{"id":22032,"date":"2022-04-11T10:51:34","date_gmt":"2022-04-11T15:51:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/?p=22032"},"modified":"2022-04-11T10:53:35","modified_gmt":"2022-04-11T15:53:35","slug":"a-whole-new-ballgame-for-coaching-and-mentoring","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/a-whole-new-ballgame-for-coaching-and-mentoring\/","title":{"rendered":"A Whole New Ballgame for Coaching and Mentoring"},"content":{"rendered":"

A few months ago, I read a Facebook post from a mentor that sent a jolt straight to my heart. One of the strongest, fiercest, most resilient people I\u2019ve ever known revealed she had contemplated taking her own life at one point during the pandemic<\/p>\n

That was an incredibly stark reminder to me of the astronomic toll COVID-19 continues to take, even as we talk about how to adjust to the \u201cnew normal\u201d supposedly occurring in both our professional and personal lives. In the workplace, organizations often look to coaching and mentoring to help employees cope with change\u2014something we\u2019ve seen a whole lot of over the last two years. But coaching and mentoring now go way beyond helping someone advance in their career or pursue their dreams. In fact, it\u2019s a whole new ballgame. Amidst health and safety concerns and the sudden shift to remote work, followed by a new hybrid work environment for some as pandemic restrictions ease, many employees have experienced depression, anxiety, work overload, and burnout\u2014and they are looking to their leaders, coaches, and mentors for guidance and support to get through these continued challenging times.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs the lines between professional and personal life have become blurred, today\u2019s leaders find themselves leading traumatized teams while they, too, have endured a challenging situation. Many executive coaches find they are being called upon to provide mental health support to leaders who may themselves be struggling, stressed, and feeling depressed. As a result, many coaches are integrating therapeutic skills and practices into their services,\u201d explains Trilogy Effect<\/a> Managing Partner Heather Marasse in \u201cLeading and Coaching a Traumatized Team.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

Marasse details a therapeutic framework called IFS (Internal Family Systems) that can be used to supplement a coach\u2019s toolkit. The IFS model helps people reclaim their authentic center, or Self<\/em>, which is rooted in connection, compassion, creativity, clarity, curiosity, calm, confidence, and courage.<\/p>\n

Dovetailing with that model, Institute for Health and Human Potential Partner Bill Benjamin notes, \u201cyou can\u2019t be a great coach who develops and inspires people if you only focus on their behaviors.\u201d Instead, he writes in \u201cYou Can\u2019t Be a Great Coach Without this Skill,\u201d<\/a> \u201cyou need to learn the Emotional Intelligence<\/strong><\/a>–<\/strong>based skill of connecting to the emotional needs<\/strong> that drive<\/em> their behaviors.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coaching and personalized development also are key to ensure you\u2019re not losing talented minority and underrepresented employees as the Great Resignation wave continues to roll across the nation, according to Kristy McCann Flynn, co-founder and CEO at\u00a0GoCoach<\/a>. \u201cAccording to PwC survey data<\/a>, women, Hispanic, and Black employees are more likely to be looking for new opportunities during this age of the Great Resignation. Nothing makes your people feel included and supported by your culture like coaching. Licensed coaching can make a huge difference in the career paths of minority and underrepresented employees,\u201d she writes in \u201cLearning for All: A Solid Path to DEI.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

Managers as Coaches<\/h2>\n

Many organizations expect their managers to do the coaching, but that can be challenging. According to an October 2021 survey by Balto<\/a> of 515 contact center managers:<\/p>\n