Working closely with an executive coach is priceless for busy CEOs who are under constant pressure. In addition to providing a safe environment and a sounding board, they also provide opportunities for reflection, growth, and development. They play a powerful role in holding people accountable and having solution-focused conversations, matching the drive required of high-performing individuals.
Our executive coaches have over 30+ combined years of experience coaching top-performing leaders all over the globe. They’ve come to understand the challenges and successes of leadership roles, including mutually shared values, and common blind spots that can impact performance over a lifetime.
Today we share 5 powerful coaching questions designed specifically for CEOs and leaders who want to enhance their skills, improve their output, and get more results in their business. These questions are designed to provide reflection and thoughtful conversations in order to dream big, focus strategically, and develop critical tools for success.
Coaches use this question to encourage you to dream big. Think about your future and what makes you excited. Being able to dream big and find big goals to work towards is what helps people and businesses grow.
But it’s not just dreams that make a business grow. A Harvard Business Study determined that individuals who have goals are 10 times more successful than those without.
The right executive coach will help you identify goals to help achieve your dreams.
“What does your ideal vision look like?” is a purposefully broad question, while “what will we celebrate in a year?” is purposefully specific. This question is meant to help you gain momentum by identifying goals you can accomplish within a year.
This is often the first discovery question that comes up when working on goal setting. Our next coaching question will allow you to narrow down your goals even more.
Another great coaching question around goals, this is designed to help you identify which direction to take today for maximum impact.
As a busy leader, you're constantly seeking ways to get the most bang for your buck. This is one way coaches can match your results-driven nature and help you get more effective with better results.
We may be tempted to focus on urgent demands or the loudest complaints. Consider this: Is that goal the most valuable focus for you? As you compare goals (such as fixing the meeting room location that your staff is complaining about, or improving the team efficacy overall) through the lens of value gained, you can get a better understanding of how to prioritize.
While goals can change and should often be re-evaluated, this coaching question is perfect for keeping you focused on impact and staying strategic with your efforts.
Now that we've talked goal-setting, this coaching question is meant to identify areas for change.
By taking a close look at your habits, your environment, and your current skills, you can explore possibilities for improvement. Coaches will encourage you to think about your various behaviors and how well they serve your goals. If you want better time management, and you know you need to change your calendar to make it happen, you can focus on developing a better process for your schedule.
Coaches will work with you to identify action plans, development steps, and exercises to support your goals.
The final powerful coaching question comes after a scenario happens.
Many times CEOs and busy leaders are putting out fire after fire, and they can forget to look for the fire hazard. After the conflict has been resolved, and the situation has been addressed, it is helpful to understand the underlying causes.
Whether it’s a lost target, or perhaps a missed meeting that you needed to be a part of - digging deeper helps you get more effective at avoiding those situations in the future.
This specific coaching question is designed to help you identify perspective shifts and ultimately impact future situations before they arise.
These five powerful coaching questions only scratch the surface. Executive coaches are trained on methodologies proven to improve leadership and business to grow results, find more efficient processes, and ultimately, improve your quality of life. Find out how an executive coach from Werq can help you get more out of life.