Horizon Point Consulting

Author: Mary Ila Ward

Hiring a Coach to Improve Work Performance

If you are seeking to maximize your performance at work, hiring a professional coach may help you do this. We’ve mentioned key factors in vetting a coach, one of which is considering the approach or process the coach or firm follows.

Our coaching approach is grounded in our company values. Our basic leadership coaching process focuses on these key elements, stemming from our values:

1. Assessment. We start by assessing where people are from their perspective and the perspective of people who matter in their life.

2. Self-Awareness. Based on the results of the assessment phase, we work to build self-awareness between the individual’s perception an others’ perception to determine focus.

For more reading on self-awareness:

The Mirror

Self-Awareness Test

The Verdict

3. Mission statement. As a way to solidify self-awareness and focus developmental efforts, our clients formulate a mission statement based on their values in order to govern their direction.

For more reading on creating a mission statement:

Don’t want to wake up with regrets? Create a mission statement

Define and focus on what’s important

4. Goal setting. After a mission statement is created, our clients set goals to govern focus for maximizing performance.

For more reading on goal setting:

4 tips for setting mission focused goals

5. Feedforward and feedback. After goals are set, we work with clients to share their mission and goals with those who are tied to their performance monitoring. We provide a framework for them to seek continually feedback on the progress there are making towards maximizing their strengths and minimizing their weaknesses, through the help of a practice called feedforward (a concept developed by Marshall Goldsmith)

6. Tactical coaching. In conjunction with the feedforward and feedback process, we work to help clients maximize strengths and improve in weak areas by tackling key areas with behavioral-based coaching. We provide discussion, reading and exercises for the client to consider and implement. These tools are designed to help individuals take their performance to the next level. Over the next few weeks, we’ll be focusing on the most common tactical areas we see come up in coaching as well as tips and tools to help improve performance in each of these areas.

What are of your performance at work would you most like to improve?

February 24, 2014
College Prep for Juniors

The past two weeks I have made a list for freshmen and sophomores on how to be prepared for college. While those years are important, Junior year has the most responsibilities for college bound students. Like most students I knew I was going to college, but that assumption made me ignore important steps when preparing. The beginning of this past year, when I started applying to schools, I made it so hard on myself because I was lazy and had little drive my junior year. I should have set my priorities with college in mind.

To help you have college in mind, I have come up with some tips for high school juniors:

1. ACT/SAT is priority- In my experience, colleges prioritize students by ACT/SAT scores. While GPA should not be ignored, the higher the test score the more opportunities there are for scholarships. For example, I have an older brother and sister that attend the same college. In high school my brother’s GPA was a 3.7 and my sisters was a 4.3, while she was more studious than he was, my brother received more scholarship money because he had a higher ACT score. When studying for the ACT/SAT it is almost impossible to learn and remember all the rules and formulas for the different problems. Instead, practice and learn how take the test. Find out what stratagy works best for you, the more comfortable you are testing the easier the test becomes.

2. Push yourself- This year was the hardest for me by far. I took three AP classes. While that might be overwhelming to have so many, I suggest you take as many as you think you can handle. Like I have said before, the class that will get you an easy A is not going to help you in college courses.

3. Build your resume- Continue to stay active in the activities and organizations in which you are a part.

4. Search and apply for scholarships- Even though they can be in small amounts, it is still less money you or your parents have to pay for your education.

5. Start making a list of colleges that interest you- It can seem overwhelming at first but it gets easier. Thinking about simple things like cost and distance can help you narrow down your options. When you come up with a list of possibilities, be aware of deadlines. Some colleges allow you to apply as soon at the beginning of August before your senior year.

6. AP Exams- If you are taking AP classes, put effort into your end of the year exams. You can avoid taking and paying for classes if you score well. I am eating my words on this one, I didn’t care and did not get any credits from my exam scores.

7. Enjoy your summer- It is sad but this is the last one you will have without the stress of getting ready for college. Don’t expect to have your future figured out your

Junior year. It is hard to be motivated for something that is 2 years away, but try to make yourself. You will be thankful you put in the extra effort when you begin your Senior year. With The Horizon Point’s College Checklist, you can be ready for the responsibilities for this year and your senior year. You may also want to check out Horizon Point’s College and Career Prep email subscription plan to help you stay on track starting your junior year.

February 21, 2014
Should You Hire a Coach?
Last week, we discussed what you should look for in a coach. But before you go looking for a coach, you need to look in the mirror. Consider these questions before you vet coaches to help you:
1. Are you willing to devote the time to coaching? Developing as a person takes time. You’ll need to be willing to meet with a coach at regular intervals and devote the time to practice and follow-through on assignments that arise from the coaching arrangement. Just like you won’t be a become a better baseball pitcher if you only practice during the 1 hour of your coaching session, your performance in any arena won’t improve if you don’t take the time to put into practice what you are learning. If you don’t have the time or the willingness to devote to the process, don’t begin.
2. What are your needs? Continuing with the baseball analogy, do you need help with your hitting, your pitching, your fielding, your speed? A similar list for leadership coaching may be help with motivating others, delegating, time management, managing upwards to develop your career, among many other things. What you need “help” with should focus not only on where you desire to see improvement, but where you want to maximize your talent. Consider what can help take you to the next level, and hire a coach that can help you focus on just that. If you are unsure of what you need or seek clarity in defining focus, a good coach should have the ability to assess this for you as a part of the process and create a plan for you. In fact, most coaches will start first with some type of assessment to begin the coaching engagement.
3. What results are you expecting? Do you want to increase the number of strikeouts you have in a game? Do you want to get noticed by major league scouts? Clearly defining your needs should lead to clearly defined results you are expecting. Having these written down can greatly help you when you go shopping for a coach to help you achieve them.
4. What are your values? Different coaches practice different forms of coaching. In leadership coaching, some focus on behavioral based coaching where others on psychoanalysis as their framework. There are multiple variations of coaching methods, none of which are necessarily right or wrong, but you need to have a frame of reference in terms of your values in order to select the best person to work with you. The clearest analogy for this may deviate from sports and come from parent coaching. Quite simply, if you fundamentally disagree with spanking your child as a form of discipline, choosing a coach who advocates for this type of discipline would not be a fit for you.
So, should you hire a coach?
February 17, 2014
College Prep For Sophomores

Your sophomore year of high school is a pivotal year to make sure you are challenging yourself and expanding upon what you learned your freshman year. As a high school senior about to transition to college, I’ll be continuing this week with my focus on what to do each year to make sure your beyond ready for college.

When Sophomore year came around, I felt like I had high school figured out. Little did I know there was so much more that I could have done to help me be prepared for college.
Here is my to do list for high school Sophomores:

Take the ACT or SAT– It is important that you do this for experience.
Pay attention to scholarship opportunities– Even if it is for a small amount or you don’t think you will get it, do it anyways. It will give you practice and you could win and already be saving money for college.

Challenge yourself– Start thinking of what level classes you want to take to next year. If the classes you are taking right now don’t push you, plan to go to the next level. I suggest that you take any AP class that is offered your sophomore year. Getting an easy A now will not help you when you get to college.

Choose your priorities wisely– When building your resume it is important to think quality over quantity. If you joined a club your Freshmen year that did nothing, don’t join it again. Spend your time on things that will set you apart. Trust me there are hundreds of science or spanish club members that will applying to the same college you are. Join the the clubs or organization that helped you get volunteer hours and make you be involved.

With each year comes more opportunities to prepare yourself for college. It is rare for students to have that focus and drive to take those opportunities in order to be ready for college. The Horizon Point’s Checklist provides a plan for students to make college a reality.

February 14, 2014
The Ins and Outs of Leadership Coaching Series- How to Select the Right Coach
Today, you can find a “coach” for everything. Where we used to associate coaching specifically with sports, now there are life coaches, leadership coaches, executive coaches, parent coaches, career coaches… you get the picture.

Since our firm provides leadership and career coaching, we obviously see the value in coaching.Performance Management: Putting Research into Action states, “There is strong research and case-study evidence that coaching is an effective leadership development tool.” In fact, one of our coaching clients from last year received a substantial raise as a result of gains in his performance. He deserves the credit for this through his hard work, but we were able to help him maximize his performance through behavioral-based leadership coaching. I have an executive coach I work with and she has helped me tremendously in focusing company efforts towards growth.

So if you are seeking someone to help you improve your performance, what should you be looking for?
1. A coach who has a governing set of ethics/professional standards. Ask them to provide you with their standards inInformation on confidentiality, conflict of interest, professional conduct and scope of practice, at a minimum, should be included.
2. Industry knowledge and people knowledge. For example, if you are in manufacturing, does the coach understand this arena? Within the scope of practice your coach should be able to provide to you an explanation of their training and background. Make sure this is in line with your needs.
3. Track Record. Your coach should be able to provide you with a list of references.
4. An approach. The coach should have an approach to coaching grounded in research and practice that comes with a proven process you can align with and devote the time implementing.
We’ll be focusing over the next few weeks specifically on leadership coaching including things to consider before hiring a coach, our approach to leadership coaching, and common areas of focus in leadership coaching along with tips to aid in these common areas. We’ll wrap this series up with ways to measure the impact of coaching at an individual and organizational level.

Do you have a coach or have you thought about hiring one? What sold you on their ability to help you gain the results you were seeking to accomplish?
February 10, 2014