Written by Roxana Radulescu, Leadership & Team Coach
Roxana is the Founder of All Personal, a Canadian award-winning leadership and team coaching & training company helping corporate team leaders and start-up co-founders boost leadership skills to become dream ‘bosses’ and build dream teams.
In our previous episodes, we talked about the role that Vision, Listening and Feedback play in the dynamic landscape of team leadership.
In this episode, we build on the previous ‘ingredients’ and see how you can boost your own leadership skills further, as well as your team’s effectiveness by managing through coaching & mentoring!
As a mid-career professional or a mid-manager, you may have reached a point where you feel comfortable with your technical skills and knowledge, and you may want to improve your leadership and inter-personal skills.
You want to inspire, motivate, and empower your team members to achieve their goals and grow professionally. You want to create a positive and productive work environment where everyone feels valued and supported. And you want to enjoy this ride, too.
How can you do that?
One of the most effective ways to enhance your leadership and management skills is by adopting a coaching and mentoring approach with your team.
Coaching and mentoring are not just management tactics; they are about fostering an environment where every team member feels understood, respected, and challenged. They are about building a resilient organization that thrives on the collective growth of its people. And they are about having a good laugh and learning from each other.
So, let’s see what coaching and mentoring are, why they are important, what the benefits are, where to start, and what skills you need to develop.
1. What are coaching and mentoring?
Coaching and mentoring are often used interchangeably, but they have some distinct differences.
Coaching is ‘a process of helping someone find their own answers and solutions, based on their own strengths and skills, in order to achieve their personal and professional goals.’
Mentoring, on the other hand, is ‘a relationship where one person shares their experience, knowledge, and wisdom with another person, in order to guide them, support them, and help them grow.’
Both coaching and mentoring require a high level of trust, respect, and communication between the coach or mentor and the coachee or mentee.
They also involve setting clear and realistic goals, providing feedback, and celebrating progress.
However, coaching is more focused on the present and the future, while mentoring is more oriented towards the past and the present.
Coaching is more about asking questions and listening, while mentoring is more about sharing advice and stories.
Coaching is more structured and formal, while mentoring is more flexible and informal.
For example, a coach might ask you: ‘What do you want to achieve in the next six months?’ and help you to design a plan and act.
A mentor might tell you: ‘When I was in your position, I faced a similar challenge, and this is how I solved it.’ and share their insights and lessons learned.
2. What and who are coaching and mentoring important for?
Coaching and mentoring are important for both individual and organizational success.
They can help you and your team members to:
Improve performance and productivity by clarifying expectations, identifying gaps, and finding solutions.
Enhance motivation and engagement by aligning personal and professional goals, providing recognition, and creating opportunities for growth.
Develop skills and competencies by providing feedback, guidance, and resources.
Build confidence and self-efficacy by acknowledging strengths, overcoming challenges, and celebrating achievements.
Foster creativity and innovation by encouraging experimentation, learning from failures, and embracing diversity.
Strengthen relationships and collaboration by building trust, respect, and rapport.
Reduce stress and burnout by offering support, empathy, and balance.
Coaching and mentoring also benefit you as a leader and manager by:
Enhancing your leadership and management skills by developing your emotional intelligence, communication, and problem-solving abilities.
Increasing your satisfaction and fulfillment by making a positive impact on others and seeing them grow and succeed.
Expanding your network and perspective by learning from different people and experiences.
Improving your own performance and growth by receiving feedback, guidance, and support from your own coach or mentor.
And let's not forget, coaching and mentoring can also make you and your team happier and healthier by reducing stress, increasing resilience, and boosting well-being.
According to a study by the International Coach Federation, 80% of people who received coaching reported increased self-confidence, 73% reported improved relationships, 72% reported improved communication skills, and 67% reported improved work-life balance.
3. Where to start with coaching and mentoring?
If you want to start coaching and mentoring your team members, here are 5 steps you can take:
Assess your current situation and needs. Identify your strengths and areas of improvement as a leader and manager. Determine the goals and expectations of your team and organization. Evaluate the performance and potential of your team members.
Choose your coaching and mentoring style and approach. Decide whether you want to use a more directive or a more facilitative style, depending on the situation and the needs of your team members. Decide whether you want to use a more formal or a more informal approach, depending on the relationship and the context.
Establish a coaching and mentoring agreement. Communicate your intention and purpose to your team members. Explain the benefits and expectations of coaching and mentoring. Invite them to participate voluntarily and willingly. Agree on the goals, roles, responsibilities, and boundaries of the coaching and mentoring relationship. Set the frequency, duration, and format of the coaching and mentoring sessions.
Conduct the coaching and mentoring sessions. Follow a basic structure of preparing, conducting, and reviewing the sessions. Use various techniques and tools, such as questioning, listening, feedback, action planning, and follow-up. Adapt to the needs and preferences of your team members. (‘How to Assess Team Needs and Preferences Remotely – LinkedIn’) Be flexible and open-minded.
Monitor and evaluate the coaching and mentoring process. Track the progress and results of the coaching and mentoring sessions. Measure the impact and outcomes of the coaching and mentoring relationship. Solicit and provide feedback. Celebrate achievements and address challenges. Adjust and improve the coaching and mentoring agreement and process as needed.
4. What skills do you need to develop for coaching and mentoring?
Here’s my top 4:
Emotional intelligence: ‘the capacity for recognizing our own feelings and those of others, for motivating ourselves, and for managing emotions well in ourselves and in our relationships.’ (Daniel Goleman, 'Working with Emotional Intelligence') It involves four key skills: self-awareness, self-regulation, empathy, and social skills. Emotional intelligence can help you build stronger relationships, communicate effectively, cope with stress, and achieve your goals. And it helps you help others do the same, too.
Communication: The ability to exchange information and ideas clearly and respectfully. Communication can help you to ask powerful questions, listen actively, provide constructive feedback, read non-verbal cues, and express appreciation and recognition to your team members.
Goal-setting: The ability to define and pursue specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound objectives. Goal-setting can help you to align personal and professional goals, provide direction and focus, and measure progress and results with your team members.
Humor: The ability to use and appreciate humor in appropriate and positive ways. Humor can help you to lighten up the mood, reduce tension, enhance creativity, trust and productivity, and bond with your team members. According to a study by Robert Half International, 91% of executives believe a sense of humor is important for career advancement, and 84% think people with a good sense of humor do a better job. (ESI Group, ‘Humor at work’)
These skills can be developed in numerous ways, such as self-assessment, self-reflection, self-learning, training, coaching, mentoring, feedback, and practice.
And, most of all, you can also seek support from your own coach or mentor, who can guide you, challenge you, and help you grow as a leader and manager.
Coaching and mentoring do make a difference
Coaching and mentoring are not just management tactics; they are about fostering an environment where every team member feels valued, understood, and supported.
They are about building a resilient organization that thrives on the collective growth of its people.
And they are about having fun and enjoying your personal and professional development journey!
The power of these practices lies in their ability to create a ripple effect of positive change throughout the organization.
By adopting a coaching and mentoring approach with your team, you can enhance your own leadership and management skills, improve your team’s performance and productivity, and increase your satisfaction and fulfillment.
It will be you that makes that difference for yourself, your team, and your organization. Which means there are higher chances that you will also enjoy the process!
Roxana Radulescu, Leadership & Team Coach
Roxana is the Founder of All Personal, a Canadian award-winning leadership and team coaching & training company helping corporate team leaders and start-up co-founders boost leadership skills to become dream ‘bosses’ and build dream teams. Unlike other people leadership programs that focus on top executives, All Personal also works with mid-senior corporate leaders and start-up co-founders – and their teams! Roxana is a TEDx speaker, a certified Professional Coach - ACC with the International Coaching Federation, EIA with the European Mentoring & Coaching Council (EMCC), and Team Coach – ITCA with EMCC, Scaled OKRs coach and a certified GCologist®. She holds a diploma in Learning & Development and Human Resources practice from the Chartered Institute for Personnel & Development in the UK.r-generational learning and loves the multicultural blend of European, Canadian and US influences in her life.
Further Resources:
All Personal Free Resources for Leadership & Team Development
Online Leadership Development Courses + 1-1 Coaching (Emotional Intelligence, Feedback, Listening, Time Management, etc.)
