The Coach - A Leadership Book Written As A Story

Read the story of a coaching relationship between a business owner and his coach as they work through common and difficult leadership issues in this business parable. Listen to their conversations and learn from their experiences.

From this engaging story, you will learn how to apply sound leadership principles in your life.

It's a beautiful, early summer day, and I still can't shake the feeling that something isn't quite right. Two years ago, I was at the top of my game as a successful, young officer in the United States Navy Submarine force. In fact, on the day I left my last ship, the USS Benjamin Franklin (SSBN 640), I received my second Navy Achievement Medal for excellent performance. I left the Navy as the excited and energetic Lt. Carl S. Daniels, USN. Now, just two years later, I'm Carl Daniels, the frustrated and disillusioned general contractor.

Launching the business looked easy - buy a franchise, hire the right staff, and work hard to build a future for my family. The first few months were difficult, and they were rewarding. Just before leaving the Navy, I purchased a franchise territory in my home state of Georgia from a successful remodeling company franchisor. In only six months, I built the business to a profitable status. Right from the start I was on a roll. The business grew quickly. I was paying off my business loan, and I was making money. Within nine months, the business grew to the point that I needed to start hiring a professional staff. I could no longer keep track of all the sales, production, customer service and accounting issues on my own. Following the business plan created by the franchise company, I began to hire a staff to help me grow the business.

The hiring process took a while to complete, but over the next three months I found the people I wanted. Isaac Dalton, an experienced building and construction sales professional, came onboard as my Sales Manager. Doug Caldwell, a seasoned engineer with experience at a large homebuilder, took over day-to-day production issues. Sharon Innis came to us from a local retail store to work as our Customer Service coordinator. And, I found a great accountant, Christine Stevens, to look after the company's financial matters.

We began our second year in business with a growing client base, good carpenters, fantastic relationships with subcontractors, and a strong professional staff. We were poised for great growth - then it hit. Suddenly, my fast growing business hit a wall. The money kept coming in, but the staff started losing their drive. Now they seem to be working in slow motion and bickering with each other over minor issues. I've been trying to fix the problem for six months. I don't know what to do, and now I'm starting to lose my drive as well. I've got to get some help. When I get to the office, I'm calling the franchise corporate staff to see if they can offer any advice.

"Good morning, John. This is Carl Daniels, from Kennesaw."

"Hello Carl! How's our fastest starting, most profitable, first-year franchisee this fine morning."

"Well John, to tell you the truth, not good. I'm having some problems that I don't know how to fix, and I was hoping that you could help me out."

"No problem, Carl. Tell me what's happening, and I'll see if I can get you the help you're looking for."

"John, if I could tell you what's wrong, I could probably fix it. I don't really know where to start."

"Just give it a shot, my friend, and we'll figure it out together."

"OK. Here goes. You know when we worked together to find my professional staff."

"Sure I do. You've got some great people on your team, Carl."

"You know, John, I thought I had great people, too. We started out great. Now, I'm not so sure. They seem to be running at about half-speed the last few months. We've got some tensions between people, and we're not working as efficiently as we did before. I really don't know what's happening. Business is still pretty good, but I'm concerned that if I don't figure out what's going on with my staff, I'll be in trouble before too long."

"Sales are good?"

"For now, yes."

"Your profit margins are ok?

"Yes, but they're slipping a little."

"So, you're main concern is with the people on your team?"

"Yeah. They just don't seem motivated. I've tried everything I know to do to motivate them and to get them to work together better. They're just not getting it."

"Well Carl, I could kick this around with you, but it's not really my area of expertise. I'm great at business process stuff, and I've got some ideas about leadership and team dynamics that I would be happy to share. But honestly, people issues aren't really my strong point. Have you thought about getting a leadership coach to help you?"

"A leadership coach? What's that?"

"A leadership coach is someone who understands leadership issues, knows how to diagnose leadership problems, and can help you fix them."

"John, I don't have leadership problems! I have people problems! I'm killing myself here! I work 70-80 hours a week, and they're not pulling their weight!"

"OK. OK. I hear you, and I think I understand your situation. But you called for my help. Didn't you?"

"Well, yeah... I did."

"Didn't you say that you had done everything that you know to do?"

"Yes, but..."

"Well then, would you be willing to get a different perspective on your situation?"

"I guess so, but I'm not interested in any psycho-babble, mumbo-jumbo, head-shrink advice. I just want to fix this problem so that I can get on with business."

"Carl, I'm not talking about psycho-babble, mumbo-jumbo, head-shrink advice. I am talking about working with someone who can look at your situation without an emotional connection. Someone who can help you diagnose the real problem so that you can get it fixed. I've worked with a leadership coach on some issues here in the home office before. It has always helped me. In fact, I know of a great coach in the Atlanta area who might be able to help you."

"Alright, John, I'll give it a shot. Let me have his name and number. I'll call today."

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