Introduction
Leadership coaching is a powerful training tool for managers that helps business managers at all levels use leadership skills for maximum productivity. This will help raise awareness through practice and direct feedback from staff. It will also improve the inherent leadership qualities of people to motivate teams better and achieve specific personal, professional, and organizational goals. Leadership coaching is adapted to the individual, more precisely, the individual process of leadership development, which is achieved in partnership with the coach. The role of the mentor is the role of the ally, who from the very beginning believes that the administrator has unlimited potential to achieve his goal or result.
The coach’s role is to help remove obstacles that stand in the way of the leader achieving their goals. This is achieved through careful dialogue and deep listening. The coach must maintain a careful distance of objectivity to gradually help the leader overcome anything that hinders the achievement of the goal. Such problems can be mental or emotional barriers, such as beliefs, habits, or fears. Through inviting self-analysis and self-reflection, the mentor helps the learner clear the way to success. Trainers do not solve the problem for their followers because participants are specialists in their own lives. Most likely, the coach helps to clarify and crystallize the goal and helps the individual find a solution and take action that will move the goal forward. The trainer also makes sure to see what has been achieved and invites more discussion and study.
Differences between Management and Leadership
The status of the head of the company, organization, or institution presupposes contact in the system ‘human-human’; such communication must be effective for the prosperity of the business. A manager for employees is not just a senior in the office; it is endowed with management functions and administrative powers. Ideally, the organization has a director who has the qualities of a leader. At the present stage, in practice, successful companies operating in a market environment consider the level of their efficiency when assessing the head’s quality of work. The ability to make serious decisions and perform essential roles that are part of the management’s leadership functions is also considered (Leonard, 2017). For example, the director should be the organizer of the work team, mentor of the employee, spokesman, and advocate for team members, consumers, generators, and disseminator of information. The role of the team organizer is primarily to ensure a high level of team unity.
In today’s competitive environment, when the central workforce performs only certain types of work in their entirety, this position is becoming an increasingly important value. In general, the successful implementation of economic tasks and the achievement of society’s most important social goal depends on the team organization level and the leader’s qualities as an organizer. It is crucial to confirm the role of leaders of labor collectives in order to ensure the high organization of cooperatives. In this way, through the leader, all employees will be able to participate in addressing issues of compliance with business standards, discipline, internal regulations, and labor legislation. Also, participation in solving issues of material and moral stimulation of employees, determining the final results of the work of units, and solving other organizational and social issues, the real manager should discuss with subordinates (Leonard, 2017). The team’s organization is the unity of actions of all its members, different in temperament, physical and mental data, and their general focus on solving problems of improving the efficiency of work and the purpose.
Thus, simply the manager performs the main work, which relates to the division of activity and supervision of tasks. Its functions do not include maintaining the morale of the team and stimulating trust. Instead, the leader also deals with the essential functions of the administration, but in a different way. He not only divides the work and controls its implementation but also observes the team’s environment and promotes the elevation of spirit.
The Key Insights Personal Leadership and Leadership Coaching
Understanding leadership is one of the most important parts of human development as a leader. Management becomes more necessary in the face of complex and unpredictable circumstances. It is expected that the skills of leaders will help develop the whole team. In order to create unique ideas and interact effectively with others, people need to expand their thought and gain new knowledge. Insight can encourage to think differently and suggest practical ways to turn thought into action. In order to put the ideas of leadership into practice and use different theories, head first need to start thinking creatively (Leonard, 2017). It is vital to generate new ideas that go beyond standard understanding.
In order to develop a guide, it is necessary to identify factors that will help on the way to achieving the goal and will encourage development. The first factor is employee motivation and engagement, so it’s important to remember that companies thrive when employees go beyond their expectations. If you take into account the opinions of employees about the work, the head can get interesting ideas. Also essential in any team is the inspiration of the leader and a passion for work, which all other employees follow. A non-standard vision will allow leaders to inspire people to work on their future goals and allow them to expand their ideas. Another critical factor is self-awareness. Understanding strengths and weaknesses are extremely important for the administration of the organization (Leonard, 2017). Since strengths can be used to spread influence to subordinates, recognizing weaknesses will allow them to progress and perfect.
Also, the emotional health and stability of the director is a critical factors that will affect the culture and atmosphere at work. Another factor is the leader’s ability to properly divide responsibilities between workers to increase overall performance. Creativity and innovation will permit the leader to encourage the initiatives of each employee. Moreover, a factor such as delegation will help to involve employees more in decision-making, showing each employee’s importance. Finally, understanding that leaders always need to improve themselves will help achieve all the other factors and set an example for employees.
Accordingly, possibly identify the main advantages of learning leadership skills. The capacity to formulate and apply effective management strategies will improve the internal environment in the company. The ability to find solutions in conflict conditions will be necessary to increase the whole team’s productivity. This will help reduce employee turnover and increase engagement by creating strong and united partners. Improving management style will also enhance communication abilities, admitting negotiation, and reduce conflict risk (Leonard, 2017). Coaching can guide to refute outdated and established ideas about the situation. As thinking expands, the leader will be able to challenge his own assumptions.
The manager will start asking a new set of questions to study the situation from various angles that can permit understanding the value of different conditions. It is possible to find that there is more than one prosperous solution to the problem. Continuous self-improvement will permit the administrator to become self-confident and find new ways to influence the teams, which he heads. Also, the skills of receiving and analyzing constructive feedback will enable a director to establish effective communication with subordinates (Leonard, 2017). Thus, the development of leadership and coaching abilities will achieve significant profits for the company through effective cooperation between management and assistants.
Tools of Leadership Coaching
The coaching-leadership style is a method that creates and supports the desire of employees to constantly develop and improve their work. This requires a dynamically established relationship between manager and employee. This can be achieved through motivational interviews and feedback. A good coach encourages the process of training employees and promotes responsibility and independence. The successful work of the coach ensures that workers will continue to operate autonomously and independently while taking the initiative. A good coaching leader permits employees to do their job on their own but always feel supported (Leonard, 2017). The independent aspect of coaching makes this leadership style ideal for the services industry, where most employees work unattended.
A safe environment is a tool for effective leadership through coaching. That is, in order to be a mentor, managers need to be able to conduct bilateral, open, honest conversations with their employees. A safe environment is an environment where people are heard, experience is valued, and opinions are respected. The provision of such an environment will permit employees to feel safe and know that they can discuss various situations, even related to confidentiality, with their heads. A successful leader always needs to know what atmosphere prevails in the team and whether the quality of work will not affect the problems in employees’ personal lives. Thus, the discussion of problem situations will help solve them, which in turn will lead to increased efficiency.
The following tool of a leader is the ability to show empathy. It is the possibility of empathy that will allow administration with other people without judgment. If the leader can develop this ability, then the employees will treat the leader accordingly. Thus, it will be possible to make difficult or even unpopular decisions that the team will support in case of difficulties because they trust the manager’s capacity to manage for the common welfare. Another instrument is to encourage creativity. That is, managers, work with employees only when it is necessary to solve a problem. Even if they know the solution to the problem, successful leaders should try to check their team. The discussion between the leader and the employees will encourage creativity and not create mental limitations. Asking simple questions and being able to listen to everyone’s opinions can lead to many new ways to solve the dilemma (Leonard, 2017). Thus, when a leader reports on difficult situations to his team, they can work together to find a better solution and gain trust among workers.
Also, establishing a clear vision of the object is a means of cohesion. For any worker to succeed, he needs to know the result and what the whole team expects of him. The trainer’s task is to inform employees to know and understand the overall goal, what role they play, and what mechanisms need to be used. That is, a successful manager in the business should not only report a specific task for each worker individually but should link it to the overall design (Leonard, 2017). A culture of openness and honesty also plays a vital role in shaping the leader’s work atmosphere. Thus, it is necessary to provide feedback on the work of the team and each employee individually. More actual and valuable feedback for all creates a culture of openness. Following such conditions, each worker will receive an objective assessment of his work and understand what weaknesses he needs to improve. Feedback will permit managers to better track the performance of each worker and monitor changes in performance. At the same time, the administrator’s personal assessment of each subordinate will stimulate employees to progress.
However, based on the tools already mentioned, it is essential to identify the strengths and weaknesses of employees. A distinguished leader and coach should help subordinates identify strengths and encourage them. The traditional way of leadership, which explained that people have to find and correct their weaknesses, is outdated and does not satisfy current business requirements (Leonard, 2017). Progressive managers must adhere to the principles of coaching and help to find weaknesses and correct them. Thus, accepting and using the uniqueness of each team member will improve the relationship between executives and employees.
The ability to listen to subordinates is another effective step in leadership. A successful director cannot just give feedback; he must also be able to hear. As a general rule, the head of the company, using his position, just gives orders that employees must follow. This method makes workers feel oppressed, especially when it appears in front of other employees or customers. An authentic leader must acquire the ability and skills to hear his agent and understand the situation more deeply. Thus, a simple conversation on equal terms can play a significant role in whether the message will achieve its aim. Using this approach, coaches can help improve employee productivity and increase job satisfaction through a pleasant pace and tone of speech (Leonard, 2017). Continuous self-improvement is a means for a successful leader. Lack of training leads to the fact that the available knowledge may not be enough as the business develops. The desire for knowledge of the manager can be an excellent example that subordinates will follow.
An effective leader is not hesitant to take responsibility for the failure of certain ideas and innovations. Leadership qualities include the ability to learn for oneself and apply knowledge effectively to the development of others. At the same time, it also indicates accepting responsibility for the results of his work and the performance of tasks by employees. Thus, if the application of specific innovations fails, the administration should set an example to workers that they need to acknowledge mistakes and try to correct them. A successful leader’s tool is the ability to see himself as a mentor, not a commander for employees (Leonard, 2017). Business owners need to use these means to support workers and give them the opportunity to express their views on specific issues. This attitude towards subordinates will let employees demonstrate the importance of their vision, and as a consequence, it will increase production. Authentic managers must achieve the enterprise’s aims through regular and effective feedback, communication, support, and training.
Methods of Individual Development and Innovation
Altogether, personal leadership (or the development of individual initiative) focuses on the following two assignments: strengthening personal skills, competencies, and abilities of managers at all levels, increasing executive skills, quality, and content of services provided to the institution. The correlation and coherence between the two concepts vary depending on the target group, the specific institution, and the precise aims of the central tasks to be addressed in the institution.
The expansion of personal solid leadership talents allows the head to integrate management and leadership, motivate staff, and create an inspired professional work environment and organization. By developing personal leadership, directors should consolidate their ability to work better, improve their efficiency and productivity, and increase concentration. At the same time, they must formulate positions, missions, and values; confidently move towards the planned goals, visions, and aspirations (Leonard, 2017). It is preferred to prepare to become an effective leader of the organization and learn about all the pitfalls that can interfere with work. Construction personal leadership is preceded by growing organizational leadership. It is necessary to analyze individual development plans and actions. If the head does not disclose personal leadership on a daily basis, he will not be able to effectively support the people who work for it to mature their leadership talents. In this context, personal leadership is the ability and desire to form a way of thinking to determine specific direction and goals. It includes courage, choice, and a desire to move in that direction, taking purposeful and crucial action to accomplish results.
There are seven primary directions of personal leadership development. First, the head needs to discover the power of personal values, goals, and visions and reveal personal leadership strengths. It is also necessary to improve an understanding of the requirements and challenges of leadership and to explore in detail the role of managers and their approach to leadership (Leonard, 2017). Moreover, the head needs to understand yourself through an understanding of personal preferences. The next action is to distinguish possible steps on the path to leadership and use the results for the benefit of the organization through more effective leadership.
In general, personal leadership can be exercised in different ways and in different forms, and a number of issues will need to be discussed. For example, is the decision part of a local short-term or long-term strategy to address specific challenges? Is it a long-term investment in development competencies? Questions of this direction help to determine to some extent the content and necessary results of development processes and programs. However, most personal leadership development goals are usually related to indicators and results in one’s institution (Leonard, 2017). Thus, most personal management development programs are evaluated in detail and systematically at all levels.
Developing personal leadership can consist of six main components: needs analysis, evaluation, training, feedback, integration, and estimate. Performance of needs analysis is carried out individually or at the level of directors. The individual aspect is vital in the requirements analysis, especially if it is part of an individual career development plan. Concerning the identified needs under this component, the main parameters and targets should also be defined in order to assess the process (Leonard, 2017). This can be done through a personal development plan that contains purposes, tools, and results to be achieved within specific areas of leadership.
The following step is to appraise and explain own preferences. In order to recognize and develop personal leadership, it is necessary to understand personal intellectual and emotional preferences. They make up the basis of the professional development of a manager or leader. Evaluation results and dialogue tests are usually integrated into a continuous process throughout the development process. This component is related to individual items related to needs. The instruments and tests used in this component are usually tailored to the participant and focus on personal preferences and perceptions. The point is that the manager himself is an essential tool, and understanding and using personal preferences is a critical element in the development of personal leadership (Leonard, 2017). In the expansion of personal leadership, the evaluation aims to identify and estimate personal preferences.
This is usually done using tests in combination with a discussion of test results conducted by certified and authorized specialists. Tests can be classified into three powerful combinations: dynamic preferences, stable preferences, and interactive preferences. As a rule, it is desirable to use all three categories of tests in personal leadership development, as they cover all essential aspects of leadership (Leonard, 2017). Individual management aims to understand and integrate all these aspects of leadership into one stream that will help in future professional advancement.
Once the needs analysis and assessment, including personal preferences, have been completed, the learning phase begins in order to reply competently to the challenges identified. The education component should be based on a number of critical basic methods and principles. Absolute confidentiality must be ensured as training concerns personal matters. It should be based on common practice participation. Personal involvement is crucial, and external experts cannot respond to challenges. Therefore, trainers must work as assistants and ensure an open and safe learning process based on discussion and thinking. Members should be able to share with each other experiences and knowledge. The issues under consideration should be related to the context of the organization in which the participants work. It should also be possible to create a special network for partners – so that participants can consult with each other during time, in the middle, and after the development program (Leonard, 2017). Training should be summarized and spelled out individually development plan, which must be taken into account in the program improvement process.
Feedback is a critical element of a personal leadership development system. Giving and collecting feedback is very important in individual leadership. Abilities and skills to perform feedback processes in the institution significantly impact the work culture and set milestones for professional efficiency and quality. Receiving feedback creates a platform for developing the administration personality, where assessments are determined by superiors, colleagues, and employees to leadership qualities (Leonard, 2017). Providing feedback leads collectively and clarifies ambitions and visions as a director, setting standards and values for leadership.
Receiving feedback in personal leadership development is usually done through a three hundred and sixty-degree feedback system. The approach is a method or process in which leaders receive confidential, anonymous feedback from the people who work with them. The three hundred and sixty-degrees system involves assessment from all sides – managers, colleagues, subordinates, customers, and self-esteem. About eight people fill out the question form. The list contains issues that cover a wide range of competencies of the leader. Forms of feedback include questions that are rated on a rating scale, and evaluation agencies are hired to provide written comments. The director receiving feedback also fills out a questionnaire that includes the same questions (Leonard, 2017). Leaders use the three hundred and sixty-degree approach to better understand their strengths and weaknesses. This system automatically calculates the results in a format that helps the recipient to create a development plan. Individual responses are always combined with other people’s answers in the same category to maintain anonymity and give the employee a clear idea about its strengths and weaknesses.
The idea of three hundred and sixty degrees is used to obtain information about the leader’s perception of behavior and competence by employees, colleagues, and management. Also, to assess management skills such as listening, planning, purpose setting, dialogue, and communication. Assessments of teamwork, the nature, and effectiveness of leadership. Establishing communication will enable the head to explain and spread ambitions, objects, and meaning among employees and create platforms for growth and productivity in the unit or office (Leonard, 2017). Presenting feedback provides other people the opportunity to think about their behavior, attitudes, and perceptions. This determines that providing feedback in personal leadership is a mutually respectful dialogue with workers.
Among the many methods used to obtain feedback, the most productive for the formation of expression skills in personal leadership is the practice of positive evaluation. The method of positive evaluation is based on powerful meditation. This system assumes that all people have a vast ambition to make a specific contribution and be recognized – based on their talents, experience, or competence. This method aims to encourage humans to focus on their success in different situations and be optimistic. The process of positive evaluation consists of four stages that form a cycle. The first step is defined research. It is to attract the resources of the leader in search of a positive core of change (Leonard, 2017). Those are the most compelling moments of his activity and the most significant successes he managed to achieve during its existence. This frame aims to stimulate the leader’s sense of pride in himself, to direct him to the positive.
In the second stage, which is designated a dream, a vision of the future is formed. The development is based on information about the most significant successes of the manager in the past and finding answers to questions. Inquiries may be about what the director wants and what he has now. In other words, at this stage, the leader is offered to dream about what he can become. The third step of the methodology of positive evaluation is a list of long-term and short-term goals, the achievement of which will help the manager get closer to the ideal. The fourth and final stage of a positive evaluation is to specify the actions identified in the previous frames. The method should end with a clear plan that includes a detailed description of the steps, an indication of the resources required, and the people responsible for implementation (Leonard, 2017). In addition, a leader can use any strategic planning approach but be convinced to maintain a positive mindset.
The head acts as a mediator to launch this dialogue process. Feedback from the employee should provide opportunities and space for reflection. In this way, the feedback worker takes on more responsibilities for self-development and reaching success. When a leader recognizes and values the contribution of experience, valuable skills, and competence of a person, it creates energy. It frees up additional resources with the help of an employee who performs communication (Leonard, 2017). In this sense, the method of positive assessment of the situation in personal leadership creates a positive attitude, and dedication and improves the organization’s cultural and working environment.
In developing personal leadership, particularly on the basis of new innovative principles, the connection between the goals and activities of the organization itself is compelling. A context must be created in which individual development leadership takes place in parallel with the strategic and organizational development of the organization. This means that the administrator must consolidate the problems and key elements of personal leadership identified and analyzed in the growth process with the organization’s goals, objectives, and functions (Leonard, 2017). Consistency between a director’s personal development plan and the organization’s daily tasks and activities will determine the outcome of personal leadership.
The most reliable technique to achieve this is to prepare a personal advancement plan to improve the quality and efficiency of the organization’s functions. In the realization of leadership potential, it is most optimal to find a balance. Therefore, it is necessary to correlate the level of expectations and opportunities in terms of development through adequate self-assessment. Another significant intellectual quality of a manager is the ability to perceive the uncertainty of the situation. Hence, the plan should pay attention to the expansion of creative and intellectual thinking. A critical component is also the education of stress and the perception of failure as teaching that serves to get out of a tricky situation (Leonard, 2017). It is also necessary to develop communication abilities and periodically evaluate the acquired skills to determine the readiness level to positively influence the team.
Conclusion
Thus, the leader involves assistants in the process of group discussion, stimulating their activity, and sharing with them all decision-making powers. As a rule, the decision is made only after revealing the opinion of workers. The manager willingly shares the power with them, enables them to show initiative, and develops their abilities. He does his greatest to make his employees understand that they will have to solve most of the problems without inquiring about his approval or assistance. At the same time, such a head creates an atmosphere of openness and trust, in which the subordinate can always turn to the leader for help and advice. They can discuss problems that exist or are brewing, and consult. A democratic coacher always focuses on the opinion of the group. Thus, coaching leadership includes coaching thinking and behavior, synthesizing them to create the most effective type of leadership. Such actions are needed to reveal and enhance the role of employees. This is different from the traditional style of team management and administration, which often does not use the potential of each employee to achieve mutual aims.
Reference
Leonard, H. S. (2017). A teachable approach to leadership. Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research, 69(4), 243–266. Web.