Coach Dan's Blog

Our Coaching Chapter has been engaged in a discussion on how best to articulate the value that our role brings to leaders and teams. We've had great, in depth discussions, and while we are still finalizing our shared framework for articulating our value, the exercise has caused ME to think deeply about the topic. Here's my take! It’s easy for a leader to get caught in the daily swirl of doing . We all feel the pressure to have the right answer, to make the right decision, to deliver results and to justify the resources we've been entrusted with. But true leadership isn't about getting the team to produce faster; it's about empowering the team to produce  results efficiently and indefinitely .  A coach doesn’t just show you what to do, they help to challenge your assumptions about how  things should work. They bring an external lens and a focus, not only on your growth, but to help you to step back and reflect. By partnering to explore new ideas, and challenging bias...

  We've Always Done It That Way... I heard that phrase this week.... "We've always done it that way." It was interesting, in an academic way, to observe the group I was with in the aftermath of those words.  I could actually see the body language of people change; people looking off screen, slumped shoulders, leaning back in their chairs.  One sentence unintentionally stifled discussion and disempowered the team from being curious and creative. Something to consider... I share the following story with new teams and leaders sometimes....  A scientist conducted an experiment in which they locked 5 monkeys in a room with a ladder.  On the top of that ladder the scientist placed fresh bunch of bananas.  Now every single time a monkey touched that ladder (because who wouldn't climb a ladder for a delicious bananas?) the scientist would spray all 5 monkeys with ice-cold water. After a while the monkeys learned their lesson and left the bananas alone! Not long aft...