Enhancing Self-Awareness in Employees
A key tenet of coaching and mentoring involves the coach getting to know his or her employees. The reason for this valuable connection is not so they become best friends with one another. As a coach, you want to identify your staff's real talents and abilities — i.e., their job skills, be they technical, interpersonal, leadership qualities, and so on. It's one thing to know that your employee Albert just became a father for the first time, but it's far more important to know what Albert can do for you as an employee of the company. Nevertheless, congratulate him on the new addition to his family.
When you know your people inside and out — know exactly what their specific job roles are and how they are performing in them — you are best prepared to stave off any debilitating disruptions in performance. This deep-rooted knowledge helps you maximize positive results and productivity at the same time.
Help Employees Become Self-Aware
Some people, let's face facts, are not particularly self-aware. You know their kind. They often have perceptions of their talents and possibilities that don't jibe with reality. It's very often the case that these men and women believe they can do things that they plainly cannot. And vice versa. Some folks are capable of doing many things that they don't think they can do.
Most people know all too well from their own experiences that perceptions and reality are not always one and the same. An important part of your job is to make perceptions equal reality in the office. You can't have it any other way in a business setting. You can't allow employees to lead important projects just because they want to do it. There must be compelling evidence that they are qualified and up to the task. If you, and/or members of your team, don't feel that these ambitious employees are ready for such key job roles, then you know what you have to do. Just say “no.”
Yes, a coach has got to say “no” on occasion. When perceptions do not measure up to reality, this is one such time. This doesn't ever mean that you condemn employees to their current level of skills or job roles. Not at all. Among your many roles as a coach, you are a matchmaker, too. But it's compatible jobs — not soul mates — that you are finding for your employees. But then, the right job is something of a soul mate, isn't it?
Often you will be confronted with employees who have perceptions of their talents and abilities that don't correspond with reality. An important part of your coaching job is to place people in job roles they can fulfill. Employees believing they can do particular jobs is not enough — they've got to be able to do them.
Matching Employees' Goals with Their Skills
So much of coaching involves evaluating employee abilities and matching those abilities with specific jobs and tasks. Mismatching employees' abilities with their jobs — not uncommon in the business realm, sad to say — leads to lackluster performances, overall disarray, and widespread dissension. You're not in a coaching role to act as the blue fairy granting your employees' every wish and satisfying their every desire.
As a coach, you're charged with putting the right people in the right jobs and inspiring them to perform at their highest levels. If your employees are overrating or underrating themselves, it's your job to set them straight. People with strong people skills should be in jobs where people skills count most. People with top-notch skills in financial management should be showcasing their stuff in this area. And so on and so forth.
