Not that long ago, good leadership was measured by how effective a person’s management skills were.

If one could perform well and deliver the expected outcomes, objectives were satisfied and boxes were ticked. This continuous job cycle resulted in managers directing their teams on how and what they needed to do.

As times have changed, leadership styles have also evolved. Fortunately, previous “command-and-control” practice has been shifting to a more collaborative and supportive working relationship among leaders and team members.

Leadership coaching is continuously gaining momentum, with a preference for developing leaders as coaches more than mere managers.

In this digital age, there is a vast array of tools that aid in everyday business affairs.
Below are the best leadership coaching tools you can utilize as a business leader.

1. The Wheel of Life

What are the life aspects that are relevant to you?

In these busy and uncertain times, this simple but effective tool allows you to self-reflect on the most significant and impactful dimensions of your life. You would have to identify six to eight areas in your life that you regard as vital to you.

Creating the dimensions can be done in several ways – through the roles you play in life, the areas in your life that matter to you, or a combination of these two. The roles you play may include you as a child, parent, daughter/son, husband/wife, friend, colleague, sports enthusiast, etc.

While an example of the areas that matter to you may be education, career, family, public service, financial freedom, artistic expression, pleasure, etc.

After identifying these dimensions, write them on a wheel and assess each area by rating them (from 0-10, 10 receiving the most attention) based on your current state.

Now, connect these areas by a line and consider whether your life wheel looks balanced.

However, having a balanced wheel, or a balanced life does not mean getting 5s in all aspects since these may change based on the circumstances at a given time.

Think of your ideal level of attention to be given to the dimensions you identified and plot them too on your life wheel.

How can you attain the ideal scenario?

What are the steps you need to take to reach it and have a meaningful, balanced life?

References:

https://positivepsychology.com/coaching-tools-examples-assessments/

https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newHTE_93.htm

2. Visualization

What do you want to achieve?

This technique is primarily practiced by athletes due to the immense power it attracts. By visualizing or forming a picture of something or someone in your mind, you can focus on the more essential aspects of a competition, a project, or an event that is winning.

Eliminating distractions such as anxiety, fear, confusion, or disappointment is a must to increase confidence and achieve your goals.

The initial step is to decide on your goal or what you want.

Then, picture yourself at that scene as clearly and more detailed as you can.

The key is to be more specific to feel it and to savor the moment.

Finally, imagine the succeeding steps you must take for you to arrive at that moment.

References:

https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/visualization

https://positivepsychology.com/coaching-tools-examples-assessments/

https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newHTE_81.htm

3. Mood Meter

How are you feeling today?

It is perceived that to be effective in leading, you must be aware of your emotions.

Recognizing feelings such as being surprised, motivated, restful, and fulfilled vs. stressed, worried, discouraged, and bored allows us to understand and regulate the pleasant and the unpleasant emotions.

The circumplex model of effect, which illustrates a four-quadrant dimension of emotions categorized as pleasant or unpleasant and activation or deactivation, helps us assess our feelings and hopefully control the unpleasant ones.

By acknowledging where you are on the mood meter, you can think deeper about what made you feel that way.

This can help you label your feeling and allow you to express them while being mindful of how that expression turns out (positive or negative).

You can either find a strategy to maintain or elevate that pleasant feeling or tone down or diminish an unpleasant feeling.

References:

https://hbr.org/podcast/2020/10/why-learning-to-label-your-feelings-makes-you-a-better-leader

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2367156/

https://www.marcbrackett.com/the-colors-of-our-emotions/

4. GROW Model

What are you willing to do to GROW?

As we know, a leader’s primary function is to create a goal and take steps to achieve them. This leadership coaching tool puts it at a higher level when it comes to goal setting.

It establishes the:

Goals or aspirations

Reality or current obstacles/challenges

Options based on strengths and resources

Way forward considering accountability and what when, by whom, plus the will to execute.

As with any other goal or task, clarity propels the direction to its the desired outcome.

If this change aims to bring a culture change, the reality is not everyone will be pleased.

This is where strengths must be explored while deeply involving its people.

With this tool, leaders, and their members, are empowered to strategize and find opportunities to bring about solutions.

In addition, the willingness to do whatever it takes to achieve the stated goal is also crucial.

The way forward is not a walk in the park, however, with commitment and accountability in place, the probability of reaching success is boosted.

References:

https://positivepsychology.com/grow-coaching-model/

https://www.ijrbsm.org/papers/v4-i9/5.pdf

5. Pareto Principle

What can you achieve more by doing less?

You might have heard of the 80/20 Rule countless times in management, and you may have wondered what its relevance is in your everyday affairs?

The Pareto Principle states that 80% of consequences (outputs) come from 20% of the causes (inputs).

As business leaders, if you can produce 80% benefits from 20% of the work, you should focus on the tasks that will require a high impact from a low input.

Initially, you need to list all problems (based on importance) which you need to resolve.

Then, by the identification of the root cause or why these problems arose.

Next, score each problem based on the importance level you set.

For example, if you seek to improve profits, these problems may be rated by the cost of a product, etc.

Once you have scored the problems, they need to be grouped based on the similarity of their root cause, such as lack of manpower.

Finally, the scores for each group must be added.

The group that garners the highest score must receive the highest priority, while the lowest rating must have a lower priority.

By focusing on the highest-scoring problem with the highest payoff, you are saving your energy and resources.

This can, in turn, facilitate increasing the company’s productivity and profitability.

References:

https://www.investopedia.com/terms/p/paretoprinciple.asp

https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTED_01.htm

As many as there are coaches in the field, there is also a need for leadership coaches in the workplace.

We have seen how coaches have been crucial in the Olympic athletes’ winning moments. Behind every athlete is a coach who patiently guides, trains, and pushes an athlete to go beyond the limits.

The good thing is coaching has not only being practiced with athletes, it is extending to the office.

The old days of giving orders and expecting results are not advisable anymore unless you are in the military field.

Studies also show how leadership coaching creates employee engagement, boosting their performance and driving productivity and profitability in a company.

Thus, many companies are now incorporating coaching as part of their overall human resource strategy.

Several strategies come into play to gain optimal results from your team.

Leadership Coaching Techniques

1. Know Thy Employee
2. Establish Trust
3. Foster Transparency
4. Create Clear Expectations
5. Facilitate Collaboration
6. Provide Resources
7. Give Regular, Frequent Feedback
8. Ask for Opinions
9. Recognize Contributions
10. Push to Attainable Limits

1. Know Thy Employee

Though the most basic, this practice is often overlooked by many. Knowing your employees on a deeper level beyond their strengths and weaknesses is pivotal to drive your team’s performance. Aspects such as their goals, setbacks or challenges, and motivations will allow you to connect better and build rapport.

2. Establish Trust

Just like any relationship, trust is vital in coaching as it helps build confidence that drives performance. By continuous coaching, the level of trust increases, and by capitalizing on the received psychological safety, your employees can be more open to new challenges and opportunities. You may have heard of the silent voice that though failure is typical, it is not fatal and that at the end of the day, someone has your back.

3. Foster Transparency

Being open and trustworthy is a two-way street.

You cannot expect your employee to trust or show their vulnerability if you are not disclosing yourself. Accept that you also have shortcomings, just like any normal human being. Be open with how you tried and failed and how you succeeded.

By proactively fostering open communication and being transparent with your team, they are encouraged to do the same thing.

4. Create Clear Expectations

A road may be bumpy and can lead you to different destinations, but a clear picture of what needs to be achieved minimizes flat tires and detours.

The clarity in team goals and objectives ensures alignment among your employees. Involving them to think of the big picture first and discussing ways to get to that state minimizes confusion and mishaps, making the team more efficient and productive.

Creating clear expectations with your team also enhances commitment and accountability. It establishes a deeper involvement and a culture of concern to succeed on your goals as a team.

5. Facilitate Collaboration

In ancient times, survival is the key to thrive, and competition makes one stronger. However, now that we live in a modern world, communication proves to be a powerful weapon in attaining success.

Aim to remove the walls built among your employees while encouraging openness to new ideas and collaboration. Recognize each of your employees’ efforts while highlighting the success you achieved as a team.

Create a safe space to allow various perspectives to flow, even the unconventional idea. You will never know the power it can bring unless you try it. While it is necessary to strive for cohesion, groupthink is also unhealthy in any discussion.

6. Provide Resources

Pave the way for your team to drive performance by laying the proper groundwork. Equip your employees with the right tools that may be essential to execute and improve on their job – like reliable hardware/software, up-to-date training, and other materials or resources.

Providing them access to a mentor or coach outside their teams may be an option as well. A great leader understands the needs and aspirations of their employees and doesn’t hinder the growth as an individual.

7. Give Regular, Frequent Feedback

Employees, no matter how long they have been in their company, continuously seek constructive feedback. Through regular leadership coaching, feedback allows them to adjust their sail and keep from wandering on the shore.

Think back to the time when you were still a regular employee. You probably dreaded those once-a-year performance reviews since this could affect your appraisal in a single blow. What if before, you can opt to have a regular and more frequent one-on-one meeting with your boss to evaluate your performance?

Maybe instead of dreading it, you would have looked forward to it as you see yourself progresses as each month passes.

8. Ask for Opinions

Giving feedback to your employees and asking for feedback is a “combo” to maintain an open communication line.

Asking opinions from your team signals that you may be the leader, but you do not have the correct solutions or answers to every situation. Seeking others’ inputs in an event or project engages your employees that they too can think of ways to make something more feasible or functional.

Also, embark on the culture of 360-degree feedback from employees, other teams, departments, and even customers allowing all stakeholders to be heard. This enriches the dialogue in the company that can potentially lead to more customer satisfaction and profitability.

9. Recognize Contributions

Properly acknowledge employees for their contributions. When you keep track of their mistakes, make sure you do that as well with their successes.

Mere noticing is not enough. Thus, ensure that you recognize your employees’ achievements well promptly. Research also shows that recognizing their contributions is their best driver in doing great work (more than a promotion or a pay increase).

Next time your employee delivers beyond expectations, grab a cup of coffee or send a thank you note. Although it may seem a “small gesture” but it may mean the world to the other to keep them going.

10. Push to Attainable Limits

Have you ever wondered how Olympic athletes break a former record?

While coaches support them in daily practices, there is always a goal to break (at least) their record.

As a leader, you allow them to go out of their comfort zone through motivation. You keep them challenged to achieve their goals but not to the point of making them feel overwhelmed. Strike a balance between creating new opportunities and challenges which will help them grow and reach their full potential.

Leadership coaching can lead employees to strengthen their skills and accomplish their development goals, defining their path to success.

References:

https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/pages/human-capital/articles/coaching-employees-to-reach-optimal-performance.html

https://hbr.org/tip/2020/11/make-the-most-of-leadership-coaching

https://cmoe.com/blog/10-effective-coaching-strategies-help-drive-team-success/

https://www.quantumworkplace.com/future-of-work/12-rules-for-effective-employee-coaching

https://positivepsychology.com/coaching-skills-managers-leaders/

https://www.greatplacetowork.com/resources/blog/creating-a-culture-of-recognition