The literature on executive coaching comes from three primary sources: business, psychology, and the training and development literature. A number of definitions for coaching exist. One that encompasses different perspectives was developed by Kilburg and suggests that it is “a helping relationship formed between a client who has managerial authority and responsibility in an organization and a consultant who uses a wide variety of behavioral techniques and methods to help the client achieve a mutually identified set of goals to improve his or her professional performance and personal satisfaction and, consequently, to improve the effectiveness of the client’s organization within a formally defined coaching agreement.” An additional definition of coaching can be found at the International Coach Federation (ICF) website. – SJA

In his book Leadership Development: Paths to Self Insight & Proffesional Growth, Manuel London asserts that “Leadership development can help executives collect information to understand their situation and learn different behaviors and when to apply them.” For instance, what if a pitcher only has one pitch? Let’s say it is a fastball. After some time, he would likely be at a disadvantage; those with a full arsenal of pitches will likely experience greater success in the long run. The same is true for leadership – Goleman, Boyatzis and McKee emphasize this point in their book, Primal Leadership. Finally, in their chapter for the publication, Leader Development for Transforming Organizations, Day and Lance suggest that “Leaders who are highly adaptive are able to thrive in uncertainty, quickly make sense of complex environments, provide creative solutions in ambiguous situations, and help other do the same.” – SJA

Looking to learn more about Emotional Intelligence (EI)?  Case Western Reserve University offers a Certificate in Developing Leadership through Emotional Intelligence. According to its website the program is, “Designed to increase participants’ capacity for self-awareness and effectively apply this higher level of self-knowledge to the management of themselves and the leadership of others. Provides participants with a comprehensive understanding of EI, with emphasis on developing EI in themselves and coaching and developing EI in others.” – SJA

Check out the website Youth Leadership Development. At YLD “you’ll find links to the other parts of the site containing tips for leadership skill building, lists of leadership resources, new leadership materials (activities, etc.), links to the leadership development newsletter ‘Learning through Leadership,’ a link to leadership research sites and articles, leadership opportunities, and other links of interest.” Take a look!  – SJA

For those of you who use the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI®), there is another option at your disposal! The MBTI® Complete is now available for those of you interested in a online option. Not only are results immediate, there is an online debriefing for participants. Check out this new resource! – SJA