Individual coaching


"The manager who only has a hammer for tools is easy to defineall problems that nail to be knocked down. "

Abram Maslow

Individual coaching


"The manager who only has a hammer for tools is easy to defineall problems that nail to be knocked down. "

Abram Maslow

Individual coaching for self-insight, self-view and change

We coach and assist managers in developing their full potential. The coaching is based on the manager's actual work situation and that the answers to the manager's opportunity for development and change often lie with the manager himself. Many managers do not prioritize in a hectic work
everyday to analyze and think more closely about what can be done differently in relation to their behaviour, how others experience their leadership style and way of communicating. We help the manager to better understand himself and his actions. We make it possible for the manager to go by himself; what drives me, why do I make the choices I do, what consequences does this have? What possibilities open up if I do something differently?

"I have six honest servants. They taught me everything I know. Their names are What, Why, When, How, Where and Who."
Rudyard Kipling

Poor self-awareness and no feedback?
Then we continue as before

Many of us have limited self-awareness. When it comes to our more negative personality traits, our colleagues, family and friends often refuse to give us feedback. What happens then? Yes, we continue as before. Good personality tests are invaluable tools when we have to give managers feedback on their behavior and they are of great help in the coaching process.

An example of a manager's "aha experience" after receiving feedback on a personality test:


"Do I highjack meetings? Why didn’t someone tell me?" The others looked at their shoes
An example of a manager's "aha experience" after receiving feedback on a personality test:
"Do I highjack meetings? Why didn’t someone tell me?" 
 The others looked at their shoes.


That the coach asks the right questions opens up better self-insight and learning and is important for the manager's personal development and growth

In order for us to manage to change in the desired direction, an understanding of why change is necessary is required. Changing one's behaviour, collaboration and communication style and habits is not done overnight and it is required that the person being coached gives this work a high priority, not least in terms of time. The purpose of coaching is to provide learning and create awareness of the manager's own behavior and priorities, and especially in relation to the specific role the manager has. If the coaching is to lead to a positive change, it is important that the manager is aware that there are things he or she must let go of in order to bring about the change.
An example with a conflict-averse manager
If we take, for example, a conflict-averse leader who aims to be more direct in his communication style, then he/she must be prepared to say something that will not be liked by everyone, even if this goes against the nature of the leader. The leader must dare to become unpopular for a period of time and dare to say things that others may be "hurt" by. The leader must practice standing in the storm.

However, our experience is that even if many people can bring about a change, it will not bring about significant changes in the basic personality/true nature, and it is important to emphasize that this is not the intention and it is often not preferable either. Even with active coaching, for example, the manager who is initially very conflict-averse will not develop into a very conflict-averse one
direct person. The manager will, as a result of his conflict-averse nature attempt to communicate the unpopular message in a so sympathetic and orderly way they can and will probably never get an estimate in the opposite direction. We often see that conflict-averse managers who have worked consciously to be more direct find to their surprise that the negative they have been afraid to communicate is actually well received by the recipient because it is communicated respectfully and is not perceived as cynical, arrogant or unfair . Often the manager feels that he or she has been dreading and worrying for no reason!

We often see that the "forced" changes can have certain "bonus effects". In the example with the conflict-averse leader, the change will not only lead to him becoming less conflict-averse and thus more effective as
manager. The change will also lead to the manager developing a generally more functional communication style that will fit well in most contexts where he/she conveys messages in an honest way but with a sympathetic style.

With
curiosity comes learning

It is important to be curious and open to what you do not know. Don't just ask WHAT, but be more concerned with WHY and HOW

With curiosity comes learning

It is important to be curious and open to what you do not know. Don't just ask WHAT, but be more concerned with WHY and HOW

Tools we use in coachingn

HiPOTENTIAL uses psychometric tests and structured work tools to create a common starting point for working together with the manager. In the initial phase, it is important to define which situations in the work are the most "critical" in order to then work with increased mastery of these. A personal development plan is drawn up early on with goals, sub-goals and actual measures that clearly show what needs to be done/changed and why. The coach challenges the manager to address current and concrete issues and helps the manager to reflect on what governs his or her choices and which measures may be appropriate to implement. The coach helps the manager get off to a good start and not least encourages and motivates him to take active action. In this work, we use, among other things, the Talent/Estimation model, as well as hypothetical, exception and mastery questions in line with the LØFT methodology. The coach also encourages the manager to use more of his or her strengths to compensate for areas where he or she is weaker. This can often be the easiest way to bring about change, and are often measures that are not that difficult to bring about.

Managing Director Margrethe Hillesland, MA in Organizational Psychology and MS in Psychology, has studied Executive Coaching at the California School of Professional Psychology in the USA and at the Center for Creative Leadership in Belgium.