by David Thompson
Why do organisations need good leaders? To develop and direct the business on its path to success. But without good communication their ideas and strategies will never make it off the ground. How can coaching help them develop the most vital skill of leadership?
Communication is the single most important responsibility of leadership. A leader’s ability to detect trends, develop strategy and execute plans depends entirely on their ability to communicate.
But leadership communication isn’t just about clarity of direction. Instead, leaders must articulate their ideas in a way that connects and resonates with the people they want to reach. At the same time, leaders need to be keenly aware of their impact on others.
Some leaders are naturally skilled orators with a seemingly inherent gift for connecting with people’s needs and aspirations. But they are few and far between. For the rest of us, leadership communication is a skill we can – and must – develop to succeed.
Good training helps. Coaches can enlist specialised support from experienced speakers and actors to help their clients learn tools and techniques to improve their performance on stage.
But it’s important to note that coaching for leadership communication is not simply about helping a leader become a better presenter. It’s really about helping leaders develop three essential skills: first, to expand their awareness of how they come across, second, to finetune their language to increase clarity and third, to encourage inspiration among the people they lead.
Here are some tools to use with clients to help them make progress.
Expanding awareness
The notion that we are always communicating is especially true for those in leadership roles. People around them often hang on their every word – searching for meaning in the most mundane of remarks. People are even more attuned to a leader’s facial expressions, tone of voice and body language.
Part of the coach’s job is to help the client become more aware of the signals they’re giving off – and to check whether those signals are congruent with the message they want to send.
To illustrate the concept of congruence, I will show clients examples of incongruence. One is looking down at the floor and speaking in a dejected tone of voice while talking about how excited I am about the work we’re doing. Another involves doing my best impression of an American game show host while describing the need for massive layoffs.
Next, I’ll ask clients to be playful – to deliberately choose postures, gestures and tones to express given emotions. I help them become familiar with their own signals for being happy, sad, angry, excited, bored or curious.How do they know when they are experiencing a particular state? What do they sense inside – and where do they feel it. How does that feeling come across in their facial expression, their tone of voice and their movement?
Sometimes, I’ll hold the mirror up to nature by matching the client’s physical and vocal behaviour as closely as I can – and then I’ll ask them what non-verbal signals they’re receiving.
When they know their own signals better they can choose more specifically the signals they wish to send. They even find that assuming the posture of a desired state helps bring about those feelings inside.
Make it work
- Help the client identify their own signals and deliberately choose which ones they want to send
Fatal flaws
- Forcing it. Don’t ask your client to put on a face or tone that makes them seem like an entirely different person
Increasing clarity
Technical language is useful for speaking about complex topics. However, it can become a smokescreen that blocks understanding. Even among those who are familiar with the same technical terms, dependence on jargon can prevent people from getting the point.
I recently worked with a client who is bringing a new drug to market. When describing the product, she talked in sophisticated technical language about the chemical properties of the drug’s ingredients.
As she was telling me all this detail, I continued to ask: “Why does that matter?” Not rudely, but with genuine curiosity. Her responses caused her to ‘chunk up’ higher and higher away from detail to provide the bigger picture – eventually getting us to the real advantages of the product: it’s faster, it’s stronger and it lasts longer.
Make it work
- Encourage the client to think about the bigger picture and to identify why it matters to their audience/readership
Fatal flaws
- Getting too embroiled in technical jargon
Encouraging inspiration: for what purpose?
Leaders inspire by being clear about their purpose: about why they do what they do.
While physical and vocal training can help to improve one’s oratory skill (and I work with clients on these points as well), the key is to help the client connect their work with their own values – and the values of the people they want to reach.
A few weeks ago, I worked with a leader in the luxury goods industry. When his presentation focused exclusively on maximising operating profits, it fell flat. But when he drew the connection between their business success and protecting a tradition of craftsmanship and artistry in a world of mass-produced tat, it soared.
Make it work
- Help clients link their goals to a purpose beyond simple commercial gain – and help them express that purpose with passion
Fatal flaws
- Failing to connect with values
- Communicating solely about commercial profit
By asking how clients’ work brings a greater good to a wider number of people, coaches can help clients draw a clear line between what they do and the benefits of a larger whole.
In other words, they can help their clients lead.
About the author
David Thompson is founder of Total Awareness Coaching. He is a consultant, trainer, facilitator and coach, having trained with the Coaching Academy, and received master coach certification through the Behavioural Coaching Institute. He is also a master practitioner and certified trainer of NLP, and an actor and director of Shakespeare’s plays.www.totalawareness coaching.com
Coaching at Work, Volume 6, Issue 4