The purest form of organizational leadership may be the coaching of amateur sports and club teams. The coaches and the participants show up as “volunteers.” They come together to align and optimize the performance of the individuals in service of the best possible outcomes for the group. There are essential elements for every coaching schema. […]
How To Coach Teams: Purpose. System. Culture. Flow. Read More »
“It’s only words, and words are all I have, To take your heart away.” Bee Gees (1968) Whether it’s love or leadership, words matter. Actions, of course, move the world. But so do the words and phrases that accompany them. Reframing “a word or phrase” can open minds and conversation rather than suggesting a need
A Leader’s Words Matter Read More »
“Reliving past experiences through the lens of soporific sentimentalism, is a time-honored substitute for choosing to create the rest of your life.” ~Will Keiper Well, when I really got this—when I could really see it—I took it out and I field tested it and experimented with it and found out that it really did prove
On Living and Coaching From the Inside-Out Read More »
“One does not ‘manage’ people. The task is to lead people. And the goal is to make productive the specific strengths and knowledge of each individual.” ~Peter Drucker Real power in leadership comes from partnering, not criticizing. The leaders who know how to coach, set themselves apart by retaining the power and efficacy of collaboration.
The Non-Judgment of a Coaching Mindset Read More »
The biggest difference in leadership coaching and other types, is that you have an individual as a client who aspires to be better in a specific area of their life: developing, guiding, training, and shaping others. This also happens to be an apt description of coaching—transforming a team or organization by inspiring and teaching the
Coaching Leaders: “Secondary” Clients – A “Primary” Consideration Read More »
“Personalities don’t love. They want something.” ~ Byron Katie One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned from coaches is that my personality’s wild attempts at pleasing others and winning their approval was working against my happiness and success. In fact, I was losing the respect of others, the more I tried to please them. Not
On Coaching: Invest in “Me, First” Read More »
Great coaches do work that is similar to a sculptor’s work. They see what’s possible in their client, and then they help the client carve the negative beliefs away. Soon the client is feeling a freedom they have never known. This happened for me many years ago when I turned my dreams (trapped inside my
The Best Coaches are Sculptors Read More »
In the process of gaining experience as a leader, I became fascinated by how many flawed human beings were around me. It was as though I had been cursed with a special magnet that only drew people to me who were imperfect. But there they were. It wasn’t until I had been in several leadership
On Leadership. Flawed Human Beings: “They’re Everywhere! Read More »
The current leader of Finland (the PM) is Sanna Marin, a woman elected to office in 2019, at age 34. Just last month, she led her country to the threshold of joining NATO, which will greatly strengthen its defensive military capabilities and ability to protect its borders and citizens. On another note, she recently was
On Leadership Equity: Let’s Play Finnish “Quite Trivial” Pursuit Read More »
My friend Steve Nicol is an accomplished and respected leadership coach who brought his massive experience as a leader in the corporate world into his current role as a coach. What I admire about Steve is that he didn’t rely on past corporate experience alone to carry him through as a coach (as many former
Moving From Boss to Coach Read More »