Managing and coaching are separate roles, but they’re closely related. Managers make sure that a worker’s performance meets explicit goals; coaches strive to help people meet their potential and exceed expectations. To hone your coaching skills more keenly, follow this advice:
- Be a full-time coach. Don’t limit your coaching opportunities to regularly scheduled meetings, no matter how frequent. Look for ways to be a coach in staff meetings, workplace conversations, and even voice and email messages.
- Exercise your empathy skills. Practice reading body language and picking up on hidden emotions from nonverbal cues.
- Clarify goals. Train yourself to clearly define the behaviors you seek in other people, and which behaviors should change. The better you can flesh these out, the better your ability to suggest improvements and offer useful feedback.
- Act quickly. Closely monitor the people you are coaching so you’ll be able to provide timely and helpful feedback.
- Listen. The more someone talks about an idea for improvement, the easier he or she will become excited and committed to it. Let the person you’re coaching do most or all of the talking during your conversations.
- Light the way with metaphors. Nuts-and-bolts language has its uses, but to really teach and inspire, you have to be able to use metaphorical language that brings abstract ideas to life.
- Practice what you preach. You can’t expect others to behave in a certain way if you don’t demonstrate the desired behavior yourself.
- Provide practice opportunities. When teaching a new skill, give your people plenty of opportunities to practice. This builds not only their proficiency but also their self-confidence.
- Talk positively to yourself. Some positive self-talk—affirming your own skills and talents—will keep your morale up and will, in turn, help you to lift the attitudes of others.
- Believe in people. When you anticipate great things from others and let them know your expectations, your confidence will help them work hard to live up to your vision.