Coaching as a leadership capability means leading in a way that builds other people's thinking, judgement and confidence — rather than stepping in to solve for them. It isn't a separate role, a job title, or a one-off program. It's how the most effective leaders operate every day. Why capable leaders slip back into "solving mode" Effective leaders are excellent problem-solvers. They think quickly, diagnose accurately, and move things forward. So even leaders who genuinely bel

The best leaders ask far more questions than they tell. Research into communication has found that effective communicators ask around twenty times more questions than ineffective ones. The shift from telling to asking is one of the highest-leverage moves a leader can make. Why asking beats telling Questions invite insight, surface blind spots, and signal that people's input matters. They build a culture of collaboration and shared ownership — where the team thinks, rather tha

“How can I help?” may be the four most useful words in a leader's toolkit. Under pressure, leaders often assume they must have every answer and solve problems on the spot — and in doing so quietly take ownership that should stay with their people. Why leaders jump to fixing When the pace is high, the instinct is to react and fix. We know cognitively we can't make every decision, yet under pressure we step in anyway — and each time we do, we narrow someone else's ownership and