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7 Ways to Coach Smart People
Rajesh Setty recently blogged about How Good Bosses Can Help Smart People Become Smarter. He offered seven excellent ideas to help those smart people (listed below).
I suggested to Rasjesh the seven ideas could be used in a coaching context (see italics). Yes, you can coach smart people if you ask better questions. I used the solution focus model to develop the questions.
1. Painting the big picture
Here’s the picture as I see it (explain). Suppose you were fully engaged in helping make that happen, what would you see yourself doing?
2. Expect more of you than what you expect from yourself
Suppose you surprised people by going even further than you expected, what would they notice you did to get there?
3. Believe when there is not enough proof!
In this future, you find that you are successful despite not having all the answers to reach new stage. What did you see yourself doing make good decisions when things were not clear?
4. Create situations that stretch you
Was there ever a time when you were in the deep end and surprised yourself by doing well? (Listen, then…). So, when we get to the big picture, how do you see yourself doing even better at stretching yourself?
5. Offer right amount of help (but not until it’s absolutely needed)
You’re a resourceful person. When you do need help, what works best? What will I see you doing to make that skill even better in the future?
6. Care deeply
When you care deeply about something important to you, what works? When you see me taking care of your needs, what does that look like? How can I help even more?
7. Forgive failure
I’ve seen you learn from your mistakes. How do you do that? How do you see yourself being even more adventurous about embracing and learning from failure?
Again, these coaching ideas are based on Solution Focus, a robust and stable model for change and growth.
Solution Focus is the foundation of the thinking in my book, Fry the Monkeys, which helps people develop move from problem focus to solutions in organizations.
