Coaching When You are in a Hurry

The Issue: Coaching when you are in a hurry

While it is ideal to set aside time for formal coaching, there is often a need to assist someone on an ad hoc basis because there is an immediate problem. The coaching challenge is to avoid either redirecting the person elsewhere or simply telling them what to do, rather than encouraging them to think through the situation for themselves. There is a simple technique that can often be useful.

In this article we are going to briefly address this technique to create a rapid reflection process through an idealized dialogue:

Sam: John, one of my team supervisors came to me just now with a problem. He needs to urgently create a list of staff members to be interviewed for a Human Resources survey tomorrow. And he is going to have to attend the wrap up meeting of the audit on his section so he won’t have time. I suggested that he asks Mary to compile the list, but he panicked and said he didn’t think she had enough background to do the job to the HR Manager’s satisfaction. What do I tell him to do?

Coach: Well, Sam, you have caught me just about to go into a meeting, so here is what I would suggest. What would you see if this problem was fixed? Don’t tell me how you’d do it, just what success would look like.

Sam: Well…John has to attend the wrap-up meeting so he would need to delegate the list to someone who was able to understand HR’s requirements and make the appropriate judgments to create a valid and useful list. But he says Mary wouldn’t be able to do the job and there isn’t anyone else…

Coach: Before we start looking at Mary’s abilities, you might ask John the same question I just asked you, what success would look like, from his point of view.

Sam: Okay. I hadn’t thought of that.

Coach: What are the obstacles between where you are now and where you’d like to be? You don’t need to elaborate on them, just note them on the flip chart there.

Right, now you have reflected on what these obstacles are, do they lie in you, in someone else or in the situation?

Sam: Mmm…Most of the obstacles actually lie with either me or John and our perception, not so much with Mary’s competence! I think I can already see a couple of possible solutions…Maybe HR can give Mary a thorough brief if John is worried about doing it, or we could ask Lerato in reception, since she used to work in our department until recently and she knows everyone’s roles really well. But I actually need to ask John that question, don’t I, and let him consider how best to handle it? I like that process and I think I will use it again, whether I am coaching in a hurry or not. Thank you, Coach.

To explore more issues around coaching or leadership, you might want to visit our “Coaching On the Go” application or our website for additional information