COACHING YOUR EMPLOYEES

“Fixing” an employee assumes that something’s inherently wrong with them, and that they aren’t capable of changing their own habits or character. It’s like you’re telling them, “You’re a child who I have to discipline and whose hand I need to hold.” Fixing comes from a higher-than-thou mentality, the sort of attitude you’re used to hearing about when people discuss how much they hate their bosses. In this mentality, there’s no room for employee input, as the employer is the one taking the action.

Coaching, on the other hand, is far more beneficial to the employee and employer. Coaching doesn’t rely on those “here’s what you did wrong this year” reviews. An article on Forbes describes it best when it says “coaching focuses on helping another person learn in ways that let him or her keep growing afterward. It is based on asking rather than telling, on provoking thought rather than giving directions and on holding a person accountable for his or her goals.”

And guess what these self-empowered, expected-to-be-responsible employees do for a company? They help make it better.

The Effect Coaching Has on a Company

Coaching is a powerful way to bring out your employees’ potential, and the great thing is that it also helps create better company dynamics. Check out these benefits that coaching can bring to a company:

• Coaching recognizes the inherent value of an employee, and tries to focus on how that value can help them improve (instead of focusing only on what they always do wrong). This will undoubtedly make an employee feel far more appreciated and less likely to start resenting you or the company.
• It develops mutual trust between the employer and employee so there’s more open communication in the workplace. In other words, no more of that silly, whispering-behind-your-back drama!
• It encourages personal learning, responsibility, and analysis, so employees are more likely to recognize and figure out ways to handle their own problems, leaving you more time to deal with other business matters. When you coach, you’re developing employees who will continue to benefit your company because they want to continue to improve and learn.
• SImilar to personal responsibility, coaching helps create competent employees who are more likely to be productive and put in their best efforts because they are challenged (not commanded) to do so.
• Coaching helps create employees willing to challenge you. Though this may not seem beneficial at first, especially if you think you’ll look stupid if you made the mistake. But what if none of your employees had pointed out your flawed steps beforehand? Wouldn’t you rather have them help develop your project well and develop you as a leader, so you can all grow together?

There are probably more benefits to coaching than listed here, but the message should be clear by now:
coaching is the way to go if you want an open, dynamic workforce full of employees who think you and your company are awesome.

So the next time you have to pull out that manager hat, make sure it says “coaching” across the front instead of “fixing.” In fact, you can just burn the “fixing” one. You won’t need it again.