Coaching Conversations

A series of real-life coaching vignettes from
SeaChangers’ associates

Coaching conversation #2

“Know thyself” remains an exhortation as valid today as it was 3,500 years ago when inscribed over the entrance to the shrine at Delphi. However, time has not made the task any easier, a truth that came to mind during a coaching conversation with a capable and ambitious senior manager recently. As Chief Operating Officer in a medium-sized and fast-growing business it is his job to drive what is going on and ensure everything that happens is fit for purpose. He is practical, experienced and sets high standards. He thinks fast, speaks crisply and is decisive. All in all, he is very good at his job, a model for the role to which the strong business results are testimony.

And yet, as we spoke, I found myself wondering whether the simple fact of his competence was itself something to which we needed to pay attention. Questions kept occurring to me. What is the impact of his strengths on those around him? What might be the consequence of his need for such tight control? How would it be for those working for him if he always has the answers? The more we talked, the more insistent became these questions and it was one of those moments when, as a coach, I knew I had to share them. So, I did.

“One of the several benefits of coaching is that it can be the mirror in which we see ourselves more clearly. That idea may be simple, but despite 3,500 years of human experience, it is still not easy.”

His immediate reaction was to bat the whole thing away. No, he surrounds himself with the best people, of course he listens to their contribution and expects them to sort things out by themselves (although he is always available to help should they need) plus he gives them every opportunity to grow and so on. The strength of his reaction meant my observation had clearly touched a nerve and I persisted. As we scratched away at specific instances of each point, it gradually became clear to us both that, in practice, he cedes much less space to his team than he had realised. What is more, symptoms of over-tight control, although subtle, were also in evidence. Which suggests that the extent to which the exercise of his personal strengths constrains the development of his team is itself becoming a rate-limiting factor on the growth of the business. In which case our coaching agenda assumes a greater importance, even some urgency.
One of the several benefits of coaching is, as in this vignette, that it can be the mirror in which we see ourselves more clearly. That idea may be simple, but despite 3,500 years of human experience, it is still not easy.

Author - Simon Bennett

Having worked at the highest level in the industry Simon is acutely aware the most powerful leaders are those that can access the inner resources necessary to achieve their personal and leadership potential. His coaching blends process and content to help them access and apply those resources, at all times balancing the needs of the individual with those of the organisation.