Have An Opinion
I was inspired to write this post while watching another episode of, House. While I would say we shouldn’t follow all the actions of the protagonist Dr. Gregory House (Hugh Laurie), I was intrigued and agree with the character’s comment of, “If you want to stay on this team, have an opinion.” When he made the comment he was talking to a new team member who just sat through a diagnostic discussion and said nothing. In the context of the scene, I believe the new doctor was both intimidated and not sure of herself. Dr. House’s comment was to make her understand she needs to throw her thoughts out there, even if wrong. The problem in the show’s team, though, is that it is not a psychologically safe place to throw ideas out. If we want everyone to share opinions, we must create the environment where all feel safe to do so. Check out my thoughts on this from my book, Mere Leadership, in the featured image.
Even so, House was emphasizing the importance of active participation and individual voice within the team. He was also suggesting that being a valuable team member involves sharing your thoughts, ideas, and perspectives rather than remaining silent or passive. By encouraging team members to have opinions, we need to promote open communication, innovation, and a sense of ownership among the team, which are essential for teamwork and collective success.
Coaching To Examine Meaning
Coach the Person, Not the Problem: A Guide to Using Reflective Inquiry by Marcia Reynolds
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This book truly was written as a coach’s guide to reflective inquiry. As a person who coached, mentored, and worked alongside a new school principal this year, I found myself wanting to tell stories and use reflective inquiry as I read, highlighted, and dog-eared the pages of this great book. Of course, I love the fact that Dr. Reynolds used case studies instead of acronyms for bringing clarity to her teaching. This book provides information that is immediately actionable.
Dr. Reynolds put five tools in our reflective inquiry toolbox in this book:
1. Focus: coaching the person, not the problem
2. Active replay: playing back the pivotal pieces for review.
3. Brain hacking: finding the treasures in the box
4. Goaltending: staying the course
5. New and next: coaxing insights and commitments
She also gave us three mental tips to provide psychological safety. I am so appreciative that Dr. Reynolds spent time in the book discussing how our brains work and why psychological safety is so important. I believe this might be one of the biggest issues in organizational culture today. I even tweeted the following while reading the book: “I’m always appalled when someone tells me they are nervous & fearful of talking to their leaders. This is aweful! ❤️ Love that @MarciaReynolds addresses the brain science of this in her new book #CoachThePerson. 🧠” I also tweeted: “…Additionally, @MarciaReynolds drove home the point in her great new book, #CoachThePerson, that we must create cultures that foster the psychological safety to fully express ourselves in conversations.” Here are her three mental habits:
1. Align your brain
2. Receive (don’t just listen)
3. Catch and release judgement
Toward the end of the book, Dr. Reynolds reminded us that we need to say it out loud to make it real and that our brains are meaning-making machines. In every scene of our personal and professional lives we pull from our past experiences, beliefs, values, fears, and present assumptions to make sense of the situation we are living at the moment. In this book, Dr. Reynolds taught us that, “Coaching is intended to examine the meaning people give to situations to determine what else could be going on that would change their approach going forward.” Everyone who works with people should read this great ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ book!
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