A Coach, a Coach, My Kingdom for a Coach: Defining the upper limits of Accomplishment
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If you thought Tiger Woods' career was at low ebb, then you were wrong. Last week, the tide not only receded, he got stuck in the primordial muck and produced the most head-turning display on the golf course in his career, finishing 30 strokes behind Hunter Mahan at a course where he had never before finished worse than fourth and had won a tour-record seven titles. Woods is lost.”
Steve Elling, CBS Sports Senior Writer 8-09-10
“Tiger Woods currently has no coach."
Mike Cook
The Heart of Engagement August 10, 2010
With apologies to William Shakespeare and Richard III…. Is it just me or has it been raining coaches in the business world for about the past fifteen years…and they come with certifications in case you need one, from all sorts of sources:
- Coach U
- Coach Inc.
- Center for Executive Coaching
- International Coach Academy
- Etc.
Some of these programs are several months in duration, some offer ongoing support, some are available on-line and some even offer certification in as little as 16 hours! I guess the familiar saying, “Let the Buyer Beware” pertains no matter what the offering.
Coaches are now available on nearly every street corner and make up a large portion of the attendees at any local ASTD meeting or networking group. The ‘rise of the coaches’ seems to be coincident with the proliferation of large scale downsizings that swept through the country in the mid-1990’s following the first wave of reengineering initiatives, also known as “right sizing” our organizations. It does provide individuals a low cost avenue to get into their own business, provides a valuable service, can be tailored to support just about any lifestyle and it is a rewarding profession.
However, I am less concerned for the proliferation of coaches, though dubious of quality in many cases, than I am in the absence of demand for coaching in general, most dramatically absent among many who profess to be involved in employee development, namely mid-level managers.
I am guessing that when you read the opening scenario reporting on Tiger Woods performance over the weekend at the Firestone Classic (assuming you know who he is) your thoughts immediately jumped to his recently confessed marital transgressions and you may have said to yourself, “I am not surprised with all that going on in his personal life that he cannot concentrate on golf!” I’d agree with that assessment. However, I am more mystified that someone whose career was built in close association with well known coaches, his father Earl Woods, Butch Harman, and Hank Haney among others would now find himself in the midst of the greatest crisis of his life operating without a coach!
There are limits to everything in this world, why lessen the chances for accomplishment by trying to approach tough challenges without support? In America I am afraid it is an affliction of our heritage. We have actually bought hook-line-and-sinker into the mythology of the self-made person or the ‘rugged individual.’ Asking for help, especially in the highly competitive environments of many of our commercial organizations has been/is seen as a sign of weakness or insufficiency. These American myths persist despite the fact that any close examination of what might be interpreted as “individual success” can readily be understood as the talents or vision of any famous business figure being heavily complimented and supplemented by others around them far less visible but nonetheless critical to the success realized. As the English poet John Donne so rightly said several centuries ago “…no man is an island, entire of itself…”
So what does determine the upper limits of accomplishment? There are undoubtedly numerous factors but I’ll venture that among them the foremost is the willingness to be coached, an openness to outside perspective and a recognition that anything truly remarkable or worth attaining will likely result from embracing the principle of interdependency.
For those among you that are up to something and might be ready to take the plunge into a coaching relationship I recommend a baby step to get started. There are today many fine coaches writing and making their insights, experience and wisdom available free of charge in the form of their regular blogs.
Some I like are:
Dan McCarthy- expert on management and leadership development
Steve Roesler – covers a vast array of management concerns
Mary Jo Asmus- a true executive coach
Bret Simmons - research based practical management advice
Jon Ingham – Human Capital Management, it is about the people after all
Sharlyn Lauby – calls herself an HR Bartender, she is a lot more than that!
If you think you can handle more coaching or if you like variety in your messaging try the “buffet” that goes by the name Human Capital League. If you can’t find something worth taking in at this site you are probably beyond help.
- Can you identify your reluctance to asking for help or seeking a personal
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advocate to keep you at the top of your game? It will be something simple, look for it first as an emotion, then as a statement of fact, a rule you have adopted without reflection.
