The ABCs of coaching for managers

Want to be a successful coach? Just remember your ABCs. Coaching gurus Kevin Eikenberry and Guy Harris list the essentials of great coaching as:

Accountability. When the person you’re coaching goes out and performs, whom does that performance belong to? You? Of course not. The coachee is ultimately accountable for his or her performance, and the coach must remember that. Otherwise coaching can turn into nannying, enabling or something else undesirable. “Great coaches promote the confidence, skill, and proficiency of the other person, and always keep the performer clear on his ultimate accountability,” is how our gurus put it.

Belief. If you want to coach someone to achieve someone’s maximum potential, you must believe in that person’s potential. If you do, you’ll coach with more passion and effectiveness, and they’ll feel your belief in them and act accordingly. You can see the corollary to this principle: If you find it impossible to believe in a person’s potential, don’t coach them. Maybe you can find someone who will.

Conversation. Great coaches create conversations, resisting the temptation to “set the other person straight” through advice.

These coaches ask lots of questions and work to learn more about the coachee in order to get that person’s ideas, thoughts, and opinions. This dialogue engages the coachee and deepens your relationship.

Source: “From Bud to Boss: Secrets to a Successful Transition to Remarkable Leadership,” by Eikenberry and Harris.

photo credit: jerebu