ICF Coaching week is fast approaching (February 7 – 14) and one of our favourite tools to use is the Inventory for Work attitudes and motivations (iWAM).
The Inventory for Work Attitude and Motivation (iWAM) is an online or paper-and-pencil questionnaire which helps an organization identify an individual’s attention filters and cognitive styles, also called metaprograms.
With the iWAM, one can predict what motivates a person, their work attitude, how they prefer to communicate, and how they prefer to act in their work context. iWAM allows the organisation to take into account the individual preferences and to value each person for their strengths. Using iWAM will help an organisation make better use of the human potential of its workforce.
We are the only company in the UK who are licensed to train people to use iWAM and we would like to announce a unique offer: for those who book an iWAM course during coaching week (February 7-14) we are happy to offer it half-price!
Our next iWAM courses are running from 12-14 of May 2010 and 8-10 December 2010. So contact us to come and join this exciting course.
Give us a call on 01225 867285, an e-mail: enquiries@theperformancesolution.com, or a tweet @TPSCoaching to find out more.
Wednesday, 3 February 2010
Monday, 1 February 2010
Our 2010 so far!
Phew!
2010 has certainly started with a bang. We've hardly had time to say Happy New Year and it's already February.
We won a major contract with a large multinational insurance company at the end of last year and we've started in house coach training. The group so far have been hard-working and full of energy for learning new skills. Thank you to everyone for that and we look forward to the next module!
We've been rebranding as you know and our new website should be launched this month. We're so excited about it and hope that you will let us know what you think. We're going to be bringing you more coaching resources, tools and articles and creating a great coaching space!
It's also International Coaching week from the 7th to 14th of February and we're going to offer our iWAM course half price to anyone who books it during that week! So if you'd like to know more about the inventory of work attitudes and motivations and become certified to use it, make sure you get in touch.
Dates for upcoming iWAM courses are as follows:
12-14 May
20-22 September
8-10 December
And for 1 lucky person we'll be giving away a free iWAM course at the Association for Coaching Going Global Conference. We're planning lots of great stuff on our stand and hope you'll come and meet us there.
Finally (for now), we'll also be at the European ICF conference in Paris in the Summer and hope that we'll meet lots of you there as well.
We hope your 2010 has started out well and invite you to join us on Twitter (@TPSCoaching) or LinkedIn to let us know what you've been up to.
2010 has certainly started with a bang. We've hardly had time to say Happy New Year and it's already February.
We won a major contract with a large multinational insurance company at the end of last year and we've started in house coach training. The group so far have been hard-working and full of energy for learning new skills. Thank you to everyone for that and we look forward to the next module!
We've been rebranding as you know and our new website should be launched this month. We're so excited about it and hope that you will let us know what you think. We're going to be bringing you more coaching resources, tools and articles and creating a great coaching space!
It's also International Coaching week from the 7th to 14th of February and we're going to offer our iWAM course half price to anyone who books it during that week! So if you'd like to know more about the inventory of work attitudes and motivations and become certified to use it, make sure you get in touch.
Dates for upcoming iWAM courses are as follows:
12-14 May
20-22 September
8-10 December
And for 1 lucky person we'll be giving away a free iWAM course at the Association for Coaching Going Global Conference. We're planning lots of great stuff on our stand and hope you'll come and meet us there.
Finally (for now), we'll also be at the European ICF conference in Paris in the Summer and hope that we'll meet lots of you there as well.
We hope your 2010 has started out well and invite you to join us on Twitter (@TPSCoaching) or LinkedIn to let us know what you've been up to.
Wednesday, 13 January 2010
How to motivate your employees
We’d love to be able to give you a clear statement on how to motivate your employees, wouldn’t it make life easier to read it and put it into practice and sit back and watch them perform to the best of their ability?
But just because there isn’t just one way to motivate your employees doesn’t mean we can’t help you to do it.
Knowing how to motivate your employees is knowing WHAT motivates them. We are all motivated by different things. Some of us by money, some by changing environments, some by challenge, some by routine, some by feedback, and some by being left to work on our own. And if you offer your employees the wrong motivators for them, they won’t respond.
So here are some of our top tips for learning how to motivate your employees:
1. Ask them. So many employers don’t know how to appropriately ask their employees important questions. Short coaching courses can teach you how to ask more pertinent questions to get to the root of what you need to know quickly and carefully.
2. Listen to their answers. It seems basic but we interpret answers based on how we see the world. One of the best ways to make sure we keep our own views out of our questions and therefore get purer answers is to use Clean Language. A few simple techniques can dramatically change how your employees respond.
3. and finally if you want a shortcut: use a reliable psychometric. We use Extended DISC and the inventory of work attitudes and motivations (iWAM). Asking your employees to fill out one of these short questionnaires can give you a real insight into what motivates them so that you can respond to it.
Simple! Contact us if you’d like more information on any of these topics, we’d be glad to point you in the right direction.
Tel: +44 (0) 1225 867285
e-mail: enquiries@theperformancesolution.com
But just because there isn’t just one way to motivate your employees doesn’t mean we can’t help you to do it.
Knowing how to motivate your employees is knowing WHAT motivates them. We are all motivated by different things. Some of us by money, some by changing environments, some by challenge, some by routine, some by feedback, and some by being left to work on our own. And if you offer your employees the wrong motivators for them, they won’t respond.
So here are some of our top tips for learning how to motivate your employees:
1. Ask them. So many employers don’t know how to appropriately ask their employees important questions. Short coaching courses can teach you how to ask more pertinent questions to get to the root of what you need to know quickly and carefully.
2. Listen to their answers. It seems basic but we interpret answers based on how we see the world. One of the best ways to make sure we keep our own views out of our questions and therefore get purer answers is to use Clean Language. A few simple techniques can dramatically change how your employees respond.
3. and finally if you want a shortcut: use a reliable psychometric. We use Extended DISC and the inventory of work attitudes and motivations (iWAM). Asking your employees to fill out one of these short questionnaires can give you a real insight into what motivates them so that you can respond to it.
Simple! Contact us if you’d like more information on any of these topics, we’d be glad to point you in the right direction.
Tel: +44 (0) 1225 867285
e-mail: enquiries@theperformancesolution.com
Monday, 11 January 2010
New Changes to coaching accreditation
The European Individual Accreditation (EIA) is a Europe-wide
recognised award that confirms that individuals and line manager
coach-mentors have the appropriate level of knowledge and the
ability to apply it effectively in their coaching and mentoring
practice at various levels.
This free guide outlines the background to European Mentoring
and Coaching Council (EMCC) and the EIA. It describes the
benefits of undertaking EIA qualifications, what it means for
coaching and mentoring as a whole and the implications for HR
professionals and their organisations. Also included is a summary
of the assessment criteria for each of the four levels of EIA
accreditation.
See http://emccaccreditation.org/eia-home/eia-accredited-coach-mentors/
recognised award that confirms that individuals and line manager
coach-mentors have the appropriate level of knowledge and the
ability to apply it effectively in their coaching and mentoring
practice at various levels.
This free guide outlines the background to European Mentoring
and Coaching Council (EMCC) and the EIA. It describes the
benefits of undertaking EIA qualifications, what it means for
coaching and mentoring as a whole and the implications for HR
professionals and their organisations. Also included is a summary
of the assessment criteria for each of the four levels of EIA
accreditation.
See http://emccaccreditation.org/eia-home/eia-accredited-coach-mentors/
Thursday, 3 December 2009
Soft Skills for Hard Benefits
...Continued from December Newsletter
Who works in a company where the biggest investment is in the desks? Or the water-cooler? Or the printer? The biggest asset most companies have is their staff. So why neglect them, why not make the most of those bright minds that stood out at interview?
Around the globe, HR is fighting to keep their best people as new opportunities open up to them post-recession. How are they doing this? They are bringing in external coaches to coach their A-team, to work out what motivates them and find ways to put it into practice. Managers and directors are also training in coaching to learn to perform more effectively.
“But it’s too expensive...” we hear you say. In fact, recent research shows the opposite. Coaching in business has been proven to produce a large return on investment. For specific case studies from the ICF please click here. This will be explored further at the conference this week and we look forward to bringing you further news on this topic.
Aside from ROI, coaching has been proven to have significant links to individual skills and behaviours, team performance, productivity and employee job satisfaction as found by a meta-analysis published in this month’s International journal of coaching. With the large amount of evidence supporting the benefits of coaching, it’s not can we afford to, but can we afford not to? Coaching really is a soft skill which produces hard benefits.
Who works in a company where the biggest investment is in the desks? Or the water-cooler? Or the printer? The biggest asset most companies have is their staff. So why neglect them, why not make the most of those bright minds that stood out at interview?
Around the globe, HR is fighting to keep their best people as new opportunities open up to them post-recession. How are they doing this? They are bringing in external coaches to coach their A-team, to work out what motivates them and find ways to put it into practice. Managers and directors are also training in coaching to learn to perform more effectively.
“But it’s too expensive...” we hear you say. In fact, recent research shows the opposite. Coaching in business has been proven to produce a large return on investment. For specific case studies from the ICF please click here. This will be explored further at the conference this week and we look forward to bringing you further news on this topic.
Aside from ROI, coaching has been proven to have significant links to individual skills and behaviours, team performance, productivity and employee job satisfaction as found by a meta-analysis published in this month’s International journal of coaching. With the large amount of evidence supporting the benefits of coaching, it’s not can we afford to, but can we afford not to? Coaching really is a soft skill which produces hard benefits.
Monday, 20 April 2009
Coaching for obesity
NHS to give overweight children 'life coaching'
Sophie Goodchild, Health Editor London Evening Standard
20.04.09
OVERWEIGHT children will get life-coaching classes to help them slim in a scheme on trial in London.
NHS bosses are recruiting motivational trainers to "empower" nine- to 11-year-olds to lose weight and become more healthy.
The new attempt to tackle the nation's obesity crisis is a radical departure from "bootcamp-style" methods where children are put through a rigorous exercise regime.
Children will be nominated for the mind-training workshops by teachers or school nurses and be encouraged to make lifestyle choices to lose the fat.
Those attending will get monthly face-to-face sessions with psychology coaches as well as weekly telephone sessions. The life-coaching scheme is being piloted from this Saturday by the NHS in north-east London.
Redbridge primary care trust is the first to test the life-coaching classes but others are also signed up to the programme. Experts say mind training will transform the attitudes of children to food and exercise.
The Government has already spent £372million on anti-obesity measures, including a clampdown on unhealthy packed lunches, a ban on junk food from school vending machines and compulsory cooking lessons. But London children are among the fattest in the country, with one in three officially overweight by the time they start school.
Coaching company The Performance Solution is carrying out the free workshops to help change the mindset of children. Those attending must be above the healthy weight for their age and height compared with the national average.
The sessions will be run by ex-marine Alan Chambers, who led the first British team to walk unsupported to the North Pole. Mr Chambers, 40, said blaming children for being obese was futile.
He said: "The fact is existing methods are not working and advertising campaigns cost a lot of money. I was a dreamer as a child but if you are four stone overweight then you're limiting your chance of adventure.
"This is about motivation, not blame. It's not a case of 'by the end of the class we will have changed your BMI and you'll be running the London marathon'.
"It's about giving them the psychological skills to change their mindset. If they make different lifestyle choices the weight will fall off." The workshops will be supported by a text service and a dedicated helpline to ensure the children stay motivated.
Their parents will also be given coaching to ensure they are not giving their children unhealthy choices.
Pratibha Datta, NHS Redbridge's director of public health, said: "The goal is to help these youngsters adopt lasting change. That means encouraging them to adopt more empowering beliefs and values about what they can do. The life coaches are well placed to make this happen and it is potentially a very exciting project."
The wheel of life test
The aim of life-coaching is to help people lead more balanced lives.
Children at the workshops will have to complete a specially designed test called the Wheel of Life.
This is a simple exercise where they rate every aspect of their lives including health and well-being, self-esteem, friendships and achievements.
They also fill in a form with multiple-choice questions on subjects such as "I have an ongoing exercise programme" or "I am my normal weight and look good".
Their answers are scored according to how healthy they are and how balanced their lifestyle is.
It also gives an insight into their eating habits such as what takeaway shops they pass on the way to school or what clothes they would like to wear if they lost weight.
The life coach then sets them individual goals to motivate them to become more fit and healthy.
Sophie Goodchild, Health Editor London Evening Standard
20.04.09
OVERWEIGHT children will get life-coaching classes to help them slim in a scheme on trial in London.
NHS bosses are recruiting motivational trainers to "empower" nine- to 11-year-olds to lose weight and become more healthy.
The new attempt to tackle the nation's obesity crisis is a radical departure from "bootcamp-style" methods where children are put through a rigorous exercise regime.
Children will be nominated for the mind-training workshops by teachers or school nurses and be encouraged to make lifestyle choices to lose the fat.
Those attending will get monthly face-to-face sessions with psychology coaches as well as weekly telephone sessions. The life-coaching scheme is being piloted from this Saturday by the NHS in north-east London.
Redbridge primary care trust is the first to test the life-coaching classes but others are also signed up to the programme. Experts say mind training will transform the attitudes of children to food and exercise.
The Government has already spent £372million on anti-obesity measures, including a clampdown on unhealthy packed lunches, a ban on junk food from school vending machines and compulsory cooking lessons. But London children are among the fattest in the country, with one in three officially overweight by the time they start school.
Coaching company The Performance Solution is carrying out the free workshops to help change the mindset of children. Those attending must be above the healthy weight for their age and height compared with the national average.
The sessions will be run by ex-marine Alan Chambers, who led the first British team to walk unsupported to the North Pole. Mr Chambers, 40, said blaming children for being obese was futile.
He said: "The fact is existing methods are not working and advertising campaigns cost a lot of money. I was a dreamer as a child but if you are four stone overweight then you're limiting your chance of adventure.
"This is about motivation, not blame. It's not a case of 'by the end of the class we will have changed your BMI and you'll be running the London marathon'.
"It's about giving them the psychological skills to change their mindset. If they make different lifestyle choices the weight will fall off." The workshops will be supported by a text service and a dedicated helpline to ensure the children stay motivated.
Their parents will also be given coaching to ensure they are not giving their children unhealthy choices.
Pratibha Datta, NHS Redbridge's director of public health, said: "The goal is to help these youngsters adopt lasting change. That means encouraging them to adopt more empowering beliefs and values about what they can do. The life coaches are well placed to make this happen and it is potentially a very exciting project."
The wheel of life test
The aim of life-coaching is to help people lead more balanced lives.
Children at the workshops will have to complete a specially designed test called the Wheel of Life.
This is a simple exercise where they rate every aspect of their lives including health and well-being, self-esteem, friendships and achievements.
They also fill in a form with multiple-choice questions on subjects such as "I have an ongoing exercise programme" or "I am my normal weight and look good".
Their answers are scored according to how healthy they are and how balanced their lifestyle is.
It also gives an insight into their eating habits such as what takeaway shops they pass on the way to school or what clothes they would like to wear if they lost weight.
The life coach then sets them individual goals to motivate them to become more fit and healthy.
Monday, 16 March 2009
Reflections from Neil Crofts
it’s not a recession it's a transition.
It’s a transition from the industrial economy to the networked economy. This transition started 10 years ago with the dotcom boom. Over the last 10 years we have seen many industries collapse under scrutiny of the digital spotlight.
Now it is the turn of the banks, car makers and other monolithic industrial structures to transcend to the new level or succumb. It is the older, less culturally advanced businesses that are suffering the most. It is not so much the technology that makes businesses vulnerable or brilliant, but their culture.
The culture of the network paradigm is - flexible, transparent, insanely creative, cellular, distributed, diverse, inspiring, permeable and authentic.
The culture of the industrial paradigm is - structured, opaque, incremental, hierarchical, monolithic, homogenous, predictable, obedient, and bounded.
In today’s connected world customers want to buy from businesses that inspire them. People want to work for organisations that inspire them and politicians want to support businesses that contribute more than just money to society.
The next generation of hyper successful business will be networked. The boundaries between employee and customer will blur as with Threadless and Digg. Where people outside the company help create the product.
Businesses like Plenty of Fish where one man who works around one hour per day brings in $10 million per year, o-desk, e-lance and guru will change the dynamics of employment. It will become more and more difficult for uninspiring companies to attract great people.
The whole notion of employment will shift, more and more, from 9 to 5 to flexible, multi role, portfolio careers with individuals working for multiple employers.
Instead of commuting to corporate HQ more and more people will use flexible office spaces like The Hub or online spaces like Linkedin or Facebook to find their community and collaborators.
Cost effective online collaboration tools like ning, powownow and Skype enable those with a mission to access greater global collaboration.
Success will come from doing something valuable and inspirational with a culture of creativity, innovation and challenge.
Businesses and organisations who are unable to make the shift will succumb.
What can we do?
Invest in personal development. If you don’t already know what you are great at and what you are most passionate about - find out.
Invest in the next generation. We need to take the next generation beyond education. My contribution to this is to be part of www.amentorforeverychild.com, please join the web based community and contribute what you can.
Transform the culture of your organisation. If you recognise that the organisation that you work for is following the industrial model and you want to keep your job, start working to change it.
It’s a transition from the industrial economy to the networked economy. This transition started 10 years ago with the dotcom boom. Over the last 10 years we have seen many industries collapse under scrutiny of the digital spotlight.
Now it is the turn of the banks, car makers and other monolithic industrial structures to transcend to the new level or succumb. It is the older, less culturally advanced businesses that are suffering the most. It is not so much the technology that makes businesses vulnerable or brilliant, but their culture.
The culture of the network paradigm is - flexible, transparent, insanely creative, cellular, distributed, diverse, inspiring, permeable and authentic.
The culture of the industrial paradigm is - structured, opaque, incremental, hierarchical, monolithic, homogenous, predictable, obedient, and bounded.
In today’s connected world customers want to buy from businesses that inspire them. People want to work for organisations that inspire them and politicians want to support businesses that contribute more than just money to society.
The next generation of hyper successful business will be networked. The boundaries between employee and customer will blur as with Threadless and Digg. Where people outside the company help create the product.
Businesses like Plenty of Fish where one man who works around one hour per day brings in $10 million per year, o-desk, e-lance and guru will change the dynamics of employment. It will become more and more difficult for uninspiring companies to attract great people.
The whole notion of employment will shift, more and more, from 9 to 5 to flexible, multi role, portfolio careers with individuals working for multiple employers.
Instead of commuting to corporate HQ more and more people will use flexible office spaces like The Hub or online spaces like Linkedin or Facebook to find their community and collaborators.
Cost effective online collaboration tools like ning, powownow and Skype enable those with a mission to access greater global collaboration.
Success will come from doing something valuable and inspirational with a culture of creativity, innovation and challenge.
Businesses and organisations who are unable to make the shift will succumb.
What can we do?
Invest in personal development. If you don’t already know what you are great at and what you are most passionate about - find out.
Invest in the next generation. We need to take the next generation beyond education. My contribution to this is to be part of www.amentorforeverychild.com, please join the web based community and contribute what you can.
Transform the culture of your organisation. If you recognise that the organisation that you work for is following the industrial model and you want to keep your job, start working to change it.
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