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They are sometimes called one-on-ones, tune-ups, statuses, etc.   Whatever they are called, they are vital to keeping lines of communication open between you and your staff member.   It is the opportunity for expectations to be clarified, encouragement and constructive feedback to be given, and the relationship to continue to be built.   There are many tools to help you facilitate coaching conversations.   The sample tools below are “Plus/Delta” and a “Start, Stop, Continue” are. 

Plus/Delta:   A Plus/Delta is a method to do a “quick check” after a project, meeting, event, etc.   One side of the “page” (or whiteboard for those of you that like those) are the “pluses” – what went well or things you would want to repeat.   The right side is the “delta” – those things you’d like to change or do differently.   This tool is helpful for brainstorming.

Start, Stop, Continue:   This can help with communication, supervision, or even meetings.   What would you like me to start doing?   What am I currently doing that you would like me to stop?   What things work well, and that you’d like me to continue?   

SMART Goals

Writing good goals can help staff have clearly outlined expectations and give you a good measuring stick for how they have done with those goals.   SMART goals are Specific, Measurable, Attainable (or Achievable), Results-Oriented, and have a Timeframe.   The measurable part of the goal can be either quantitative or qualitative.   An example follows for both a quantitative and qualitative goal:

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Results-Oriented (Quantitative)– the goal is to continue to develop support.   $50/month is a results-oriented goal.

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Lead a small group every week with the goal of providing a “safe” environment where each person feels comfortable to contribute and where leaders are being developed.   By the end of the semester, identify and begin meeting weekly with one individual (apprentice) who would like to grow into leading the small group.   During this time with the apprentice focus on what is happening in her life, go through a book of the Bible together that you mutually choose, and co-lead 2 small group times with the apprentice by the end of the semester.

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Results-Oriented (Qualitative) – the goal is to have a small group where people are comfortable sharing and to develop an apprentice.   By describing what success looks like, the staff member can see what “result” she is aiming for.

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Whether the goal is met or not, feedback is important.   Some individuals feel it is difficult or unfair to make ministry about reaching goals or performance.   It is important to understand that the goal is faithfulness.   Someone once said that success is cooperating with what God is doing in your life at the moment.   If a goal is not met, the next question becomes why.   This will be discussed in the Constructive Feedback section.(For more on this, see Feedback, Recognition, and Career development section.)

Knowing Styles: Yours and the person you are coaching

Understanding your own coaching style and adapting to meet the need is one aspect of being a good coach.   Knowing your strengths and areas of opportunity for coaching will help you adjust your style to match what your staff member needs.   Some staff members need more time for the relational aspect of coaching where whereas others prefer more direct task supervision.   Several models of leadership can help with this.  

The DISC profile and MBTI Personality Assessment are also excellent tools for understanding styles and have applications for coaching, communication, team dynamics, and conflict resolution.   Factors Factors considered include how individuals best take in information (details or the “pieces” versus big picture), how individuals make decisions (objective criteria, logic, pros and cons versus beliefs and values and subjective considerations), whether individuals are more interested in coming to a decision quickly and efficiently or feel the process is more important, etc.   These factors impact how others hear information and how they communicate information.   Some conflict situations in a management scenario may come up from how ideas are presented, discussed, and decided to how an individual best “recharges” to handle the demands of ministry.

Often those differences in how we perceive information, make decisions, or order our world are the things that can cause conflict in relationships including the supervisory relationship.   As we learn how our styles impact others and how to interact with other styles, we can increase our effectiveness in leading and communicating with those we manage and support.

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