What Could Happen if You Do Nothing?
A Manager's Handbook for Coaching Conversations
By: Jane Murphy
Published: June 14, 2010
Format: Paperback, 147 pages
ISBN-10: 0984426205
ISBN-13: 978-0984426201
Publisher: Giraffe Business Publishing LLC
"Coaching is about positive, lasting change. Increasingly, businesses are recognizing the value it brings to the workplace", writes consultant, coach, and partner in Giraffe Business Publishing LLC, Jane Murphy, in her very practical and idea packed book What Could Happen if You Do Nothing? A Manager's Handbook for Coaching Conversations. The author describes how adding or enhancing coaching skills as an integral part of a manager's toolbox can help facilitate improvement in the workplace.
Jane Murphy understands that through improving listening skills, and asking the right questions of the people in the organization, a manager can become a more effective leader. Jane Murphy shares ideas for developing those active listening skills, as well discovering how to ask the right questions that are suitable in any given context, to draw out the best answers from people. The author demonstrates how coaching skills will enrich the manager's thinking and perception of their role, and improve their ability to meet challenges in the workplace. A manager who possesses strong coaching skills, according to the author, will be much better positioned to reach their full potential. At the same time, a good coach can help bring out the best in their staff people through a deeper understanding of their abilities and goals.
Jane Murphy (photo left) recognizes that the coach's role is not to provide ready made, predetermined answers to problems. At the same time, the coach is not there to do the work of the person receiving the coaching. For Jane Murphy, a coach is more of a guide, who helps to facilitate learning and discovery on the part of the individual being coached in the workplace. The author points to the coach as leader who is also developing their own skills, while improving the performance of the entire organization. Jane Murphy considers coaching to be, at its most basic level, interactive conversations based on mutual trust and confidentiality. Coaching will help align the skills of the employees with the overall goals of the organization, build stronger and more effective teams, and strengthen employee engagement. Coaches must learn how to coach through the refinement of their listening and conversational skills, as well as discover when is the best time to utilize those better coaching skills.
For me, the power of the book is how Jane Murphy provides information and advice for helping managers develop their coaching skills in an engaging and entertaining manner. The book is partly theory and partly hands on workbook, transforming the entire volume into a coaching instructional course for managers. Jane Murphy has organized the materials well, and guides the manager through the coaching skills building process with a combination of ideas, humorous drawings, and realistic conversations between manager and staff people. The author also provides for self testing of the manager's understanding of the information, as well as useful suggestions to help the manager initiate the coaching process with employees.
I highly recommend the useful and advice filled book What Could Happen if You Do Nothing? A Manager's Handbook for Coaching Conversations by Jane Murphy, to any manager who is seeking to develop or improve their coaching skills. This book takes an action oriented approach to the subject of building coaching tools for facilitating real improvement in the workplace.
Read the clear and concise book What Could Happen if You Do Nothing? A Manager's Handbook for Coaching Conversations by Jane Murphy, and add coaching ability, along with its attendant skills of more active listening and more encouraging questioning, to your overall palette of managerial strategies. This book will ensure that your coaching abilities are enhanced and ultimately more effective.
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