Coaching others to excellence has four critical ingredients: MOT (Moment of Truth), THP (There, Here, Path), ALA (Act, Learn, Adjust), and Persist. Moment of Truth (MOT) uses the structure of the other three.
MOT encourages performance excellence, and you dramatically enhance your ability to lead and coach when you use MOT. And one of the most overlooked elements is preparing for the MOT. But the Moment of Truth is just one of the four critical ingredients.
MOT - Moment of Truth
When you coach others to excellence, you don’t manipulate or control them - you share the truth. The MOT tool is something everyone needs, especially anyone in a leadership or management position. MOT is not a secret manager tool that only you can use. Everyone needs to know MOT. By the way, it is extremely useful at home and at work.
Step 1: REALITY
This first step gets you and the other person on the same page. If you both acknowledge that expectations haven’t been met, it is easier to make corrections.
Step 2: STORY
You get to practice the two most valuable leadership skills - Listening and Asking Questions. Ask enough questions to analyze the entire situation. You don’t need to spend hours on this conversation, though. Most MOTs can be handled in 3 to 5 minutes. But ask enough questions to understand the sequence of events that led to the missed expectation.
Step 3: PLAN
Once you get the story, it is time for them to create an action plan. This plan is their agreement to make the necessary corrections. And be careful; this is their responsibility. As they detail the plan, you listen and ask more questions.
Step 4: FEEDBACK
Finally, they need a feedback system as a resource. You don’t do the work for them, but stay involved to help them do it better next time. It helps to give them a similar task or goal so you can both practice what you just learned.
THP - There, Here, Path
THP, or HTP (HERE, THERE, PATH), provides a structure for developing a plan. To help someone increase their capacity, they need a clear end result (THERE) to focus on. They need something clear and measurable to know when they reach the next skill or performance level. All of those statements are about THERE, the final destination.
The secret ingredient of THP is clarity about your destination - THERE! But the current reality (HERE) must also be clear. With clarity, the PATH of actions is easier to see; even better, there is more energy and motivation to act. Review the “Right Process for Right Results” in course 1 - Value Right Results and People to get more details.
ALA - Act, Learn, Adjust
Each of these secret ingredients can work alone, but combining them makes them even more powerful. When you take the time to help them work through THP, they gain insight into what they want, enhancing their ability to start.
But the PATH is often tricky, especially when some actions do not work. It is easy to only focus on that part of the PATH instead of THERE. That narrow focus on ineffective actions de-energizes, and creativity grinds to a halt.
That means the person no longer sees what they want - THERE!
That is where the secret ingredient ALA (Act - Learn - Adjust) helps create forward movement. Each step on the PATH adds or subtracts energy. Without ALA, actions that do not work can derail, and actions that do work are not leveraged.
Coaching helps people learn and adjust so that they stay focused on THERE. The rallying cry becomes “What are we learning?” which helps energize different and better actions to reach THERE.
PERSIST
Coaching others to excellence requires this last secret ingredient constantly, even though it is the final ingredient on the list. It is easy to see that persistence is needed when actions aren’t working. But it is also required when things are working. Both times can remove the focus on THERE. When things are working, it is easier to reduce effort and coast. Then when it stops working, it may be easier to give up. It is best to remain diligent and constantly focused on THERE, acting, learning, and adjusting to reach that end result.
Coaches are invaluable when they help people refocus on THERE and re-evaluate if they still want THERE. Remember, commitment matters, but wanting to get THERE matters more. When you coach others to excellence, you understand and help them understand the difference.
Coaching others to excellence uses the power of all of the secret ingredients: THP, ALA, and Persist! And MOT helps you use the ingredients consistently.