The best way to inspire your creative team in 2019

Inspiring your creative team is all about enabling your colleagues to produce their best possible work. Knowing how to encourage inspiration isn’t always easy though. In my experience, I’ve found some of the most effective leaders are those who coach. Rather than dishing out orders, these leaders understand what inspires and motivates their creative team.

Coaching as a style of leadership

Let’s start with an example from the world of sport. Think of a football coach. Their job is to identify how a team can perform better. They design training plans and schedules in line with what their team needs and help it to reach optimal performance. Notice that the football coach never does the job for their team – always remaining on the sidelines. Coaches empower their players to do the job but don’t do it for them.

Adopting a coaching approach to leadership is not much different. In the workplace, it’s taking a collaborative and creative attitude to management. Coaching is a two-way street, you discuss ideas and solutions together, rather than telling your employee what to do. They have as much opportunity to give their opinion as you do, which helps them to find solutions for themselves, but with your support.

When an employee feels supported, they take creative and innovative risks. They know their manager will respect their ingenuity and be grateful for their efforts.

Inspire your creative colleagues by finding out what motivates them to achieve.

How to inspire your creative team through coaching

1. Listen to your team

Coaching allows for two-way feedback. It’s not about telling your creative team what to do. Listen to what your employees need or what they feel their struggles are. By doing this, you can identify the skills or knowledge they need to develop.

2. Adapt your coaching model to the individual

When I think back over the people I’ve coached, I’ve used different styles for everyone. One colleague was confident, but new to the industry. Someone like that just needs confirmation from me that they are on the right track when it comes to learning something new. Meanwhile, another employee preferred that we work through problems together a few times before he took responsibility.

In both cases, both colleagues went on to be highly successful – they just needed different levels of support to get there.

3. Coach with emotional intelligence

Leaders with emotional intelligence can identify when someone they work with feels upset or stressed. It allows you to build a relationship with your colleagues. Being able to skillfully read other peoples’ emotions helps you determine what kind of situations they need help with.

Visit the ICML training programs page for more management and leadership inspiration. We offer courses in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and many other locations in Australia and Tasmania.