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The Politics Of CoachingHow To Find Unity In The Midst Of Division Through CoachingBy Michael Wallace, MA in Education and LSI Certified Coach |
As I write this, we are in the thick of campaign and election season, counting down the days and hours until our voices are heard and counted as we select the leaders who will help navigate our country through the next several years.
And my guess is that you just wish the political ads, spam phone calls and texts, and non-stop reminders through social media would last forever, right?!?!
No, I didn't think so.
There is something about this political climate that makes it so easy for us to be divided, to feel the need to pick a side and defend our beliefs even at the expense of relationships and finding common ground. Whether you wake up cheering or downtrodden on November 4th, the lasting result tragically seems to be a heavy sense of division and disunity among our nation.
Politics aside, these emotions may ring true for you outside of the typical election cycle. If you have ever managed people or coached an employee or client, you have probably felt this same sense of pulling and side-taking that can take on the same flavor of political discourse.
There are several definitions of "politics" that usually include words like "group" "status" "power" and "conflict". Often in the workplace these words can seep in to the culture of our teams, either overtly or covertly, and distract an organization from the mission and purpose they set out to achieve. This is typically where we find ourselves as coaches with the task of managing, mitigating and motivating others to success despite the "political" nature of the organization. Let's dig in to these a bit more.
1. Managing. It has been said that there are problems to be solved, and tensions to be managed. Correctly categorizing these things can make all the difference in your leadership! When it comes to leading a team or coaching an employee in what could be a "politically charged" environment, it is important to first understand in which arena you find yourself. One of the most effective ways to accomplish this is to rely on your training as a coach. If you have learned the Master Coach Model, then you know your role as the coach is to PULL not PUSH, which will put you in the correct mindset to encourage the coachee to take the lead in sharing about the problem or challenge, and subsequently discover the potential solutions. With this mindset you will be able to identify whether your coachee is facing a tension that will need to be managed in an ongoing basis or if they have a problem that can be solved and put behind them. Mindset is the key to navigating this well.
2. Mitigating. To mitigate is to make less. A great coach will typically begin a coaching session, or even a casual conversation, with a simple scaling question that will help to frame the level of pain or frustration the other person is experiencing. This is similar to what doctors do when asking about pain... you have probably been asked the question by a doctor: "How is your pain on a scale of 1 to 10?" This gives the coach a starting point and a bit of scope to what the coachee is really feeling. Often issues that present as "political" in nature can be stemming from other frustrations that need to be explored. By starting with a scaling question the coach is able to help lessen the severity of the pain by walking with the coachee to explore potential solutions.
3. Motivating. One of the biggest differences between and simple conversation and a coaching conversation is what happens immediately after the conversation ends. A coach with the right mindset will bring their coachee not just to a point of decision on what to do about the problem or challenge they are facing, but will help paint a picture of what the future will look like once they have taken the necessary steps to manage and mitigate the issues. This encouragement will not only summarize the conversation and action steps, but will motivate the coachee to have confidence moving forward and know they have an outlet to celebrate when the steps have been taken.
When your organization faces issues that are political in nature (remember this doesn't have to be partisan or even election related, just issues of power, status or conflict) this is a great time to put your coach hat on and lean in to support the team or employees.
One of the most difficult aspects of this whole process is to try to stay neutral along the way. Remember that when you are speaking with one person, you are hearing their perspective only. As a coach it is helpful to remind yourself, and often the coachee, that while the two of you are talking it is hard to make progress with anyone outside of the conversation! So limit your focus on what can be done by the coachee to find resolution and success.
Whether the volume of political chatter is turned down over the coming weeks or not, I hope that you are able to manage, mitigate and motivate your employees, peers and even bosses with your coaching skills. As Dr. Jim Smith often says, you don't have to be the person who comes up with the solution...if you are in the vicinity when it happens you can still get some of the credit! Keep your coaching mindset and you will see success happen in your organization... and really, who cares who gets the credit as long as the team is winning!
And my guess is that you just wish the political ads, spam phone calls and texts, and non-stop reminders through social media would last forever, right?!?!
No, I didn't think so.
There is something about this political climate that makes it so easy for us to be divided, to feel the need to pick a side and defend our beliefs even at the expense of relationships and finding common ground. Whether you wake up cheering or downtrodden on November 4th, the lasting result tragically seems to be a heavy sense of division and disunity among our nation.
Politics aside, these emotions may ring true for you outside of the typical election cycle. If you have ever managed people or coached an employee or client, you have probably felt this same sense of pulling and side-taking that can take on the same flavor of political discourse.
There are several definitions of "politics" that usually include words like "group" "status" "power" and "conflict". Often in the workplace these words can seep in to the culture of our teams, either overtly or covertly, and distract an organization from the mission and purpose they set out to achieve. This is typically where we find ourselves as coaches with the task of managing, mitigating and motivating others to success despite the "political" nature of the organization. Let's dig in to these a bit more.
1. Managing. It has been said that there are problems to be solved, and tensions to be managed. Correctly categorizing these things can make all the difference in your leadership! When it comes to leading a team or coaching an employee in what could be a "politically charged" environment, it is important to first understand in which arena you find yourself. One of the most effective ways to accomplish this is to rely on your training as a coach. If you have learned the Master Coach Model, then you know your role as the coach is to PULL not PUSH, which will put you in the correct mindset to encourage the coachee to take the lead in sharing about the problem or challenge, and subsequently discover the potential solutions. With this mindset you will be able to identify whether your coachee is facing a tension that will need to be managed in an ongoing basis or if they have a problem that can be solved and put behind them. Mindset is the key to navigating this well.
2. Mitigating. To mitigate is to make less. A great coach will typically begin a coaching session, or even a casual conversation, with a simple scaling question that will help to frame the level of pain or frustration the other person is experiencing. This is similar to what doctors do when asking about pain... you have probably been asked the question by a doctor: "How is your pain on a scale of 1 to 10?" This gives the coach a starting point and a bit of scope to what the coachee is really feeling. Often issues that present as "political" in nature can be stemming from other frustrations that need to be explored. By starting with a scaling question the coach is able to help lessen the severity of the pain by walking with the coachee to explore potential solutions.
3. Motivating. One of the biggest differences between and simple conversation and a coaching conversation is what happens immediately after the conversation ends. A coach with the right mindset will bring their coachee not just to a point of decision on what to do about the problem or challenge they are facing, but will help paint a picture of what the future will look like once they have taken the necessary steps to manage and mitigate the issues. This encouragement will not only summarize the conversation and action steps, but will motivate the coachee to have confidence moving forward and know they have an outlet to celebrate when the steps have been taken.
When your organization faces issues that are political in nature (remember this doesn't have to be partisan or even election related, just issues of power, status or conflict) this is a great time to put your coach hat on and lean in to support the team or employees.
One of the most difficult aspects of this whole process is to try to stay neutral along the way. Remember that when you are speaking with one person, you are hearing their perspective only. As a coach it is helpful to remind yourself, and often the coachee, that while the two of you are talking it is hard to make progress with anyone outside of the conversation! So limit your focus on what can be done by the coachee to find resolution and success.
Whether the volume of political chatter is turned down over the coming weeks or not, I hope that you are able to manage, mitigate and motivate your employees, peers and even bosses with your coaching skills. As Dr. Jim Smith often says, you don't have to be the person who comes up with the solution...if you are in the vicinity when it happens you can still get some of the credit! Keep your coaching mindset and you will see success happen in your organization... and really, who cares who gets the credit as long as the team is winning!
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Michael Wallace holds a BS in Communications from Appalachian State University and a Master’s degree in Education from Dallas Seminary. He is the lead Coach Trainer for Leadership Systems, as well as the owner of Creative Branding Designs, which focuses on social media marketing and branding, and also serves as an Adjunct Professor of Communication at High Point University where he teaches a course on social media communication. Michael's focus is on developing leaders through executive coaching and content development.
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