This business coaching blog is dedicated to the topic of leading, coaching, and communicating.  My boy's basketball coach provides a very relevant lesson for all business owners.  He is a good man, the boys love playing for him, and he commits lots of his time and energy to coaching 10-year old boys.  Need I say more?  Also, he makes practice fun and competitive and he demands the boys to play up to their potential. 

At times, however, he gets frustrated during games when the boys can't seem to understand and execute on his coaching wishes...running a particular offensive play or switching to a certain defensive scheme.  As such, the coach loses his patience and ends up yelling more than coaching.  While the coach thinks he has effectively taught a play, for example, it's apparent the boys have not learned the play.  Who is at fault?  Teacher (coach) or the students (players)?

Look at the results...is learning taking place or not?  If the kids are not learning a defensive formation, for example,  the coach has to take responsibility.  One of the first principles in coaching sports is that "you haven't taught until they have learned."  It's up to the coach to explain, demonstrate, provide practice drills, and teach what he wants his team to do.  If the team is not learning something, then the coach is not properly teaching, communicating, and connecting with his audience.  He must adjust his/her approach.  Teaching and coaching are more than just passing out information.  The information must be properly delivered, received, understood and applied.  My boy's coach must accept that full responsibility or continue to be frustrated.

Are the kids responsible as well?  Absolutely.  While the process of learning is always a two-way street, the major responsibility is on the teacher, not the pupil.  Since the coach has mastery of the subject matter, it's up to him to pass along his knowledge of basketball to the kids in effective ways so that they "get it".  If the kids don't properly receive that knowledge, then he must adjust his teaching methods.  The leader must always take responsibility for clarity of vision, direction, and execution...sports and business alike.

Doesn't the same happen to you as the leader of your business?  Don't you get frustrated at times when your employees don't seem to "get it" or don't seem to know their role and responsibilities?  Don't you get tired of explaining things over and over?  Sure you do.  However, at the root of all this confusion, chaos, lack of clarity, and frustration is a failure to communicate and connect.  Who is responsible?  You are as the business owner.  Again, you haven't properly taught until they have learned.  Always look at the results.  If your employees are not learning what you want them to learn, you must adjust your coaching and communication strategies.

As a business coach for nearly two decades, I have witnessed a "failure to communicate and teach" being at the heart of most problems in a business.  This causes a lack of clarity in vision, direction, goals, and actions.  Everyone is not on the same page and in fact, very often are working against each other.  How can you be a better coach and teacher?  Here are some business coaching basics:

1. Take full responsibility for coaching, communicating, connecting and teaching.  It's not about you talking enough, it's about them learning enough.
2. Communicate more, not less.  Most owners are not communicating enough with their employees.  Worry about under-communicating, not about over-communicating.
3. Huddle up your teams for short meetings more often to simply make sure you are all on the same page.  Don't let departments work alone in silos.  Have sales, marketing, operations, customer service, accounting, etc. meet and share information and challenges.  With open communications, they can help each other.
4. As a leader, don't communicate in only one way.  Vary your approach.  For example, emails alone are never sufficient for effective communications.  Neither are memos.  Meet face-to-face with your team more often.  Don't merely talk at them.  Let them ask you questions.  Try something new and share your ideas in a graphical format.  Again, mix up your communication methods. 
5. Once you think you have sufficiently explained something, ask your employees to repeat back what they heard and learned.  Again, you are not finished teaching until they learn. 

As a business owner, accept the challenge and work on being a better coach, teacher and communicator.  Again, you haven't truly taught until they have fully learned.

Daniel M. Murphy
President, Founder & Business Coach
The Growth Coach
Business Coaching Franchise System