Watching sports is one of the greatest ways to see a group of individuals from diverse educational, economic, and family backgrounds come together for a common goal. Winning is the ultimate paycheck, but playing smart and leaving their heart on the field makes a player hold their head high are there any applications to today’s workplaces?
Employees at Zappos get it. If they were playing in the NFL, they would no doubt be in the playoffs each year. What’s the difference? They know how to create an environment that invites creativity, risk-taking, ownership, and feedback. Excellent combinations for building a strong team. More details in an article regarding their company values. Click here
Companies don’t start off on day one doing it all right; they grow and learn from their mistakes. So what type of coaching environment are you creating as a leader in your organization?
Great company coaches have a wonderful opportunity to showcase the employee talent of an organization, no doubt, one of the most important company assets. If each day you manage your staff was like watching a team practice, what would it say about your coaching skills?
Top Skills of a Great Coach
Vision: A coach can watch a player demonstrate a strong desire to be a winner. The coach knows that with the right type of drills and instruction, the raw talent is there and the player will go far. What do you see in your employees? Do you see their potential? Can you see the fire in their eyes to make a valuable contribution to the company? Everyone isn’t a star, but everyone is a team member.
Proper Assessment: It takes a team of coaches to run the drills and give each player multiple chances to exercise their skills. An honest assessment of a player’s strengths and development areas puts them in the best position to help the team. How often do you take the time to observe your employees to deliver a proper employee evaluation? Are you willing to tell your employees if they are in the wrong? Can you point them in the right direction when they are open to feedback about the performance?
Challenge Stations: In order to take players to a higher level, stations are changed to make them step up and do things they didn’t know they were capable of doing. Coaches expect mistakes and during that time, they guide the efforts until the higher standard becomes the norm. When was the last time you looked around to challenge some of your best employees and gave them a stretch performance goal? Fostering an environment where employees can take calculated risks and learn from their mistakes benefits the entire organization. Everyone grows tired of the same performance evaluation that says exceeds expectations on each category. That says one thing, I am not growing my skills. Help employees seek out tasks and projects that will develop new skills valued by the company. Be there to clarify the expectations and techniques and your team stock has improved tremendously.
Builds Bench Strength: All players cant play at one time, but all players must be ready and confident to play. Are you rotating special assignments and delegated tasks to build your whole team? Do you demonstrate a commitment to each team member and not just your favorites? When employees know their time is coming, they can be patient. They will execute the daily tasks with a desire to tackle greater responsibilities in the future.
It may seem a bit idealistic to believe each employee comes suited up to win every day but what do you expect out of your employees? Do you expect their personal best? Do you brag about your team? Are you waiting for the formal employee performance evaluation period to let them know how they are doing, or do you stop by at a random employee’s desk for five minutes in the morning to let them know you appreciate their efforts? Do you have a gotcha mentality or an environment that lets your employees know that you are all working together towards the same goal? Great coaches really want the players to win as individuals, doing their best. When you take care of the individual player, teaching respect, values, and ownership to the team, the score at the end of the game takes care of itself!
Creating a coaching environment is a daily commitment, it’s a mindset of value and it works. Get fired up, give great feedback, take time to give meaningful coaching during performance evaluations, and be recognized for having the best team!
