- The Parliament Newsletter
- Posts
- The Parliament Vol. 2, No. 17
The Parliament Vol. 2, No. 17
What's On Your Mind?
Thomas Greek
May 16, 2025
COACHING PROMPT OF THE WEEK
“What’s On Your Mind?”
Ah, the classics!
"What's on your mind?" is a wonderfully open-ended starter question. It might seem simple on the surface, but it's packed with potential for uncovering valuable insights.
This question immediately invites the team member to bring forward what is most pressing for them at that moment. It cuts through small talk and gets right to the heart of what's occupying their thoughts and energy.
This question also helps set the stage for a collaborative and empowering coaching experience.
The answer to this question can often point to recurring challenges, values, or aspirations that might not be immediately obvious.
Consider asking this question at your next one-on-one meeting with your team member.
Here are a few additional questions you might ask as follow-ups:
"Tell me more about that."
"What's important to you about this?"
"What are your thoughts and feelings around this?"
Remember that coaching isn’t telling! Coaching is about staying curious and making space for those in our care to become confident authors of their own stories.
The weight of leadership can feel immense. The constant demands, the responsibility for others, and the relentless pace can slowly chip away at even the most resilient individuals, leading to the dreaded state of burnout. If you're a leader feeling the edges fray, know this: you're not alone, and there's a powerful ally in your corner – coaching.
Think of Decision Fatigue, that insidious drain on mental energy caused by endless choices. As leaders, we face a daily deluge. By adopting a coaching mindset, we can strategically approach these decisions, mitigating their impact on our own well-being.
Here are a few ways how using coaching skills can help leaders combat burnout:
Cultivating Self-Reflection for Clarity: Asking powerful questions of themselves – "What truly needs my attention right now?," "What energizes me versus drains me?,"– can bring clarity and help prioritize effectively, cutting through the noise and preventing overwhelm.
Mastering the Art of Delegation to Alleviate Decision Load: Coaching encourages empowerment. Leaders who adopt this skill become adept at identifying opportunities for delegation, not just as task offloading, but as a way to develop their team. By trusting and empowering others, leaders free up their own mental bandwidth, directly combating decision fatigue and fostering a more resilient team.
By integrating coaching skills into their leadership toolkit, leaders can become more self-aware, more strategic in their decision-making, and more effective at fostering both their own resilience and that of their teams.
Want to sharpen your coaching skills, join us in the Leaders as Coaches Online program and watch your team – and your leadership – transform.
Want leadership & coaching tips?!
Check out our YouTube channel, and while you’re there, be sure to subscribe!
“Before you are a leader, success is all about growing yourself. When you become a leader, success is all about growing others.” —Jack Welch
I like to envision this using a gardening analogy.
Planting seeds, giving others a chance to succeed. Providing a healthy environment to grow in. Plenty of nutrients, just the right amount of water and sunshine, and then watching the garden flourish.
Few things are as rewarding in life as watching something that you helped to grow!
Ultimately, a leader's lasting impact is often measured by the individuals they have helped to grow and develop. By focusing on the growth of others, leaders create a ripple effect of success that extends far beyond their own tenure.
What have you done lately to help your team members develop and grow?
Thanks and Be Well
For a limited time, I’m offering a complimentary lesson -
Check it out below!
