Business Coaching & Mentoring For Dummies

Marie Taylor worked across the spectrum of business in private and nonprofit organizations delivering a range of leadership training and behavioral training. Steve Crabb is a Licensed Master Trainer of NLP and a Master Transformative Coach who has helped to train and coach more than 30,000 people.

• Introduction 1About This Book 1Foolish Assumptions 2Icons Used in This Book 3Beyond the Book 4Where to Go from Here 4Part 1: Getting Started with Business Coaching and Mentoring 5Chapter 1: Navigating the World of Coaching and Mentoring 7Spotlighting the Business Benefits of Coaching and Mentoring 8Defining Coaching and Mentoring 9Coaching is the art of co-creation 9Mentoring is the art of imparting wise counsel 11Distinguishing coaching and mentoring from therapy 11Distinguishing Business Coaching from Other Types of Coaching 14Business coaching requires an understanding of business 14Coaching leaders to be difference-makers 15Equipping Yourself to Help Other People in the Business Context 18Choosing a coach or mentor 20Becoming a business coach or mentor 21Being on the Other Side as Coachee or Mentee 22Understanding Professional Requirements 23Chapter 2: Making the Case for Coaching and Mentoring 27Taking the Role of Educator 28Valuing Third-Party Observation in Business 29Showing that the coach’s perspective matters 29Knowing how perspective feeds into change 30Understanding construal-level theory 30Leading a client to the light-bulb moment 34Identifying the Client’s Return on Investment 34Selling the benefits 35Doing a cost-benefits analysis 36Measuring and monetizing 38Measuring the hidden benefits clients can’t see 38Investing now for a future return 40Stretching the Budget 41Adding Value by Training Leaders in Coaching and Mentoring Skills 42Chapter 3: Developing the Skills and Knowledge Base of a Coach and Mentor 45The Differences between Coaching and Mentoring 46The coaching skillset 46The mentoring mind-set 47Coaching and Mentoring Skills 48Being present for a session 48Active listening 48Why coaching is rarely about the first issue in the conversation 49Doing your homework and developing relevant business knowledge 50Structuring a Client Session 52Getting into the right frame of mind 52Contracting creates relationship clarity 52The contracting session 53Creating the right environment 54Knowing your limitations 55Using Models in Coaching and Mentoring 57The CLEAR model 57Solution-focused coaching model 60A model for mentoring 61Developing flexibility in utilizing models and tools 64Working in Particular Circumstances 64Coaching and mentoring via telephone, web, and email 64Cross-cultural and multicultural work 67Chapter 4: Assessing Clients’ Needs before Coaching 69Creating Programs to Deliver Coaching and Mentoring in Organizations 70Figuring out what the organization wants and what the organization needs 70Working with talent management and succession planning 76Supporting coaches and mentors 77Coaching Wannabe Business Owners and Startups 78Helping startups see the value of coaching 78Looking at areas for focus 79Guiding the jack-of-all-trades and master of one 80Helping the Family-Owned Business Survive and Thrive 82Knowing where your support is most helpful 82Evolving the legacy 83Keeping business professional 84Developing “Intrapreneurs” within Organizations 85Creating the space to innovate 86Turning the catalyst of an idea into reality 87Working with the Socially Oriented Business 88Knowing types and makeups 88Identifying the challenges for the business 89Part 2: Developing the Business Leader’s Mind-Set 91Chapter 5: Managing the Inner World of Thoughts and Emotions 93Understanding How Humans Think 94We are what we think 95We become what we practice 96Choosing the Most Appropriate State in the Moment 97Noticing the effects of a negative emotional state 97Looking at the State Behavioral Model 99Working with the four F’s of flight or fight 100Knowing that breathing is a better choice than not 102Looking downright depressed is a dismal choice 104If things aren’t looking up, looking up helps 105Changing Internal Self-Talk 106Understanding that it’s not what you say, it’s the way you say it 107Making the ridiculous sound ridiculous 109Being kinder and nicer matters 110Making Mind Pictures That Matter 111Getting distance from the situation 112Focusing on this not that 114Changing the Internal World by External Means 116Identifying when therapy is the answer 116Using mindfulness, meditation, and the mysterious to support business 118Chapter 6: Helping Leaders Recognize Why “I Did It My Way” Isn’t the Best Epitaph 121Recognizing That Inflexibility Sometimes Leads to Extinction 122Knowing that process and product innovation require adaptive leadership 123Checking risk appetite to temper or grow ambition 124Being Willing to Ask for Help When Out of Your Depth 126Deploying the Right Thinking to the Right Problem 129Thinking purposefully 130Exercising your thinking 131Seeking certainty when ambiguity may create something wonderful 133Developing Alternative Perspectives 133Considering leadership styles 133Applying leadership gifts in business 135Chapter 7: Coaching Clients through Their Blind Spots 139Preframing the Coaching Conversation 140Breaking Down Common Barriers 141Working on willingness to learn 142Pushing beyond the comfort zone 142Identifying the enemies of learning 144Dealing with Roles and Perceptions That Contribute to Blindness 146Repositioning the ego state 146Grounding eccentricity 149Distancing empathy 150Defusing Dramas That Impede Clear Vision 151Moving beyond reactive thinking 152Giving up the dramatic roles 153Dealing with learned helplessness154Finding the meaning in fear 156Shining a Light on Incongruency 158Part 3: Coaching and Mentoring to Get a Business on the Right Track 161Chapter 8: Telling a Compelling Story in Business 163Understanding the Value of the Business Story 164Recognizing how a business conveys its story 164Knowing which stories a business tells 166Seeing who responds to stories 166Helping the Client Create the Basic Story 169Guiding the client through an exploratory exercise 169Knowing that “it’s the way you tell it” 170Distinguishing Fact from Opinion 174Thinking in terms of maps of reality 175Asking good-quality questions 176Weeding out deletions, distortions, and generalizations 178Playing master sleuth to separate opinion and reality 182Giving Feedback on the Business Story 184Chapter 9: Helping Clients to Assess Their Own Businesses Objectively 187Testing the Foundations of the Business 188Applying Strategic Thinking 188Making the Complicated Simple 192Using a framework to walk around the business 192Working in plain lens spectacles 193Determining Where the Best Mentoring Work Begins and Ends 197Developing Trust and Honest Appraisal through Feedback 198Encouraging clients to be open to regular feedback 198Using feedback to feed forward 199Learning from the Spectacular Success of Others 199Mentoring inside a Small Organization 200Chapter 10: Developing Vision, Mission, and Values 203Aligning Who You Are with the Business You’re In 203Revealing What’s Really Important 204Defining the how and why of your business 204Stopping your history from holding you back 206Checking your locus of control 206Getting clear on what you value and what you want 208Helping a Business Create Operating Values 211Coaching business leaders to identify values 212Fleshing out values statements 214Designing an Inspiring Vision with the Logical Levels Model 216Identifying the six levels 217Using the Logical Levels model 219Reverse engineering the future 221Communicating the Vision 222Examples of Mission and Vision Statements 222International Federation of the Red Cross 222Fusion Optix 223JPMorgan Chase & Co 223Chapter 11: Transforming Visions into Workable Plans 225Creating a Plan Fit for Purpose 226Planning mind-set rules 227Exploring options 228Revealing what may stop or derail the plan 234Gaining honest commitment and buy-in 237Pinpointing when now is the right time 238Resourcing the Plan 238Packing the luggage for the journey 239Knowing the route and moving in the right direction 242Scheduling when to rest and refuel 243Actioning and Reviewing the Plan 244Gathering feedback and feeding forward 244Checking that the plan is on track 245Knowing when quitting is good 245Acknowledging a job well done 247Chapter 12: Mentoring for Personal Success and Empowering Leadership 249Being a Great Leadership Mentor 250Challenging the Delusions of What It Means to Be Successful 251Success and culture 252Success isn’t a destination 253Exploring the True Nature of Success 253Dealing with the “I Should” Traps of Success 255Why look at limiting beliefs in mentoring? 256Finding a strategy for examining and eliminating limiting beliefs 258Identifying the Common Qualities of Great Leaders 261Looking and behaving like a leader 262Adapting your style to create followers 264Allowing Others to Lead While You Follow 266Enabling leadership across generations 266Mentoring Millennial leaders 267Part 4: Creating a Successful Business Identity with the Support of a Coach 269Chapter 13: Developing the Brand of You 271Enter Personal Branding 271Defining How Brands Work When They Work Well 273Building a Brand on Purpose 275Defining your purpose 275Keeping the business intact and your values on track 277Looking in the Mirror of Self-Critique 279Cultivating the qualities of brand excellence 280Stepping into a brand-new you 281Presenting Yourself with Style and Substance 282Recognizing When Incongruence Strikes 283Valuing What You Have to Offer 284Realizing your value 284Following a six-step model 286Positioning your brand 287Adjusting your financial thermostat 288Promoting Yourself with Shameless Humility 290Lighting Up the Room When You Walk In, Not When You Walk Out 291Leaving a Legacy Footprint 292Chapter 14: Developing Relationships at All Levels 295Establishing a Successful Relationship with Yourself 295Establishing the Baseline 296Step 1: Gathering the personal map 296Step 2: Identifying high points and low points 297Step 3: Discovering desired improvement 298Working on Yourself 298Being authentic 299Staying in the game 299Starting strong and avoiding needy 300Maintaining Client Relationships 302Checking commitment and desire 303Case example of how to check for commitment to goals 303Managing Stakeholder and Sponsor Relationships 306Managing stakeholder relationships 306Communicating in triangular situations 309Sponsoring a coaching intervention 310Building Synergistic Collaboration 310Creating synergy and serial entrepreneurship 311Growing wiser and creating value 311Networking Is a Deposit in the Karmic Bank 312Building Trust and Rebuilding Broken Trust 315Developing trust at the level of the organization 315Resolving conflict and avoiding mutually assured destruction 317Having the Courage to Let Go 318Chapter 15: Coaching to Help Business Engage, Inform, and Influence 321Understanding the Importance of Effective Communication 322Communicating Quicker than the Speed of Conscious Thought 323Understanding Why People Say Yes 325If You Have the Need to Influence, You Get to Do All the Work 327Navigating the Political Landscape 327Ethically Influencing and Persuading for Results 330It Takes Two to Influence 331Paying attention 331Listening actively 332Building rapport 335Choosing words that could, should, might make a difference 340If You Aren’t Getting the Desired Results, Change Your Communication 342Part 5: The Part of Tens 347Chapter 16: Ten Online Resources to Boost Coaching and Mentoring Effectiveness 349Steve Crabb 349Business Reading Lists 350iTunes U 350YouTube 351Podcasts 352Blogs 352TED Talks 353Twitter 353Facebook 354Videos Tied to This Book 355Chapter 17: Ten Tips for Leaders Who Coach or Mentor People in Business 357Develop Talent in Those You Lead 358Sell More than Tell 359Name the Elephant before Eating It 360Get Good at Asking Questions 361Speak in Specifics and Mind Your Language 361Recognize the Value of Slowing Down or Shutting Up 363Appreciate Differences to Be a Difference Maker 364Create the Optimum Conditions to Coach at a Distance 364Support Your People during Change 366Educate Yourself about the Business 367Chapter 18: Ten Tips for Business Leaders Hiring a Business Coach 369Be Clear about Where You Want to End Up 370Be Willing to Be Wrong 370Seek Out a Different Point of View 371Lay the Groundwork 371Focus on Substance over Style 371Find the Best Fit for Your Business 372Get Stakeholder Participation 373Avoid One-Size-Fits-All Coaching 373Manage Your Expectations 374Dot Your I’s and Cross Your T’s 374Chapter 19: Ten Questions to Keep a Business on Track 375What Would We Create If Anything Was Possible? 376Why Are We Doing This? 377What Would Richard Branson Do? 378What’s a Better Way? 378Are We Still the Right People to Be Doing This? 379Are We Busy Being Busy? 379What Can We Do to Optimize or Streamline? 380Are We Going in the Right Direction? 381What Do We Need to Stop Doing? 381Are We All Still on the Same Page? 382Index 383