I spent most of last week coaching leaders on their skills, abilities and results through the use of 360 assessments. While the experience, scope and overall skill of these leaders varied widely, one of the lessons I received from this process was a reminder of and deepening appreciation for the power of encouragement.

By the way, don’t miss that point – while I was the coach and supposed to be helping other people learn and gain insights, I learned at least as much as they did. It’s one of the most interesting and powerful points about coaching – when you do it well, you get as much as you give.

As I facilitated these discussions, I was consistently reminded of five important powers of encouragement.

Encouragement provides awareness. When we encourage people, we let them know what we think – and that they matter to us. Encouragement doesn’t have to mean that everything is perfect, or that there isn’t room for growth and improvement. But it does show that there is a foundation to build from. When we provide encouragement to others, they are more aware of the perceptions of others and this helps them understand their world and situation better.

Encouragement creates belief. When we know that others believe in us, it changes everything. This doesn’t always happen, especially as a coach in a work setting – not because the coach doesn’t believe, but because the belief goes unsaid for any number of reasons. When we encourage people, we are letting them know we see what they have done, and by extension, believe what they will be able to do in the future; and that improves their belief in themselves and their potential.

Encouragement builds confidence. Does your confidence grow when someone lets you know you are doing something well? Does your confidence increase when people let you know how what you are doing is making a difference? It is true for you and for others too. When we are encouraged, our confidence grows. The encouragement might provide a momentary lift or change someone’s confidence for a lifetime. Either way it matters – and you never know when what you will say will make a big difference in someone’s confidence.

Encouragement improves attitude. We never feel worse after someone encourages us. Encouragement almost by definition makes us feel better, puts a bounce in our step and smile on our face. And when our attitude is better, we are healthier, happier and more productive. Why wouldn’t we want to provide that to others?

Encouragement promotes action. Sometimes moving forward, taking action and trying new things is hard – for anyone. Look at the four items you have just read about: awareness, belief, confidence and attitude; as we have more of any one of these, our ability and willingness to take action grows, doesn’t it? Now imagine something that we could do or say to someone else that grew all four . . . how powerful would that be? Genuine, authentic, meaningful encouragement is that thing; and that is how powerful it can be.

These points are true for anyone in any context. And when we put it in the organizational context and think about the role encouragement can play for us as a coach in helping others improve, it is a powerful tool at your disposal. Not everyone is at the same level of achievement, or seemingly has the same need for encouragement. Don’t let these “facts” taint your view or dampen your willingness to share encouragement with those people. The people you lead and work with are people – and everyone benefits from encouragement that is honest, authentic and well intentioned.

Let me close with two of the definitions of the word, from the Merriam-Webster Dictionary:

: something that makes someone more determined, hopeful, or confident

: something that makes someone more likely to do something

Yes, these definitions align with my points above. Much more importantly though, both of those are things we desire in those that we lead and coach. When coaching anyone, regardless of their skill, experience or relative success, remember the power and important of encouragement.

A final note: 360 assessments are a powerful tool for growth and improvement. If they are done well, they provide encouragement and much more! If you or other leaders in your organization would like to talk to us about how our 360 coaching process works, go here where you can learn more and fill out a form so that one of our learning concierges will contact you to answer any questions.

You may be thinking “I don’t lead leaders; I don’t need to read this.”

Even if you don’t (yet), there are three important reasons why you need to keep reading:

• Some day you might lead leaders – and thinking about these ideas now is worth the minimal effort required.
• You may want to share it with your boss or others to encourage and help them grow.
• The points below apply to all of us; they just become even more important when we are in that more senior leadership position.

And if you do currently lead other leaders, keep reading and think about where you might want to take some action next . . .

There are five leadership behaviors, that while important for any leader, become more important as you are leading supervisors and other managers. Let’s talk about those behaviors and why they become increasingly important.

Coaching matters more. You might be tempted to think this matters less, after all now you are coaching people who have already been promoted to a supervisory or leadership position – you have the cream of the crop, right? That might be true, and, the need for coaching does grow. Because your leaders need to be better and better leaders, not just great individual contributors, your coaching is critical to helping them. Not only that, but as you already know, the role of leadership is complex and we all need support and a coach or mentor to help us when we have challenging situations.

Thinking matters more. Chances are you are running hard to balance your to-do list and juggle your calendar. If that is true, you need to refocus and re-adjust. Your organization needs you to do more than do more work – it needs you to think. (Tweet That) The popular word for this is to strategize – but I actually mean that and more. For leaders to really lead, we must make time to think about the direction of the team, the opportunities and challenges in front of them and what they personally need to be doing. You can’t do these things well in five minutes between meetings and while answering your email.

Your example matters more. As you advance in the leadership ranks you may think you need to improve your presentation skills and you would be right. And, people are doing more than listening to your words, they are watching you. And as a leader further up in the organization, more people are watching, both directly and indirectly. Is your example the one you want people following? Time spent thinking about this and being more intentional about the big and little things you do (and yes, say), will have a significant positive outcome for your team.

Conversation matters more. Not more meetings – more conversations. There are likely some meetings you don’t need to go to – have you delegated effectively? And during the meetings you are attending – are you doing more talking or asking? Ask more, talk less. Shut up and listen. People have heard you talk, but have they seen you really listen? Conversations are created by an open exchange of ideas, challenges and opportunities. Your team needs you to do this – and model it for others.

Influence matters more. When you are a supervisor of a team, you can influence them more directly – you are interacting with them regularly. As you move up in the organization, your influence has greater reach and leverage, so it becomes more important. People are looking for those to influence them. Make sure it is you, and your influence is appropriate and positive.

There are other skills that may become more important to you as well, and this is a very important starter list. Take a minute, regardless of your leadership level, to think about: which of these could I, and those I lead, most benefit from my further development.

If you are looking for a systematic way to work on these and other skills as you progress as a more veteran leader, I would encourage you to join me for the brand new Leading at the Next Level Workshop. This workshop is for people who lead leaders and leaders with significant leadership experience who want to continue to grow and develop their skills. You can learn more and get a seat in this interactive learning experience here.

There are all sorts of boundaries in our lives.

Boundaries define the playing field for most sports.

Fences provide boundaries for homes and farms.

Walls keep people in, or out.

These are obvious and clear boundaries. There are others that while we know they exist, there isn’t a physical line of demarcation.

The boundaries in our professional and organizational lives are like those examples – some are clear, others, not so much. It is my goal here to give you reasons why boundaries are needed, and why making them clear and obvious is a far better approach to leading and running an organization (and the relationships inside it).

Clear boundaries improve focus and productivity. Once we know where we can go and what we can do, it allows us to focus on those things and not worry about overstepping bounds, making mistakes or doing someone else’s job.

Clear boundaries improve safety and compliance. In most organizations there are safety and/or compliance concerns. When everyone knows what those rules are and what is needed in a given role or task, people can operate more safely and not take actions that might lead to dangerous unintended consequences.

Clear boundaries allow trust to grow. When you and I know what you want me to deliver, I am better able to deliver. And when I do, trust goes up. Plus, if, as a leader you provide me a boundary that is bigger or more expansive than I expected, it show me that you trust I can handle those tasks, roles and decisions – you showing me that trust, provides a further chance to build trust between us.

Clear boundaries create defined expectations. This is perhaps the biggest underlying power of all. Until I know what is expected of me, how can I possibly deliver on these expectations? Setting boundaries on what I am and am not responsible for allows me to know what success looks like and then deliver that success.

Clear boundaries allow for empowerment. Too many leaders think empowerment is granted – but that is only half correct. Empowerment must be given to the leader, but must be understood and accepted by others. This can’t happen without clear boundaries defining what people are being empowered to do (or not do).

Clear boundaries promote growth and development. Once I know what is inside my realm of influence, my stress, anxiety and worry will decrease, and I am able to focus on successfully doing my work. Boundaries give me more opportunity to develop and help me determine where I might focus my efforts on growth and improvement.

Before I go, let me say something about the word “clear”. I purposefully used it in each of the items above, because just like if the boundaries on the ball field are missing or obscured, if the boundaries aren’t clear or agreed to, their power and usefulness is drastically diminished.

So let me be clear . . . by “clear boundaries” I mean they are:

• Defined by everyone involved
• Mutually agreed to
• Mutually understood
• Reviewed regularly
• Managed and maintained

At the end of the day, boundaries are less about defining what we can’t do and more about what we can do. When you view them that way and keep that in mind, boundaries really can become a tool that people will welcome and that will allow them to be more successful in their work.