Christian Whamond. Key Leadership. Executive coach
Christian Whamond - 0408 322 176
  • Home page
  • Resume
    • Career Summary
    • Education
    • Reference's
    • Personal
    • Documents
  • Leadership
    • Effective Leadership
  • Learnings
  • Referance Material
  • Social Profile's
    • DiSC
    • 360 degree feedback
    • Hogan Profile

Know, Grow & Empower your people

Effectve Leadership and management Coaching
Effective Leadership. Click for downloadable PDF
A key principle about human behavior is that one individual cannot motivate another, suggesting that leaders cannot actually motivate their people. Leaders are however responsible for creating an environment that will bring out the best in their people.

How they do this is to build relationships with their team that are based on trust. This enables them to discover the needs that each individual wants satisfied. The leader can then take steps to ensure that, wherever possible, these needs are met.

To do this effectively leaders will need to display superior levels of emotional intelligence, enabling them to manage their emotions so they behave appropriately – regardless of their own emotional state.

They will also need to be conscious of adapting their own behaviour so that they behave in ways that are appropriate for the person and the circumstances that they are dealing with.

When they do this they are more likely to develop much higher levels of trust with their team members, which in turn will lead to people being more open to sharing the most critical needs that they would like their leader to address.

People's perception and thus experience of their environment plays a critical role in their motivation to perform their best. By developing these skills leaders can make a huge impact on the level of employee engagement in their workplace.


One on One's are the greatest most effective management tool.

The best manager have great relationships with the people and make a effort to get to know them well.

One on one's are a way to Continually monitor development levels and progress on tasks. You can determine when adjustments in your leadership style needs adjustments to suit your people's knowledge and environment levels.

In the one on one you should give directions and support as needed on achieving the goals and tasks determined.

You have a opportunity to exchange information, give progress reports and help solve problems. It is also a place where you can strengthen your relationship with you and the people you lead. You build trust and credibility.

One on One's need to be schedules regularly. Establish a weekly time that suit both people involved. Communicate that the responsibility of the agenda lies with the individual using the matrix of 10/10/10. This is:

First 10 minuets are for the direct to communicate.
Second 10 minutes are for the coach/manager
Third 10 minutes are to discuss progress on goals and tasks agreed upon and re set new goals and tasks if nessasary.

Coaching is a managers way of asking your people to improve their performance.

Work with your staff to set a SMART goal. Use GOSPA as a plan to set a frame work for the goal.

Look for resources to help achieve the goal

Plan the action steps to achieve the goal

Act. Take action and monitor the progress towards the goal. As each Mini goal is achieved, celebrate! Give feedback throughout the coaching on adjusting or affirming behaviors to achieve the goal.

Give regular feedback on performance.

Your job as a manager is to achieve results. Feedback encourages effective behavior. Reward effective behavior and change the ineffective with specific feedback on the behavior and the impact it has. Ask for change and observe.

To many managers let personal preference stand in the way of organizational effectiveness

The same way you want more feedback from your manager on your performance, your people are looking for feedback from you on how they are doing.

Always describe the behavior. Dont guess at there motivation or intent.

Describe the impact. Tell them what the result of their behavior are. Tailor the impact the the social style of the person you are delivering it to.

Ask for future behavior.

Communicate to your people in the language they understand using DiSC.

Effective communication is so critical to every manager. Communication is not about you, the speaker, its about the person who you are communicating. the most effective way to communicate is to talk in a language that they are going to understand. Use DiSC model to achieve effective communication every day.

We all have a natural communication style - how we "talk" when we are not thinking about it. We can be far more effective when we can tailor our style to be more like the listener's.

Using DiSC for more effective communication with your people. Understand your social style and the perception people have of your profile. Assess each person and communicate to them using the language they will better understand.

Partnering for performance.

Partnering for performance is the process of reaching agreements with people about their development level and the leadership style needed to help them achieve individual and organizational goals.

Open up communication and work with the individual to develop their competence and communicate on specific tasks,
-People can and want to develop.
-Leadership is a partnership.
-People value improvement and communication.

Compliant people do what you say when you are with them. Committed people do what you say whether you are providing direction and support on a day-to-day basis or not.

What's important as a leader is not what happens when you are there; its what happens when you are not there.

Be aware of developmental levels.

A individual going through coaching on a new task goes through four levels of development representing four different levels of competence and commitment.

Level 1: Enthusiastic Beginner.
The person has a high commitment to accomplish the goal or task yet doesn't know how to do so without direction. They don't know what they don't know but are eager and willing to learn and take direction. This is how a new employee feels.

As a leader you must Teach this person

Level 2: Disillusioned learner.
Has more confidence but still does not know how to fully achieve the goal or task without direction. commitment drops as the goals seems harder than originally anticipated. The person becomes frustrated and discouraged. This person needs re assurance that mistakes are part of the learning process.

This is the time of the learning where your person can get frustrated and lose motivation due to unmet expectations. They need clear goals, perspective and frequent feedback. Praise your direct for making progress and help in analyzing success and failures. Give the permission to make mistakes and learn from them. You need to regularly discuss concerns and share feelings. Most importantly give regular encouragement and advice on additional steps or alternatives.

As a leader you must Coach this person.

Level 3: Capable but cautious performer.
Starts to display moderate to high competence but direction is still needed to compete the goal. Even though they may know how to achieve the goal they become hesitant, unsure and tentative due to lack of confidence. People can start to get board with the goal and the task seem uninteresting and loose focus.

As a leader you must Mentor this person.

Level 4: Self-reliant achiever.
The person display high commitment and high competence to the task and goal. The person still needs recognition and mini goals with new challenges to maintain high level of performance.

A self-reliant achiever can very quickly fall back to a Capable tot cautious performer if not careful. They only need low direction but this does not mean they need no support. An individual at level 4 who's needs aren't met met is a risk of falling back to a Level 3, or worse, leaving the organization.

They need Variety and challenge's. They want a leader who is more of a mentor or colleague than a manager. Ongoing acknowledgment and praise for contribution as well as autonomy and authority will give the person confidence. Give them the opportunity to share there knowledge and skills with others and most of all; Trust them.

As a leader you must Support this person.

A good leader observes his people and engages them in a dialogue to determine there development level on a specific goal or task before decided the best way to lead.

Grow a effective team and upgrade your organizations leadership capabilities.

My objective as a senior leader needed to be not only taking responsibility to increase my own level of effectiveness, but also support my team and continually increase each team members effectiveness. Constantly challenge your team to do their very best to raise their level through participating in leadership development and training.

Train and embolden your staff members to grow their own leadership and then shoot high when someone needs to be added to your team.


Develop a strong team.

If you could get all the people in the organization rowing in the same direction, you could dominate any industry, in any market, against any competition, at any time.

Even the most well-intentioned people will usually deviate towards dysfunction, unproductive behavior. This is because we are human. Because most leaders are not schooled in the art of building teams, small problems are left untreated and spiral further and further into ugliness and politics.. Open and honest trust must be established..


Team members must start to trust one another and become comfortable engaging in open and passionate debate around important issues. Team members must open themselves up to each other and admit their weaknesses and mistakes. They must be willing to hold each other accountable. Never allow team members to put their individual needs for career development and recognition before the collective goals of the organization.

Ask yourself these simple questions:
-Do team members openly and readily disclose their opinions?
-Are team meetings compelling and productive?
-Does the team come to decisions quickly and avoid getting bogged down by consensus?
-Do team members confront one another about their shortcomings?
-Do team members sacrifice their own interests for the good of the team?

Patric Lencioni states: The five dysfunctions of a team are:
#1: Absence of Trust - The fear of being venerable with team members prevents the building of trust within the team.
#2: Fear of Conflict - The Desire of preserve artificial harmony stifles the occurence of productive, ideological conflict.
#3: Lack of commitment - The lack of clarity or buy-in prevents team members from making decisions they will stick to.
#4: Avoidance of accountability - The need to avoid interpersonal discomfort prevents team members from holding one another accountable for their behaviors and performance.
#5: Inattention to results - The pursuit of individule goals and personal status erodes the focus on collective success.

Information sourced from Patric Lencioni web site www.tablegroup.com

All good performance starts with clear goals..

Agree on the individual's goals and the critical tasks.

Agree on diagnosis of development level for each task.

Agree on coaching and who will be involved with the coaching.

Revisit the goals and task weekly in One on One's

When a Challenge Seems too Great, Break it Down....

I’ve long been a proponent of breaking seemingly impossible goals down into achievable steps.

Set SMART Goals with the main points been Measurable and time bound. Break them down in to manageable "mini" goals.

Set a strategy on how to manage the goal and a plan on what you can do daily to increase the effeteness of achievement. then take action.

This is the GOSPA.

7 Leadership must have skills. Marshall Goldsmith.

  1. Decide if you really want to be a leader. Many of the MBAs who report self-confidence issues are brilliant technicians. They often find the uncertainty and ambiguity of leading people very unsettling. They are looking for the 'right answers'‚ similar to the ones in engineering school. In some cases, brilliant technical experts should continue to be brilliant technical experts ... and not feel obligated to become managers.
  2. Make peace with ambiguity in decision making. There are usually no clear right answers when making complex business decisions. Even CEOs are guessing.
  3. Gather a reasonable amount of data, involve people, then follow your gut and do what you think is right.
  4. Accept the fact that you are going to fail on occasion. All humans do.
  5. Have fun! Life is short. Why should you expect your direct reports to demonstrate positive enthusiasm, if they don't see it in you?
  6. Once you make a decision, commit and go for it. Don't continually second guess yourself. If you have to change course, you have to change course. If you never commit, all you will ever do is change course.
  7. And finally, demonstrate courage on the outside, even when you don't feel it on the inside. We are all afraid on occasion -- that is just part of being human. If you are going to lead people in tough times, you will need to show more courage than fear. When direct reports read worry and concern on the face of a leader , they begin to lose confidence in the leader's ability to lead.
http://www.MarshallGoldsmithLibrary.com

What your people want from their manager..

  • Create a happy and positive team environment.
  • Emphasize what I am doing right and de-emphasize what i do wrong.
  • Make sure our scheduled meeting time is informative and constructive.
  • Make sure when we schedule time together they keep the commitment.
  • I like my manager to give me feedback by praising my strengths while offering suggestions on where I can improve as well.
  • Celebrate the successes.
  • Never promise anything to your team and not follow through.
  • Give me feedback when its fresh after the call.
  • I enjoy positive feedback in a team environment.
  • I like my manager to give me constructive coaching by showing me how to do it.
  • I want my manager to be knowledgeable, open and honest and remove barriers.
  • I need constant feedback, direction and follow through.
  • I want my manager to participate on the call, not take it over.
  • I need honest feedback from every call
  • I want my manager to have knowledge of the customer's industry, speak with authority and show respect for the customer.
  • Please respect me and trust me like you would your customer.
  • What I need most from my manager is support, trust and belief in me.
  • I think the ideal manager is one who leads by example.
  • Every week remind me of the things I need to do, to help me achieve my overall goal.

10 Tips To Help You Service Your Clients Better!

1.  Let Your Clients Know They Can Trust You -  Building trust is essential, you are the middle man or woman between your company and the client’s office.  They must feel secure that the work can be accomplished on a period agreed upon and the requirements given must be translated.

2.  Let clients know your limits – Its a misconception for some account management teams to think that they must give everything to their client just to make them happy.  There is such a thing as boundaries that i am sure your clients already know.  What is essential here is that it is discussed at the beginning of the projects.  What do i mean here.  One is the work time.  Of course, there are occasions where you need to do overtimes, but working 24/7 can really drain you, plus always consider the scope of work agreed upon again at the beginning of every project.  You can be a  more efficient worker, if you are happy and have sufficient amount of rest.

3.  Never say I Don’t know right away. Of course, we don’t know all the answers  to everything our clients asks us, but never use the words I don’t know, you can always say, you will find out, or you are not sure and you would get back to them.  Making them feel that you are open to their suggestions and you just need some time to figure things out will make them feel more at ease with you and assure them that you have their best interest at heart.

4.  Write everything down – Doing the minutes of any meeting is a must.  Sometimes, people tend to forget what transpired after a meeting, so doing a call report is always beneficial both for your and your client.  Make sure you send a copy of the minutes to your client and don’t let 12 hours go by without you sending it.  We often times get so busy and tend to forget ourselves.  You can use the call reports as basis to any queries or issues that might arise as your projects progress.

5.  Do Your Homework -  Read up on topics, do your own research about the products that you are working on.  It is always great to be well prepared before any presentation or meetings you have with your clients.

6.  Be on Time -  When you are on time for any meetings, this shows your clients that you value their time as well.  Be at the meeting at least 20 minutes ahead of the agreed time. This also allows you to make the necessary preparation, meaning setting up your computer etc.  Just in case you know that you will be late, it is always good practice to text or call your client and tell them that you are on your way.  Most clients appreciate that.

7.  Dress Appropriately -  Wear a business attire for client meetings or presentations.  Being well groomed will tell others that you mean business.  You don’t need to be in designer wear, but being suitably dressed will earn you client’s respect.

8.  Always be prepared – Never assume.  If you need to make a big presentation, make sure that you have the right equipments or gadgets with you all the time.  Check your presentation and see that it is working.  Proof read your copy or letters and even your emails before sending them.

9.  Call Back Right Away when You Missed their Call - Some clients gets so dependent on you that they will always look for you when they have inquiries.  Of course there will be times when you are busy and missed their call.  Call back as soon as you can.  They will appreciate that very much.  What I usually do is i text them back ans tell them that I shall call them asap.

10. Be a Good Listener. – Only when you listen, will you be able to give them the best advise and recommendations possible.

Experience will always be our greatest teachers.  Always learn from your mistakes, its not an easy job but can be fulfilling once you have mastered the skills in handling your day to day dealings with your clients.

Those 20 Key Habits that Hold You Back

What habits could you stop that are holding you back from getting to the top?:

1. Winning too much: the need to win at all costs and in all situations - when it matters, when it doesn't, and when it's totally beside the point.

2. Adding value: the overwhelming desire to add our two cents to every discussion.

3. Passing judgment: the need to rate others and impose our standards on them.

4. Making destructive comments: the needless sarcasms and cutting remarks that we think make us sound sharp and witty.

5. Starting with "No," "But," or "However": the overuse of these negative qualifiers which secretly say to everyone, "I'm right. You're wrong."

6. Telling the world how smart you are: the need to show people we're smarter than they think we are.

7. Speaking when angry: using emotional volatility as a management tool.

8. Negativity, or "Let me explain why that won't work": the need to share our negative thoughts even when we weren't asked.

9. Withholding information: the refusal to share information in order to maintain an advantage over others.

10. Failing to give proper recognition: the inability to praise and reward.

11. Claiming credit that we don't deserve: the most annoying way to overestimate our contribution to any success.

12. Making excuses: the need to reposition our annoying behavior as a permanent fixture so people excuse us for it.

13. Clinging to the past: the need to deflect blame away from ourselves and onto events and people from our past; a subset of blaming everyone else.

14. Playing favorites: failing to see that we are treating someone unfairly.

15. Refusing to express regret: the inability to take responsibility for our actions, admit we're wrong, or recognize how our actions affect others.

16. Not listening: the most passive-aggressive form of disrespect for colleagues.

17. Failing to express gratitude: the most basic form of bad manners.

18. Punishing the messenger: the misguided need to attack the innocent who are usually only trying to help us.

19. Passing the buck: the need to blame everyone but ourselves.

20. An excessive need to be "me": exalting our faults as virtues simply because they"re who we are.

Source: by Marshall Goldsmith, with Mark Reiter, "What Got You Here Won't Get You There",
http://www.MarshallGoldsmithLibrary.com


Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.