Changing someone’s behaviour is a long term process. And if that behaviour has led the person to leadership positions, it becomes all the more difficult to convince him that he requires a behavioural change. But if there is someone who can make it easier and bring out a long term behavioural change among executives and leaders, it is an executive coach.
How is behavioural change brought about?
While it is easy to point out the need for a behavioural change, the process of bringing about such a change is often tedious. It starts with the executive coach and the executive himself coming on the same page with respect to what the desired behaviour would be. Unless you know what you are working towards, you would never be able to decipher how far you are from the eventual goal. One of the other key areas where an executive coach can be very helpful is making the executive more receptive towards any feedback given on behaviour. The higher you move up the hierarchy, the lesser are the number of people who can give you feedback. It is also true that most leaders don’t pay heed to any feedback on their behaviour. An executive coach can help change this by coming up with probing questions and getting the executive more excited towards the challenges lying ahead and the crucial role that incorporation of feedback would play in them. The urge to improve constantly is reignited by an executive coach through his thought provoking discussions.
Keeping the executive in line with the aim
One of the things needed to bring about any kind of change, either behavioural or otherwise, is the constant follow up on the steps taken. Ensuring an ongoing follow up is an integral part of an executive coach’s job. This would help the executive in keeping his ‘focus mode’ switched on all the times and measuring his own progress towards the pre-determined end goal.
Convincing the leaders to change their behaviour is a tough task and is only meant for experts. Bringing about a long term behavioural change in executives is one of the most highly sought after benefits of executive coaching. This process of behavioural change through executive coaching is as imperative for potential future leaders as it is for the top brass of an organization. After all, if there is one thing that people recall long after their interaction with you, it is your behaviour.