The One Coaching Habit That Will Save You Hours Every Week
“I don’t have time to coach.”
I hear this from leaders all the time.
In fact, I was working with a production manager recently who told me, “It is faster if I just give them the answer.”
He told me that his days are typically a blur of interruptions. So, I asked him to tell me a little bit more about what his days typically look like.
He mentioned that his team constantly “bothers him” with questions like:
- “Can you approve this?”
- “What should I do here?”
- “Can you take a look at this?”
By the end of the day, he has answered dozens of questions, solved everyone else’s problems, and made almost no progress on his own priorities.
Does this sound familiar?
When I asked him how often he simply gave people the answer, he smiled and said, “Pretty much every time.”
Why Giving the Answer Is Actually Hurting Your Team
Here’s the problem.
Every time you solve a problem for someone else, you train them to come back to you the next time.
As leaders, we often think we’re being helpful. In reality, you are creating dependency.
The most effective leaders don’t have all the answers.
They ask better questions.
So, I challenged this leader. I told him that his homework was to stop solving everyone’s issues but instead to ask them questions.
I wish I had his reaction on video. He was so reluctant to try this approach. He really pushed back. But I insisted that he give it a try.
This is the email he sent to me two days later.
“Asking questions is working surprisingly well. It is like a magic trick that is making people focus more and think for themselves. I love it. Good job.”
I love getting these kinds of emails from clients. It was cute that he said, “good job” to me! That made me smile!
My challenge for you is to try the same thing.
Try asking more coaching questions.
What Makes a Good Coaching Question
So, what is a good coaching question?
Well, it is not a question that gathers information like:
- “Is it finished?”
- “Did you call the client?”
- “Who’s responsible for this?”
- “Have you tried…?”
Rather, a good coaching question will help develop your team members.
It will help them to think for themselves, solve a problem independently or make a better decision.
Here are some practical examples.
Instead of saying:
“Have you tried Solution A?”
Try asking:
“What options have you considered so far?”
Instead of saying:
“Here’s what I think you should do.”
Ask:
“What do you think is the best next step?”
The quality of your questions will determine the quality of your team’s thinking.
Coaching Isn’t Slower. It’s an Investment.
I want to acknowledge that the first few coaching conversations may take a little longer.
But I promise you that over time, something remarkable starts to happen.
Your team will start arriving with ideas instead of problems. They will become more confident at making decisions and they will even start needing less direction.
This means that you will finally get some time back to focus on more strategic tasks.
Three Coaching Questions to Start Using This Week
So, the next time someone brings you a problem, resist the urge to jump in with the answer.
Instead, try one of these questions:
- What have you already tried?
- What options do you see?
- If I wasn’t here, what do you think you would do?
One of the biggest shifts leaders make is moving from being the person with all the answers to becoming the person who helps others discover them.
That’s how you build capability on your team.
And that’s how you stop being the bottleneck on your own team.
If you’d like to become a more confident coach, this is exactly what we work on in my Lead Your People Program which starts September 8th. Find out more information and register here.
You’ll learn the difference between formal and information coaching, you’ll learn how to run an accountability meeting and you’ll practice my 3 favorite coaching tools that I use as an Executive Coach. I hope you’ll join me in the program!
Leaders who go through this shift often say it changes more than just how they manage. Here’s what one leader told me after the program:
I had the pleasure of attending Vanessa’s Lead Your People program. Vanessa was able to create a safe and welcoming environment that allowed me to open up. I was engaged in a way that I had not expected. Vanessa approaches leadership training in a way that is practical and had me wondering ‘can it really be that easy?’ This program not only helped me to better understand my team, but helped me to understand myself. Vanessa provides an amazing toolbox of skills that I will continue to use in my career as I grow. I highly recommend Vanessa’s program if you are looking to improve yourself and your leadership abilities.
Tricia Ougrah, Office Manager at Siltech
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