Right
now, many of us are putting typical coaching routines on hold. Our own prospects for professional growth
might also be delayed. I wonder, though,
if our current reality might offer opportunities to cultivate attributes that
could make us better coaches. I’ve
personally felt the need to pause, ponder, and take stock of how I relate with
others.
Relational
characteristics can make or break a coach’s work, even if all the right
procedures and protocols are in place.
In recent posts, I’ve explored personal attributes that make for better
coaching. Traits like empathy, curiosity, humility, approachability,
joyfulness, and consistency are important to the relational work of
coaching. Another important attribute,
one that doesn’t feel quite so soft and fluffy, is courage.
Courage
is doing something difficult, even when there’s a risk. It means you have the strength to withstand
difficulty, that you’re confident enough to do what you believe in, Courageous
people don’t let their fear stop them from taking action.
It
took courage for me to coach a veteran 5th-grade teacher during my first year
as a coach.
It
took courage for me to say that our district’s Title One office was
recommending DIBELs data be used in a way that would harm children.
It
took courage to encourage a popular high school English teacher to include more
interactive activities, when he was known for his entertaining lectures.
I
had to “screw my courage to the sticking-place” before asking the principal to
find funds to pay teachers for the after-hours collaboration they were doing.
How
can we practice courage now, so that when we return to more normal routines, we
bring this attribute with us to our coaching work?
Courage can mean:
Courage can mean:
Honesty
Apologizing
Asking
Forgiving
Going
Creating
Starting
Believing
Learning
Speaking
Leading
Following
Staying silent
Walking away
As
you look at that list, can you think of ways you can practice courage
today? Every courageous step counts.
To
be courageous, we have to master our emotional response to fear. We have to
manage fear so that it doesn’t manage us.
To
be more courageous in the face of uncertainly, fear, or risk, we can ask
ourselves:
What
are the things that could happen as a result of my action or inaction?
What
are the risks to me and to others?
How
will what I do make a difference?
How
will I feel when I look back on this situation?
Courageous
people stand up for the people and things they care about. They act in ways
that are consistent with their values.
Sometimes that action is loud, but sometimes it is quite and
thoughtful. Winston Churchill famously
said, “Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it
takes to sit down and listen.”
Honestly,
I have often felt scared about using open decision-making processes, giving up
the power to be the final voice. But I
do it anyway, because this practice aligns with my values. It takes courage to be silent then.
But
courage also gives us faith in ourselves and the power to speak and act on our
convictions. When stakes are high,
opinions vary, and emotions start to run strong, it takes courage to move
forward. We demonstrate courage when we
align our actions with the meaning we attach to our work, when we voice our
vision even when challenged by the response.
It means, as Parker Palmer says in Courage to Teach, “living by our best
lights” (p. 183).
Ralph
Waldo Emerson said, “Whatever you do, you need courage. Whatever course you
decide upon, there is always someone to tell you that you are wrong. There are
always difficulties arising that tempt you to believe your critics are right.” The coming days and weeks will give us many
opportunities to practice courage. As we
become more courageous, we’re developing a relational skill that makes us
better coaches.
This
week, you might want to take a look at:
Dirt
Simple Online Teaching:
Sparking joy in reading:
Measuring
your day by tasks, not time (good advice for working remotely):
Science
experiments kids can do at home:
That’s
it for this week. Happy Coaching!
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very nice blog Executive Coaching Melbourne
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