Leaders Need to Coach and Have a Coach

Every four years during the Olympics, I am glued to the television. In the summer Olympics, my favorite sport is gymnastics. In the winter, I am mesmerized by the various forms of ice skating. But whenever I watch professional sports, I am reminded of the value of coaches. Athletes at the top of their game have coaches. And when they are not performing at their best, they often change coaches. Musicians are another example. They usually continue to take lessons and study even when they are masters in their field.

While executive coaching is becoming more common for leaders at the highest levels, why don’t all leaders have a coach? A coach is someone to help guide them, provide honest feedback, and share ideas or brainstorm options. It amazes me at how many people are in positions to influence the lives of others and have not studied the field, so they don’t know the best way to positively influence people.

If leaders haven’t studied leadership, where do they learn to be effective? When I ask leaders in workshops if they have ever worked under an ineffective leader, hands shoot up in the air. Yet, in my coaching experience, I’ve discovered many leaders tend to imitate behaviors they’ve experienced. This can result in poor systems and in a toxic culture without realizing the damage.

10 Leadership Practices

Here is a list of 10 behaviors and practices that leaders at all levels should keep in mind.

1. Ask questions. Lead by asking questions. Help others discover the answers.
2. Listen rather than talk. Leaders often talk too much. People need someone to listen to them.
3. Give advice instead of feedback. The word, “feedback,” often brings up negative emotions. Offering advice is more easily received.
4. Ask about learning. After every meeting, project, conversation, and decision, my professional mentor would ask, “What did you learn?” There is always something to be learned from the experience.
5. Create a culture of psychological safety. If you want people to perform, help them feel safe. Culture matters.
6. Build trust. People won’t trust you until you trust them. Trust is reciprocal and earned.
7. Anwer the question WHY. When communicating about decisions, people are more likely to accept the decision if they understand why it was made. Answering why is critical for buy-in.
8. Be a role model of desired behaviors. Leaders are being watched and mentally recorded whether they know it or not. Leaders need to model behaviors they want others to follow.
9. Practice honesty with kindness. It is hard to have difficult conversations. Leaders don’t have to be cruel to communicate honestly.
10. Develop other leaders. The focus of leadership should not be on the leader but on helping others grow and develop.

Achieving Your Potential

It is important for leaders to coach others because development is one of their most critical roles. But it is just as important for leaders to have a coach to continue to learn and grow in their own leadership skills. While there are several ways to learn (i.e., workshops, courses, books, podcasts), coaches will meet leaders where they are and personalize the learning. Olympians Alysa Liu, Mikaela Shiffrin, and Novak Djokovic have coaches to help them achieve their potential. If you don’t have a coach, should you?