The job of a leader is to lead. Ok, you knew that already. The image of a leader is a person marching ahead of a team as it progresses in the right direction. As a concept, that's correct but in practice a leader is often marching along side his team. The leader has to plan the direction, of course, and blaze the trail but he also has to motivate, mentor, train and coach. A leader can't accomplish that with his back to his team. Let's talk about leadership coaching, for instance.

Coaching Versus Training

All members of a successful team must be well-trained, of course. It's up to the leader to decide what that training consists of and to make sure that each team member is correctly trained for the specific needs of the team. Leadership training deals with making sure that team members are able to apply knowledge to hypothetical situations that are similar to possible future situation. Leadership coaching is a supportive action that helps a team member apply knowledge to real situations in real time.

Leadership coaching may take place during a real-world work situation. The team member being coached may be involved in a new situation and lack the confidence to carry it out alone. Or the leadership coaching may involve regular daily tasks but with new technology or a new process. Leadership coaching might be needed when a team member's performance has been found lacking and requires closer working with the leader to find ways to improve it.

Coaching Without Blame Before a leader can begin correcting or improving performance, he must determine where the problem lies. Leadership coaching always begins with evaluation. Even if a problem can be traced to only one team member, the cause of the problem can be beyond the control of that member. Never begin blaming a person until you are sure that the problem is not the result of a bad process. In fact, never blame at all. Leadership coaching is a supportive process. Most people would prefer to do good work. Leadership coaching helps them accomplish this goal. Frequently, the process and resources are fine but the team member lacks sufficient motivation. Leadership coaching involves determining why motivation is lacking. It is the responsibility of a leader to motivate his team. A motivation problem is the fault of the leader. Observe the member performing his duties. Look back at progress reports to determine when the motivation problem first arose. Whether the situation is a result of personal pressures, health problems or job frustrations, work with the team member to find the right solution.

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