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In today's innovation economy, engineers, economists and policy makers are eager to foster creative thinking among knowledge workers.
Of course, we've all had our "Aha" moments....as coaches have facilitated them with our clients. They materialize without warning, often through conversations with your personal coach or an unconscious shift in mental perspective that can abruptly alter how we perceive a problem.
Why Every CEO Needs a Coach
Every Chief Executive Officer (CEO) is "on the stage" the majority of his or her work life but needs pre-performance quiet and confidential time to be creative, bounce their ideas off someone in a safe environment, and explore the unintended consequences of their future actions. Engaging in a personal coaching conversation is a refreshing opportunity where the CEO can be completely open and creative in a confidential and safe place.
When asked what was the best advice he ever received, Eric Schmidt, Chairman and CEO of Google, recognized it was from John Doerr, who in 2001 said, "My advice to you is to have a coach." Schmidt initially resented the advice, because after all, he was a CEO. He was pretty experienced. Why would he need a coach?
CEO Schmidt asked himself, "Am I doing something wrong?" His argument was, "How could a coach advise me if I'm the best person in the world at this? But that's not what a coach does. The coach doesn't have to play the sport as well as I do. They have to watch you and get you to be your best. In the business context a coach is not a repetitious coach. A coach is somebody who looks at something with another set of eyes, describes it to you in [his] words, and discusses how to approach the problem."
Schmidt said, "Once I realized I could trust him and that he could help me with perspective, I decided this was a great idea. When there is [a] business conflict you tend to get rat-holed into it. [The coach's] general advice has been to rise one step higher, above the person on the other side of the table, and to take the long view. He'll say, 'You're letting it bother you. Don't.'"
When a person faces a challenge and becomes stuck, he or she may seek the services of a personal coach. Once this commitment is made, the person begins to experience a different, more hopeful, world as his or her perceptions evolve in meeting the personal challenge. Professional coaches understand that the success of a coaching engagement depends on the willingness of the person-being-coached to commit to his or her personal development process.
Gaining Favorable Attention
Successful leaders follow a unique, almost hidden communication pattern to pass the "A" of the ACID test.
Grab the audience’s attention ► Stimulate desire ► Reinforce with reasons
C. Inspire Confidence,
I. Build Interest to where
D. Desire surfaces.
When 'desire' surfaces, the other person takes the lead in the conversation while you begin to provide the evidence necessary to justify your proposal.
Step 1: Getting the Audience’s Attention
In an experiment with 60 executives, researchers found the most important factors in grabbing their attention were:
1. A personalized message
2. Evoking an emotional response
3. A trustworthy source
4. Concise language
In fact, personalized messages that evoked emotion were more than twice as likely to resonate with the group.
Social scientists have shown that negative messages are more attention-getting than positive ones. To get an audience’s attention, share:
· Stories about the audience’s problems
· Stories about the problems’ worsening trajectory
· A relevant story about how you dealt with adversity
· A surprising question or challenge that will interest the audience--like "How well is _____ working for you?"
Beware of Gluten Sensitivity
Gluten is a vegetable protein--most commonly known as wheat protein. It is found primarily in wheat, rye and barley. Today, grains (even organic) are genetically engineered to have a high gluten content. With a high gluten content, you can bake wonderful bread that is crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. But gluten has a dark side. Many people are allergic or sensitive to it.
If you are completely allergic to it, the diagnosis is usually Celiac disease. If you are sensitive to it, you will just be chronically sick and disabled. And if you are like most people, you will go through life never knowing the connection; your doctors will never discover the connection; you will endure endless, useless medical treatments, your life will be impaired in one of a myriad of ways; and no one will ever be able to cure you.
"You and I do what many dream of, all their lives."
John G. Agno, Editor, mailto:johnagno@... ...or... Join me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/johnagno
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