Leadership 2.0 - The Coaching Way (Become a Workplace Coach)

The Brain has a finger in every pie. It is a powerful connecting machine that controls not just our thinking but also our feelings, actions and habits.

Understanding the Brain and its functions helps us to harness the power of this most valuable asset. We become aware of the landmines that can potentially derail our best laid plans and helps us navigate challenges and complexities in the workplace.

While the brain is similar to a sophisticated piece of equipment, it requires very careful handling to be able to manifest its full potential. The rivalry between the “thinker” and “feeler” can literally dull our competitive edge.

The key benefit is that it helps to sharpen your IQ and develop a matching EQ.  It illustrates simple and easy techniques for optimizing the limited capacity of the Thinker (PFC) and cooling down the Feeler (Limbic) to be able to increase effectiveness exponentially.

A look at the key SIGNS or attributes that determine the effectiveness of any conversation but more specifically a coaching conversation. This module helps you understand the basic principles of coaching through a powerful acronym “SIGNS”. It shows you not just what to focus on but also why.

A look at how in a coaching style of leadership, certain skills like building trust, communication, creating awareness and shifting perspectives all combine to create a blueprint of the Coachee’s best version of himself.

Understanding the co-creative nature of the coaching process in order to clearly delineate the role of the coach or leader and the coachee or team member.

A look at our social brain in which needs for Status, Certainty, Autonomy, Relatedness and Fairness tangle our interactions and affect our performance.

Understanding the impact of social needs on brain functions helps us in developing crucial skills for collaborating with others. It makes us  sensitive to the needs of others as well as our own which in turn smoothens tangled interactions.

In a coaching conversation, there is need for trust at many levels. It begins with the coach trusting himself and his coachee to partner effectively and then the coachee trusting the coach’s competence and his own commitment to the process.

It demonstrates how trust and rapport can be built in order to begin the coaching journey and deepen the insights. It also demonstrates the effectiveness of Coaching Presence in establishing trust.

Questions, if they are framed right, point you in the direction of the solution. In a coaching conversation, framing powerful questions are a key skill in clarifying the problem and throwing up solutions.

This module demonstrates not only why asking the right questions are important but also how to frame them. It gives you examples of questions that will get to the heart of the problem and throw up options for analysis rather than wallow in drama and detail.

Listening is necessary in any conversation else it would be a monologue. However, in a coaching conversation with its emphasis on co-creation and partnership, it is mandatory. This module teaches you to listen at many levels. It demonstrates the importance of going beyond the words and picking up cues from the non- verbal gestures and tone of voice. It also highlights the barriers to effective listening.

Creating Awareness is the main role of the coach. It helps coachees to get out of the rut and appreciate the many options before them. The journey begins with awareness and ends with action and accountability. This module shows the importance of generating insights to create awareness as well as how to do it compassionately and respectfully as the coachee may have to confront aspects of themselves that may be highly uncomfortable.

REFLECT is a backronym for a handy coaching format that has many applications. It begins with a Reality Check, Flips to the best case scenario, Explores Options, Gets Commitment and finally Tracks to ensure accountability and progress. You can use it with yourself, your coachee or even a colleague or team member.

This module details the steps of a coaching conversation in a structured format. It clearly lays out the kinds of questions at each stage to be able to derive the maximum benefit. Using this framework will help you to carry on a coaching conversation with whoever you want in the setting in which it is appropriate.

A goal provides life with a desired destination and helps you in becoming the best version of yourself. Setting Goals is the first step into turning invisible dreams into visible accomplishments.

This module teaches you to go beyond setting SMART Goals, by adding inspiration through aligning with your life’s purpose. It makes the journey more authentic and fun by weaving your personal story around it.

Tracking is the difference between goal attainment and pipe dreams. You cannot manage what you don’t measure. On Track provides a handy tool to track progress on the journey towards goal attainment. It ensures that you stay committed and repeat the actions long enough for it to become an automatic habit.

Goals are not set in stone and deviations and slip ups are expected. Without a framework for review and modification, we have a sure shot recipe for failure.

REALISE is an effective review tool because it allows one to acknowledge baby steps towards the goal and to learn from failures. This review also helps in course corrections which help one in staying the course and not give up.