By Dana Phillips.
Neil and I are working on a new series for the coming year. As you might guess, a piece of it involves coaching. We have known for a long time that many leaders think they are coaching when in reality, they are doing one-on-one training.
A football coach lays out the plays and watches the execution of each play. He makes sure the players are in good shape, stands on the sidelines, and sometimes jumps in to “show” them how to improve a tackle, route, or pass. This is a team event. The goal is not one superstar; it is a well-oiled machine.
An ice-skating coach meets with a skater, finds out the goals and desires of her skater, and lays out a plan of what needs to happen in each lesson to achieve that goal. She observes the skater, makes suggestions on how to improve a turn, spin, or jump. She rarely jumps in and shows the skater what to do. She doesn’t change the goal of the skater. She challenges, helps the skater to visualize success, and relies on the skater to practice, practice, practice outside her time with the skater.
Of the two scenarios, the ice-skating coach is more akin to the direct selling coach.
Some do’s and don’ts of coaching your team:
- Do find out their goals and dreams
- Don’t assume they don’t want to work
- Don’t assume they do want to work
- Do find out how much time they are willing to spend on their business
- Don’t be afraid to ask for deadlines, benchmarks, and target dates
- Do expect the direct seller to do what they say they will do
- Don’t give up on them when they don’t (Come on, have YOU always done EVERYTHING you said you would)
- Do be patient; they may not have the skill yet
- Don’t forget to keep their what and why in front of them
- Do often ask, “How much do you want ____?”
- Don’t spend too much time on results; instead, stay focused on the activities to get results
Training can be done in large classes, online, in independent assignments. Coaching is personal.
Want to learn more about coaching your team?
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