Coaching and Mentoring: practical methods to improve learning - Eric Parsloe and Monika Wray A book that gives an excellent overview of the coaching profession and methods, as well as practical advice on core skills, especially feedback, listening and questioning. It begins with a survey of the origins of coaching - in sports, psychotherapy, academia and the corporate world, and situates coaching as an essential catalyst for the learning organisation, which in turn is key to success in a knowledge economy. The book then introduces the main styles, models and theories of coaching, before giving practical advice on three core coaching skills - giving feedback, observational listening and asking questions. I particularly like the final sections of the book, where Parsloe and Wray emphasise the value of simplicity in coaching: ‘Success comes from doing simple things consistently’. Simple things like ‘make sure you meet’, ‘keep it brief’ and ‘ask, don’t tell’.
First, Break All the Rules: What the World’s Greatest Managers Do Differently - Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman Not strictly a coaching book, but I’m including it as it’s a thought-provoking and useful read for managers who want to raise their team’s performance through coaching. It is also based on a key coaching principle - find out what works well and build on it. Buckingham and Coffman did this via their research with Gallup, which focused on the questions ‘What do the most talented employees need from the workplace?‘ and ‘How do the world’s greatest managers find, focus and keep talented employees?‘. This led them to for key principles for facilitating outstanding performance:
Select for talent- instead of hiring people on the usual basis of experience, brainpower or willpower, find people who have a talent for the specific kind of tasks the role requires.
Define the right outcomes - and let people find their own way to achieve them.
Focus on strengths - give people every opportunity to excel at things they are already good at, and don’t waste time trying to fix all their weaknesses.
Find the right fit- don’t blindly assume that career advancement = moving into a managerial role, whether or not people are suited or attracted to it. If someone has the talent and inclination to manage others, give them the opportunity, but if they have different skills and preferences, give them opportunities to advance their career without having to move into a ‘hands off’ managerial role.
