" Great minds discuss ideas.
Average minds discuss events.
Small minds discuss people."
- Eleanor Roosevelt
A common scenario I come across in my high performance coaching work is the frustration level between a leader and one or more of his or her people.
The energy expended talking about it, bringing others into the conversation, and seeking solutions is immense. A great majority of the time, the person (or persons) who are the source of the frustration are the only people excluded from the conversation. Common questions to me include "When will they get it?" and "What in the world could they be thinking to have them perform the way they do?".
My response and frequent advice is this - ask them. Shift the conversation from those that don't have the answers to the person that does - the individual you are frustrated with. When a challenge arises - leaders do not talk about people - they talk to people....
