Be a CHANGEMASTER: 12 Coaching Strategies for Leading Professional and Personal Change / Edition 1

by Karla Reiss

Overview

How to use coaching strategies to lead change in any organization

This practical guide for school and district leaders provides 12 strategies for overcoming resistance to change. Unlike more theoretical books, this text shows how to adopt a coaching style of leadership as a systemic change strategy. Components include:

• Challenging assumptions to prevent them from becoming reality
• Confronting negativity by reframing and cultivating optimism
• Gathering a group to aggregate energy, creativity, and encouragement
• Using imagery and visualization techniques to improve performance
• Focusing on the future to overcome the errors of the past and challenges of the present

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781412997454
Publisher:	SAGE Publications
Publication date:	02/06/2012
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	208
Product dimensions:	7.00(w) x 9.90(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

Learn more about Karla Reiss' PD offerings

Karla Reiss is the award winning author of Leadership Coaching for Educators; Bringing Out the Best in School Administrators. She founded The Change Place, LLC in 2004, a coaching and consulting firm dedicated to the continuous improvement of individuals, teams and organizations after 30 years in education, publishing and sales. She and her team of certified coaches offer several levels of coaching training programs to leaders of school systems, government and non-profit organizations, businesses and individuals who wish to learn a coaching style of leadership, including Powerful Coaching for Powerful Results™ certification program, CKEY; Coaching Kids, Empowering Youth™ and various related programs. The Change Place, LLC also provides executive and leadership coaching services, workplace and leadership assessments and products that support others to lead professional and personal change. She is also a frequent speaker at national, state and local conferences.

As a school administrator, Reiss worked with more than 50 school districts in a variety of school improvement roles, the majority as coordinator of professional development at Western Suffolk (NY) Board of Cooperative Education Services. She has conducted numerous professional development programs and school improvement opportunities for K-12 staff and district leaders. She is certified in strategic planning and served on the New York State Education Department’s statewide steering committee for Comprehensive District Education Planning. She was president of New York State Staff Development Council and served on the Executive Board of the Long Island Association for Curriculum and Staff Development.

Karla Reiss is a graduate from the Institute of Professional Excellence in Coaching in 2002 and received additional coach training at the College of Executive Coaching. She holds a bachelor of science degree, a master’s degree in special education and a professional diploma in school district administration. Her professional and personal inspiration and transition into the world of coaching was a result of the invitation to participate in Oxygen TV’s program, The Life Makeover Project in 2002. She has applied all of the coaching techniques and strategies described in this book to her own life and now helps others courageously transition their lives, leadership style and organizations to fulfill their goals, hopes and dreams.

Table of Contents

Preface ix

Acknowledgments xv

About the Author xvii

Introduction 1

1 Challenge Assumptions 10

Challenge Those Assumptions 13

How Assumptions Hold Us Back 15

Assumptions Become Reality 16

Thinking for Success 16

Change Your Thoughts at Any Time 18

How to Challenge and Banish Assumptions 19

Tips for Success 20

Summary 21

2 Have a Higher Purpose 22

Why Purpose and Happiness Matter 24

What Is Your Mission? 27

It's Not About the Soap 28

What Legacy Will You Leave Behind? 30

Finding Meaning in Work and Life 31

Leading Yourself and Others to Discover Their Higher Purpose 32

Finding Joy 32

Your Life's Compass: Creating a Personal Mission Statement 33

A Word About Courage 35

Tips for Success 36

Summary 36

3 Awareness of Limiting Thoughts 37

What Are Limiting Thoughts? 38

Managing Limiting Thoughts and Beliefs 41

The Power of Choice 42

How to Change Limiting Thoughts to Expanding Thoughts 43

A Formula for Freedom 46

Direct Your Brain to Change 47

Tips for Success 49

Summary 49

4 Nix the Negatives and Naysayers 50

Be Wary of Your Words 51

How We Connect 52

Confronting Negatives and Naysayers 53

Be a Better Listener 54

Practical Ways to Nix the Negatives 57

Reframing: A Powerful Skill 58

When People Won't Budge 59

Cultivating Optimism 59

Tips for Success 61

Summary 61

5 Gather a Group 62

Why Gather a Group? 63

An Inspiring Example 64

Asking for Help 66

How to Ask for Help 67

A Coaching Approach to Leading Groups: "I Have a Group. Now What?" 67

How to Coach Groups 68

Two Group Coaching Models 69

Successful Group Coaching 71

Benefits of Group Coaching 71

Challenges 71

Tips for Success 72

Summary 72

6 Emotionally Connect to the Goal 73

How to Create an Emotional Connection to Your Goal 76

The Mind, Body, and Goal Connection 79

Tips for Success 81

Summary 81

7 Maintain Momentum 82

Coaching to Action 86

Resistance Ahead! 87

Shifting From Discussion to Action 88

Choosing Courageous Actions 89

Maintaining Organization Momentum 90

Tips for Success 90

Summary 91

8 Ask How Can I? 92

Become a Possibility Thinker 94

How to Develop a Possibility Thinking Mind-Set 96

Tips for Success 100

Summary 100

9 See Success Smiling 101

What the Research Says 103

Imagery and Visualization Techniques 104

Peak Performance Strategies 105

How and Why Visualization Is Effective 106

A Success Story 107

The Science Behind Imagery 108

Why Smile? 110

Why Seeing Success Smiling Works 111

Tips for Success 111

Summary 111

10 Turn Talk to the Future 113

The Future Is Now 115

Coach Approach 116

Attributes of a Future-Focused Leader 117

Self-Talk and Group Talk 118

Rationale 119

Turning Self-Talk to the Future 121

Turning Talk to the Future With Groups 121

Tips for Success 123

Summary 123

11 Expect and Welcome Discomfort 124

A Personal Example 125

Why Discomfort Is Good 129

Taking Charge of Discomfort 131

Managing Fear 133

Tips for Success 136

Summary 136

12 Remain Relentlessly Focused 137

Narrow the Focus 138

Meditation Helps Focus 139

Multitasking Is Out: Focus Is In 141

Why Stop Multitasking? 141

Saying No 143

Letting Go 144

Pay Attention to Your Attention 145

Tips for Success 147

Summary 147

13 Conclusion 148

Underlying Coaching Concepts 149

Changemaster Tools 151

Tool.01 Challenging Assumptions Tool 152

Tool.02 Have a Higher Purpose Tool 1: My Joyfinder™ 154

Tool.03 Have a Higher Purpose Tool 2: A Starter Set of Questions 155

Tool.04 Have a Higher Purpose Tool 3: Creating a Personal Mission Statement 157

Tool.05 Examining Limiting Thoughts Tool 158

Tool.06 Nix the Negatives and Naysayers Tool 1: A to Z Uplifting Words 159

Tool.07 Nix the Negatives and Naysayers Tool 2: Noticing the Negatives 160

Tool.08 Gather Your Group Tool 161

Tool.09 Emotionally Connect to Your Goal Tool 1 163

Tool.10 Emotionally Connect to Your Goal Tool 2: Words That Evoke Positive Emotions 164

Tool.11 Maintain Momentum Tool 165

Tool.12 Ask How Can I? Becoming a Possibility Thinker Tool 167

Tool.13 See Success Smiling Tool 170

Tool.14 Turn Talk to the Future Tool 171

Tool.15 Expect and Welcome Discomfort Tool 172

Tool.16 Remain Relentlessly Focused Tool 174

Tool.17 Be a CHANGEMASTER Tool 175

References 178

Index 181

Editorial Reviews

"In Be a CHANGEMASTER: 12 Coaching Strategies for Leading Professional and Personal Change, Karla Reiss examines the steps and strategies involved in making effective and lasting personal and professional change. Prior to founding Change Place, Reiss served as a school administrator and experienced the change process in a variety of educational settings.

As Reiss explains early on, the focus of the book is slightly different than many other books written about the change process. 'The body of knowledge this book is based on is derived from the field of professional coaching, and not from research on brain function, not from years of formal research into the change process.'

As indicated in the title, the book reviews 12 strategies for change that range from challenging current assumptions within your organization to maintaining forward momentum and action once the change process is underway. Each chapter ends with a very informative summary section and provides the reader with a list of key concepts.

Reiss also provides a variety of templates and forms that could be easily used to promote discussion within your group. Any school leader interested in learning more about developing lasting change should find this book useful. "

The School Administrator Magazine

Rarely have I seen a book about change theory written to address the unique and problematic structure of public schools. This book does it with style and is a wonderful addition to every educator’s library!

Kay Teehan

This book provides practical strategies for leading others down the path of professional and personal change—a great journey!

Mary Ann Hartwick

The author explains how sometimes it is necessary to work with individuals and with small groups. She is right on regarding every aspect about how important this is. "

Alice Manus