and reorganisation. This phenomenon is central to Mindset. One definition of Mindset is “The established set of attitudes held by someone”. When presented with a big failure, those with a growth mindset go on. Those with a fixed mindset ‘retire themselves’ or blame others.

Here is a quote that exemplifies a growth mindset: “That we believe that rejection is feedback rather than failure. That we’re up for a challenge. That we gleefully rub our hands together when we find out something is tough”

Resources:

• Charlie Warshowski Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/charliewarshawski/
• LoveYourCoaching - https://www.loveyourcoaching.com/
• Carol Dweck: The Power Of Believing You Can Improve - https://www.ted.com/talks/carol_dweck_the_power_of_believing_that_you_can_improve
• Carol Dweck: Mindset - https://www.waterstones.com/book/mindset-updated-edition/dr-carol-dweck/9781472139955

Email us at [email protected]