You may have been considering the question is leadership coaching for me and/or a member of my team.
What is leadership coaching, when might I use it, what are its pros and cons are four good questions to ask yourself during your deliberations.
What is it?
Coaching focuses on personal development. It is about setting goals and using techniques and tools to help to achieve those goals.
When to use it?
Coaching is great for developing strengths and addressing weaker areas of behaviour through skills development too. I also use it to help my clients to develop helpful beliefs and values and work towards a sense of identity.
It is important to grasp that we all have strengths and weaknesses, that we carry on learning throughout our lives and experiences.
What are the pros of coaching?
My clients tell me that the greatest pro is specific individually tailored huge amount of learning.
What are the cons of coaching?
For me, if coaching is the appropriate vehicle for development then there are no cons.
However, coaching does involve being challenged with sometimes difficult questions to answer that might be uncomfortable for some leaders.
Most sponsors of coaching would do well to emphasise the vast benefits of coaching to their leaders whilst preparing them for the challenging questions that are part of coaching. I would suggest that you reflect on that.
To speak with a professional coach please get in touch via 01761 237400/enquiries@westofenglandcoachingandcounselling.co.uk
Tuesday, 28 October 2014
Tuesday, 21 October 2014
Coaching to achieve results
Are you happy with all of your results including those in your work and personal life?
Research shows that we prefer to come up with our own solutions to our goals and challenges.
Effective coaching is a way of helping you to come up with your own solutions and get the results that you want.
Effective coaching taps into your motivation and your own initiative and creativity, through providing you with knowledge to make choices about how to use your mind.
Research also shows that where there are better conversations in organisations they are better equipped to assess reality and as a result get better business results.
Better conversations are at the heart of coaching at organisational, team and individual level.
Better conversations with others lead on from mastering your own psychology including building and maintaining a good level of confidence resulting in a belief such as 'I can achieve the results that I have in mind'. Say this to yourself as many times as you can over the next week and notice that ideas to help you to get there start to arise in your mind.
If you would like help with any challenge or goal that you have in mind, please contact us on 01761 237400 or via enquiries@westofenglandcoachingandcounselling.co.uk and we can set up time to see how we may be able to help you.
Research shows that we prefer to come up with our own solutions to our goals and challenges.
Effective coaching is a way of helping you to come up with your own solutions and get the results that you want.
Effective coaching taps into your motivation and your own initiative and creativity, through providing you with knowledge to make choices about how to use your mind.
Research also shows that where there are better conversations in organisations they are better equipped to assess reality and as a result get better business results.
Better conversations are at the heart of coaching at organisational, team and individual level.
Better conversations with others lead on from mastering your own psychology including building and maintaining a good level of confidence resulting in a belief such as 'I can achieve the results that I have in mind'. Say this to yourself as many times as you can over the next week and notice that ideas to help you to get there start to arise in your mind.
If you would like help with any challenge or goal that you have in mind, please contact us on 01761 237400 or via enquiries@westofenglandcoachingandcounselling.co.uk and we can set up time to see how we may be able to help you.
Thursday, 16 October 2014
Leadership Coaching
If you are a leader working within an organisation this blog is for you as part of updating your leadership knowledge and application.
The latest thinking is that leadership is to be acknowledged, developed and harnessed at every level of an organisation whether you are a team member, manager or director.
Whether you are a director of your own small business or an employed director or manager what are you doing to encourage all of your team members to lead?
For example at Honda, collective leadership has a name - waigaya - here all ideas are welcomed regardless of rank. Honda claim that this approach has led to improvements in productivity and performance.
Could you be doing more to encourage all staff to discuss ideas and issues that could impact the performance of the company, negatively or positively?
Research shows that most people learn best by doing. When was the last time that you challenged yourself to work with a leader from a different area of the business or in another business to see what resources they use to solve problems and make decisions?
Leadership guru Simon Sinek believes all effective leaders communicate in the same way, an approach he names the 'golden circle'. He says that these leaders focus on the why before that what or how. This is backed up by neuroscience - we make many decisions with our emotional mind or limbic system which is responsible for feelings like trust and knowing when something feels right.
Susan Cain in 'Quiet' says that leaders need not be loud, that good leaders listen a lot and prioritise others.
Body language and how you project yourself to others impacts how you are perceived as a leader. Having strong posture and physiology can also help with stress and decision making. For example, centring your body by taking long deep breaths helps you to focus on now and to project strong presence.
What are your leadership challenges and how can you use this blog to enhance your leadership?
If you would like help with a professional or personal challenge please get in touch via enquiries@westofenglandcoachingandcounselling.co.uk or 01761 237400.
The latest thinking is that leadership is to be acknowledged, developed and harnessed at every level of an organisation whether you are a team member, manager or director.
Whether you are a director of your own small business or an employed director or manager what are you doing to encourage all of your team members to lead?
For example at Honda, collective leadership has a name - waigaya - here all ideas are welcomed regardless of rank. Honda claim that this approach has led to improvements in productivity and performance.
Could you be doing more to encourage all staff to discuss ideas and issues that could impact the performance of the company, negatively or positively?
Research shows that most people learn best by doing. When was the last time that you challenged yourself to work with a leader from a different area of the business or in another business to see what resources they use to solve problems and make decisions?
Leadership guru Simon Sinek believes all effective leaders communicate in the same way, an approach he names the 'golden circle'. He says that these leaders focus on the why before that what or how. This is backed up by neuroscience - we make many decisions with our emotional mind or limbic system which is responsible for feelings like trust and knowing when something feels right.
Susan Cain in 'Quiet' says that leaders need not be loud, that good leaders listen a lot and prioritise others.
Body language and how you project yourself to others impacts how you are perceived as a leader. Having strong posture and physiology can also help with stress and decision making. For example, centring your body by taking long deep breaths helps you to focus on now and to project strong presence.
What are your leadership challenges and how can you use this blog to enhance your leadership?
If you would like help with a professional or personal challenge please get in touch via enquiries@westofenglandcoachingandcounselling.co.uk or 01761 237400.
Tuesday, 7 October 2014
E mail Behaviour Change Coaching
Do you have a behaviour that you want to change?
Pause, review, edit and send habit with e mails represents a positive metaphor for our lives in general.
If we took a moment to think in this way we would have better relationships with others at work and in our personal lives.
E mails are a good starting point because here we have the choice of pause, review and edit. I add fast forward and rewind after pause too. If I did what I was first thinking of and fast forward what could be the impact of my actions? If the impact I perceive is a negative unhelpful, unkind, unnecessary one, I can rewind before I have acted and move on to option two. Then I can pause again, fast forward and consider again the impact of my action, rewinding again if I want.
This process allows us to review the possible consequences of our actions before we take action.
Of course, a lot of our responses are habitual and unconscious. However, by taking time to be consciously aware of our behaviours we can practice new habits such as pressing our pause button...
Are there behaviours in your life that are causing you problems at work and home? Could you use this strategy to help you to change those behaviours?
If you would like help and support in changing behaviours that are causing you problems at work and home please reach out via enquiries@westofenglandcoachingandcounselling.co.uk or call us on 01761 237400. In the first instance you may want to visit our website at www.westofenglandcoachingandcounselling.co.uk
Pause, review, edit and send habit with e mails represents a positive metaphor for our lives in general.
If we took a moment to think in this way we would have better relationships with others at work and in our personal lives.
E mails are a good starting point because here we have the choice of pause, review and edit. I add fast forward and rewind after pause too. If I did what I was first thinking of and fast forward what could be the impact of my actions? If the impact I perceive is a negative unhelpful, unkind, unnecessary one, I can rewind before I have acted and move on to option two. Then I can pause again, fast forward and consider again the impact of my action, rewinding again if I want.
This process allows us to review the possible consequences of our actions before we take action.
Of course, a lot of our responses are habitual and unconscious. However, by taking time to be consciously aware of our behaviours we can practice new habits such as pressing our pause button...
Are there behaviours in your life that are causing you problems at work and home? Could you use this strategy to help you to change those behaviours?
If you would like help and support in changing behaviours that are causing you problems at work and home please reach out via enquiries@westofenglandcoachingandcounselling.co.uk or call us on 01761 237400. In the first instance you may want to visit our website at www.westofenglandcoachingandcounselling.co.uk
Friday, 3 October 2014
Creating a Plan for your Life
If you have no specific plan for your life you are not alone. For some people this is good. These people know what they want and are living it. And yet if you feel that you are drifting please do read on.
We drift when we are not clear about what we want. This covers work, our personal lives, our social lives, financial situation plus wider wants such as your role in the community.
Imagine for a moment that you a year or three years ahead from now. What is your life like then if you have and are doing what you most want? What does your life look like? How do you feel about it? Where do you live? What do you do for work? What is your lifestyle? Who are your key relationships with? This is your goal or outcome.
What objectives will help you to meet your goal? For example, what do you need to save, when by and what for? How will you do this? Do you need to retrain? Where and when? What are the actions that you need to take to achieve the lifestyle that you want? For example if you want flexible working so that you can spend more time with a family member, say full-time working spread over four days, do you need to write a business case to present to your line manager? Breaking objectives down into achievable action steps helps us to get going and get things done.
Finally, imagine your outcome or goal each day so that your mind can come up with new ideas to get you there. What does this goal give you in terms of values? For example freedom. Be happy that you are living your gaily life according to your values.
For all of your coaching and counselling support needs please get in touch via enquiries@westofenglandcoachingandcounselling.co.uk or call us on 01761 237400.
We drift when we are not clear about what we want. This covers work, our personal lives, our social lives, financial situation plus wider wants such as your role in the community.
Imagine for a moment that you a year or three years ahead from now. What is your life like then if you have and are doing what you most want? What does your life look like? How do you feel about it? Where do you live? What do you do for work? What is your lifestyle? Who are your key relationships with? This is your goal or outcome.
What objectives will help you to meet your goal? For example, what do you need to save, when by and what for? How will you do this? Do you need to retrain? Where and when? What are the actions that you need to take to achieve the lifestyle that you want? For example if you want flexible working so that you can spend more time with a family member, say full-time working spread over four days, do you need to write a business case to present to your line manager? Breaking objectives down into achievable action steps helps us to get going and get things done.
Finally, imagine your outcome or goal each day so that your mind can come up with new ideas to get you there. What does this goal give you in terms of values? For example freedom. Be happy that you are living your gaily life according to your values.
For all of your coaching and counselling support needs please get in touch via enquiries@westofenglandcoachingandcounselling.co.uk or call us on 01761 237400.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)