Slowing Down to Speed Up
Clients often come to me to help “fix” various performance related challenges at work. Most of them have realized that they’re unlikely to find a quick fix, and that a coach can help.
Of course! Development takes time and investment. Coaching can help accelerate development.
A tension arises because most of us are running 100 miles an hour all the time – at work, at home, just in life. And while we know development can take time, it’s hard to give it the right amount and quality of time. Frustrated by this tension, many clients who come to coaching incline toward a solutions-oriented dialogue such as “tell me what I need to do differently so that I can improve ….”
This approach is direct. It sounds efficient. It’s goal-oriented.
❌ And it often goes nowhere.
Why? We are moving too fast to really understand our situation. We are trying to add new behaviors without seeing what drives our behavior in the first place. And we end up quickly being disappointed in our progress and then go looking for another idea. Or just as bad, we double down on the old behaviors.
So what can we do?
In coaching we step away from the solution orientation and stop viewing the situation as a problem that needs to be fixed. The coaching experience allows us to slow down, take a step back, break it down. Then we work together to be curious to build understanding. We breathe and find ways to build connections. We might practice new behaviors together and find places to try them out with low risk. Soon we will be ready to speed back up.
Slowing down seems inefficient. It seems vague and leads to feelings of aimlessness. And yet it’s only by slowing down that we can achieve the perspective and develop new behaviors that will allow us to speed back up, become more efficient and achieve our developmental goals.
Are you ready to slow down to speed up? Connect with me here or at john@aconnectedcoach.com.