There is a trend nowadays to avoid exhibiting judgment so as not to be branded “a judgmental person.” While certain forms of judgment can be harmful and offensive, others serve us well in the many varied areas of our lives. The key for a coach or mentor is appreciating the difference between good judgment and bad judgment — and knowing when to exercise this aspect of human behavior.

Good Judgment

The good brand of judgment is a vital part of everyday living. People make judgments all the time — it can't be helped. Judgment and rules allow a free society to both exist and thrive. Judgment and rules are an essential part of every business, too. We choose our friends, whom our kids should play with, where to send them to school, whether or not to give money to a particular charity, whose phone calls to ignore, whom to leave our money to when we die, and the list goes on and on. And there are all sorts of reasons for making these kinds of decisions that require judgments on all of our parts. And some of these judgments are quite personal and pointed.

As a coach, you cannot be stripped of your capacity to judge. When you preside over a staff of diverse people and personalities, decisions are made all the time that call for swift and effective judgment on your part. Of course, it's wise judgment that you must demonstrate — and that's the good brand of judgment.

We'll differentiate between the good brand and the bad brand in a moment. For now, just heave a big sigh of relief. You can freely embrace the fact that you not only can judge, but also must judge on many occasions. It may initially surprise some of your friends, but they'll understand it all when you explain the differences between the good and the bad brands of judgment.

Bad Judgment

What, then, is the bad brand of judgment? It's clear that a coach has a critical role in sometimes playing both judge and jury. As a solutions-driven, results-oriented coach, you are always aiming to find solutions and achieve positive outcomes to any and all problems that come your way. Searching for negative outcomes to problems would certainly make you unique in the annals of coaching and mentoring, but you'd soon be savoring that singular distinction on an unemployment line. You are in place to solve problems and overcome obstacles, from performance snafus to interpersonal conflicts to, yes, even poor employee hygiene.

And the reality is that you don't achieve positive outcomes by managing with the disposition and manner of Judge Judy. You don't say to an underperforming employee: “Boy, you are really stinking up this office! What the heck is wrong with you? Do you have half a brain?”

Now those statements are harshly judgmental and stark examples of the bad brand of judgment in action. If you go down this route in your problem-solving efforts, you aren't about to see positive outcomes. You don't solve the problem of underperforming employees by branding them as “nincompoops.” If your goal is to chase employees away (by hurling invective at them until they quit), then you are not worthy of being a coach.