If You Want More Responsibility, You Must Be Coachable
“Faithful in little, faithful in much.” You might have heard this famous verse before, not realizing that it’s straight from Scripture. Although spoken in a spiritual context by Jesus, “faithful in little, faithful in much” is a life-transcendent principle that applies to the workforce as well. We can’t expect to climb the ladder, get that promotion, or be entrusted with more responsibility if we don’t prove ourselves capable of the first and basic tasks we are given to do. A critical element to being faithful in little so that we can one day be faithful with more is having a coachable attitude and a willingness to learn from those who are more experienced (made more mistakes) than us.
Throughout my career, I’ve experienced the blessings of being a coach as well as being coached by some incredible mentors. Having a mentor has been critical to both my professional and spiritual growth. But on the flip side, I’ve met with people who said they wanted my advice and counsel but simply were not coachable. They came to me saying they wanted wisdom from someone more experienced, but I quickly discovered that what I had to share fell on deaf ears. Although dissatisfied with where they were, they weren’t truly willing to listen, ponder, and incorporate the advice from someone who had already made and learned from many mistakes.
Sadly, being uncoachable is a flaw I recognize in many professionals who have deceived themselves into thinking that they are eager to advance when really, they only want to advance in their own time and way. This habit is one of the most sure-fire ways to ensure your stagnation in all areas, whether that’s professional growth, character growth, spiritual growth, etc.
It reminds me of an immature child saying “No! I want to do it all by myself!” Sometimes you just have to let them go experience their own failures for a while so that they can learn by themselves, even though it pains you deeply to watch their mistakes that you could have saved them from with a little well-received coaching. Instead of progressing quickly, they will just have to be mired in their own failures and frustrations for a while until they are ready to cry out for help and become coachable.
A traditional concept used in medical schools to teach surgical skills is sometimes referred to as See One, Do One, Teach One. We can use the same technique by having a mentor or coach to help us see how to do things differently and coach us through doing new things, and/or disciple us in our spiritual growth. We can learn from the mistakes of others to help us advance more quickly in our learning and development, rather than having to make the same mistakes that others have already made. That enables us to then experience and learn from an entirely new level of mistakes rather than being stuck at the bottom mired in the very basic mistakes! If you aren’t making mistakes, you aren’t learning! Then we can in turn become a mentor or coach to teach and/or disciple others.
I have gotten so much joy out of mentoring, coaching, and discipling others. God just seems to place people into my life from time to time out of nowhere who I have the privilege to help. For example, a friend introduced me to a young man who wanted some business and spiritual coaching several years ago. My friend thought I might be able to help this young man who just started his business career by being a mentor to him, as well as to help him grow spiritually.
When I first met this guy, I learned about some struggles he was having communicating with his boss. I listened to him, asked him a lot of questions to help him think through his situation, and over a period of months of our meetings, he was able to improve the communication with his boss dramatically. I continue to meet with him regularly, and he always comes to our meetings prepared with his questions and takes notes the entire time. He is very coachable, and it has been an absolute joy for me to watch him develop and succeed in his own career, as well as to grow spiritually into the husband, father, and friend that God wants him to be.
Because this young man was faithful in the little process of meeting with me weekly as his mentor (showing up on time and being prepared for the meeting), and learning to approach his boss at work in a respectful way, he is experiencing myriad benefits, including personal and professional growth.
If you don’t have any mentor figures in your life, I highly encourage you to find one. This is an excellent first step to developing a coachable attitude. Consider asking for advice from someone in your workforce you look up to, perhaps an elder from your church or a more experienced friend.
And if you are an individual who has some experience, be generous with what you’ve learned and be willing to coach those who are coachable. Sometimes, we get into the headspace of believing that we will never have enough knowledge or maturity to be a resource. But there are people out there who do not know what you do and haven’t worked as long as you have worked. When those of us who are experienced withhold from sharing the wisdom we’ve gained, the next generation misses a big opportunity to be mentored and develop a coachable spirit.
It is a good thing to desire more responsibility, and the key to reaching that goal is by having a humble heart and a coachable attitude. By being willing to seek out, learn from those who have gone before, and apply what you learn to your own situation (being coachable), you are sure to excel in your current role and be entrusted with more. And then seek to do the same for others behind you. Believe me you will have tremendous joy in knowing you have helped someone else advance in their career and development, and they will be forever grateful to you for the impact you make in their life.