LAZY modell – azaz, hogyan legyél jobb coach - érdeklődés

JUST LAZY

LAZY. How does it sound when you hear this about someone? What impression does it give you when this is said of the working style of a coach or a leader? To attribute lazy behaviour to a coach is a compliment in my eyes because this means that in the coaching session the client does the work. To say this of leader in my reading shows a great deal of trust in the people s/he works with.

As a professional coach I deeply believe this is how it should be: to leave room for the wisdom of clients and direct reports, team members and peers, friends and colleagues to emerge.

The LAZY model is not only a coaching structure but also a philosophy and a mindset that underlines the attitude of the coach and that of the manager when s/he leads in the coaching style.

Being a LAZY coach or a manager who coaches manifests itself in the following ICF

compatible coach competences and behaviours:

L – listening
A – awareness building, attention and ambiguity
Z – zest
Y – you, coaching is all about you, the CLIENT

The LAZY model is simple, easy to understand and follow, yet powerful. LAZY reflects a coach behaviour, which is difficult to adopt with an oversized ego and with the modern world pushing us in the direction of trying to look clever every moment and come up with tidy answers, clear solutions. In my eyes, the word LAZY symbolises a “not knowing” attitude,

one that refrains from giving advice, making suggestions or providing answers. The coach just sits back and lets the client explore his/her own way to the desired outcome. It is an attitude that empowers the client to think and act and trusts the client to be fully capable of running his/her life.

The LAZY model is a minimal coach competencies package – this is why it is so suitable for managers who may only coach at times -, yet it relates so nicely to the ICF core competencies. Let me explain how.

Listening is clearly tied to Active Listening. However, it is also related to Coaching Presence and even Powerful Questioning and Direct Communication as these competencies are also rooted in the coach’s ability to listen well and then to work with and to work on whatever is offered by the client.

Awareness – Awareness starts with attention: attention to everything around us externally and inside us simultaneously. This can lead to Awareness building which is one of the ICF core competencies too. No coaching happens without new awareness or if a coaching session takes place and there is no new insight gained by the coachee, then I would question it if it were coaching at all.

Under the letter ’A’ we can also add ambiguity, which is about “not knowing”, accepting the possible ambiguity of the situation. Ambiguity is one of the dominant features of today’s VUCA world, when coaching is so much needed to help the individual find his/her own way.

In a coaching session, we never know what comes up and we have to be happy with whatever surfaces. According to my interpretation if the coach is LAZY then s/he does not seek to control the situation and instead lets go of control and suspends all judgement, welcomes ambiguity and is present with full attention to the widest range of possible scenarios that may emerge from the client and for the client.

Zest expresses the energy level of the coach and reflects on the energy level of the client. It means the coach noticing the variations in tone of voice, pace of speech or inflection of the client, and sharing this very valuable observation that s/he will/can make in support of the client.

Spotting the energy level also helps to identify where the inner drive, or the motivation of the client lies. Motivation of the individual – the client, the direct report -, is indispensable in a work environment since it drives change and contributes to high performance through the action that it generates.

You. There is no doubt that ’coaching is all about YOU, the client’. This is the first lesson that everybody who wants to coach has to learn.

When I am a LAZY coach, I am acting intentionally for the benefit of my client, to encourage their own thinking and to support their development. I know for sure that only those solutions work that come from the client, so I can afford to be lazy!

I challenge all managers to act LAZY as often as possible so their people can feel clever and successful when they rejoice over their own emerging ideas and solutions.

Judit Ábri von Bartheld MA, MCC

Judit is a Henley Business School (UK) Coaching Tutor, runs Coaching Without Borders

(CHN) Hungary an international workshop series about coaching and leadership development since 2011, she has an MA in Professional Practice in Coaching from Middlesex University (UK), her research focused on the coaching skills of Manager-as-Coach.

She runs an ICF ACSTH coach school in Budapest, Hungary.

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