In 2003, the British cycling team hired Dave Brailsford as its new performance director. At the time, the team was mired in mediocrity (to put it charitably). No British cyclist had ever won the Tour de France, and only one had won a gold medal in nearly 100 years at the Olympic Games.
Everything changed once Brailsford took over, but it didn’t happen overnight. Brailsford instituted a series of small changes over the course of several years, each of which, in isolation, seemed insignificant. The changes included things like teaching riders how to properly wash their hands to reduce the risk of illness (an issue that now doesn’t seem insignificant), bringing along pillows and linens while traveling to improve the sleep of riders in hotels, and making tweaks to jersey and seat designs.
All of those changes, and hundreds more like them, were part of the execution of Brailsford’s strategy to harness what he called the “aggregation of marginal gains.” And gain they did.
Five years after Brailsford’s arrival, the British team won 60 percent of the medals at the Olympic Games in Beijing. British riders then went on to win five Tour de France victories over the course of six years. Like consistent investments in the stock market over time, the British team’s small improvements compounded into huge gains.
Would the team’s stunning turnaround have come about without Brailsford? Almost certainly not. While the British riders, as demonstrated by their ultimate success, had the capability to achieve great things, they needed a coach like Brailsford to guide and push them to higher performance levels.
High Performers Across Domains Harness the Power of Coaching
Of course, it’s not just athletes who benefit from coaching. Top business leaders rely on coaches as well. According to research from the Hay Group, a top human-resources consultancy, between 25 and 40 percent of Fortune 500 companies use coaches for their executives.
Eric Schmidt, the former CEO of Google and Executive Chairman of Alphabet, stated in a Fortune magazine interview that a suggestion from a colleague that he work with a coach is the best business advice he ever received. Bill Gates also worked with a coach as CEO of Microsoft. In a 2013 TED talk, he said: “Everyone needs a coach…We all need people who will give us feedback. That’s how we improve.”
So, What is Coaching All About?
I’m firmly of the opinion that most lawyers would benefit from business coaching. That probably sounds self serving since I’m a coach myself, but in sharing this opinion I’m drawing mostly on my experience as a “coachee” while running my own small law firm in 2010. For me, having the opportunity to consistently work with someone who held me accountable to the goals I set for myself was critical to my success. If left to my own devices, my strategic plan would have gathered dust on my shelf rather than having been methodically put into action.
What stops lawyers from pursuing coaching? Often it’s a lack of understanding of what the coaching process is all about, coupled with no idea of what coach to hire. Yeah, there are a lot of coaches out there these days.
In my coaching experience over the last decade, I’ve worked with lawyers regarding many different issues, from business development to career transitions. No matter the issue, the coaching process with each individual client generally follows the same path. As is more fully addressed in my new book, The Productivity Pivot, my coaching clients are challenged to think big about their futures and then reduce that vision into a fine-grained process for daily action. Planning takes place during consistent and confidential one-on-one calls or video conferences in which obstacles to progress are addressed, ideas for improvement are shared, and accountability mechanisms are put in place.
In short, coaching provides lawyers with a plan, a process, and an objective third party to help in achieving challenging career objectives. Perhaps most importantly, coaching allows lawyers to have clear focus about how to invest their time and attention. That matters greatly in a profession where time is money.
Coaching is not for everyone. It cannot solve every problem. But under the right circumstances it can have a big impact on developing people and adding to bottom line business results. Just as the British cycling team experienced, success results from taking consistent action and making incremental improvements. For most people and organizations, having an experienced coach on-hand to help guide the journey is key to unleashing high performance.
Are you Interested in learning more about how business coaching could help you achieve your goals? Schedule a conversation with me to learn more. Coaching lawyers and helping them to advance their careers beyond where they think is possible is the most rewarding and enjoyable part of my job. I look forward to speaking with you.
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