Coaching Conversations in 2025
Coaching Conversations with Tim Hagen, where we teach leaders and managers how to coach their employees. This is the ideal podcast for leaders, managers, and aspiring leaders to improve their coaching and leadership skills to create a more positive coaching culture within their teams.
In 2025, we're doing weekly podcasts on various coaching topics and strategies that will rotate throughout the month, as opposed to 2024 where the weekly episodes featured a monthly theme. Coaching Conversations will continue to have four episodes per month and we're going to sprinkle in masterclasses, which will be lengthier, workshop-style formats.
We also invite you to join the new FREE e-publication, the Workplace Coaching Times founded by Tim Hagen. This weekly newsletter contains expert insights on coaching strategies on specific topics like sales coaching, leading with empathy, and self-awareness techniques, and much more. We're a community of leaders, managers and coaches transforming workplace challenges into coaching victories—one conversation at a time. Subscribe here: https://coachingtimes.beehiiv.com/subscribe
Coaching Conversations in 2025
Unleashing Your Employee Difference
Are you part of the 71% feeling neutral or disengaged at work, and yearning for a significant shift? Brace yourself for a profound journey as we unpack the power of differentiation in the workplace through a comprehensive lens. In a world where the pandemic has left companies scrambling, we remind you that the reins of your career are in your hands. We challenge you to embrace the 'Employee Difference' and to unshackle yourself from negativity. Get ready to metamorphose from a duck to an eagle as we delve into self-awareness, emotional intelligence, and the transformative conversations you should be having.
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The Employee Difference ... Teaching Employees GRIT and Personal Growth Strategies to Differentiate Themselves from the Masses
Get More Info Here: https://lnkd.in/g__ghHHH
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The path to success is rarely a straight line, it's a squiggly one, and we are here to help you navigate it. Say goodbye to the 'fight or flight' mindset and welcome the concept of grit — persistent passion over time. Discover how to embrace your highs and lows, seek candid feedback, and own your choices. We invite you to nurture your career with self-awareness and grit, armed with the knowledge that you are in control. Tune in, take charge, and let's transform your work life together!
Welcome to Coaching Conversations
We have created a NEW and Innovative line of books called Workplace Coaching Books. These books use QR codes with embedded audio and video lessons speaking directly to the reader. Each book comes with assessments and journal based coaching pages where they document what they've learned and what they've applied. In addition each book comes with the self analysis link that prompts them to share what they've learned and what they've put into action leading to greater learner application a
Progress Coaching 360 is a dynamic leadership development system that equips managers and teams with powerful coaching skills through a blend of training, real-time practice, peer learning, and feedback. It combines expert-led instruction, a train-the-trainer model, group coaching certification, and monthly coaching pods where leaders practice, share wins, and tackle challenges. With built-in accountability and hands-on application using Coaching Cards and best practice sessions, Progress Coaching 360 turns coaching from theory into action—building a sustainable culture of growth, feedback, and performance.
Progress Coaching 360 teaches leaders how to coach and employees how to develop coachability skills. This unique combination helps build great workplace cultures.
Get More Info Here: https://form.jotform.com/251187914739165
The employee difference, the power of differentiation. Think about today how to differentiate yourself. The employee difference is a mindset shift. I think we spend so much money on leaders learning how to inspire and motivate in employees. We forgot to tell employees, by the way, you're in charge of your own motivation. You're in charge of your own inspiration. Employees have to look in the mirror. They have to be in control of themselves. Now look, I'm going to make some crass comments.
Speaker 1:The pandemic really revealed some things. It revealed the opportunity for coaching. There's no doubt the pandemic has been good for the field of coaching. Yet what it hasn't been good for is the fact of the matter is we've been overly concerned about people who are struggling, and mental health has never been mentioned more, or anxiety or stress. Now I know those are real things. Yet at the same time, we have to teach employees one fundamental concept they are in charge of themselves. See, companies are responsible for training employees to do a job. They are not in charge of their careers. They can provide opportunities career-wise, but they are not in charge of someone's career. Here's why I can say that Think about a person who quits their job.
Speaker 1:Can the employer really call them two years later and tell them what to do? Of course not. If they get laid off, is the company still in charge of that employee? Of course not. So the employee difference is really some fundamental parameters. Number one it's a mindset.
Speaker 1:I think about the story of Ducks vs Eagles. I won't tell the full story now, but Ducks flock together and they complain. Better known as the Watercooler Eagles choose to soar above the rest. You know what's really funny. When we grow up, we have these career aspirations. We want to be the best, we want to progress. We have these goals, these aspirations.
Speaker 1:We get into the workplace and 71% of people, according to the Gallup organization, are neutral or actively disengaged, better known as negative. Think about that. Less than three out of every ten people on a team are positive. The opportunity to differentiate yourself has never been greater. Yet so often employees will do what They'll get in groups and complain because they don't have the gumption, the sticktutiveness, the grit, the toughness to say to the other four people you know what this is negative crap. I'm walking away, I'm going to focus on me and what I can do. So here's the funny thing about human beings we are ultimately in charge of ourselves.
Speaker 1:Yet how often do we hear people complain about income or their lack of pay raise? Why would anybody in their right mind and I know circumstances come up, I know situations come up, I know challenges come up why would anybody say to themselves consciously you know what? I really don't have a choice of my career and I'm going to just kind of be at the mercy of what the company is willing to do for me. Yet that's the foundation of a lot of complaints. So, number one, we need to teach people self-awareness. You are in your situation. If it's a predicament, you are in your predicament. You are in your career as a result of your choices and abilities. Let me give you another story and give you some traction with that concept.
Speaker 1:I was talking to someone at one of our client sites who got really angry and she started to talk about how she was passed over for a job and I let her go and I said at the end I said so the person who got the job, were they the right choice? She said well, that's not what I'm saying. I said well, I know, I'm just wondering was that person the right choice? Well, no, what I'm trying to tell you is I'm just so frustrated. See, people have to develop emotional intelligence. They have to look in the mirror and be really honest. 85% of people don't do it. I asked her a third time, the person who got the job were they the right choice? She said I don't know. I said what if they were, what do you mean? I said I know you didn't get the job Yet I haven't heard you say you know, this is really unfair. She wasn't qualified and I'm not so sure by your own emotion right now you'd be in an objective state to say that. So, number one, self-awareness. Number two, understanding the concept of ducks versus eagles.
Speaker 1:I cannot tell you how often I go into company sites financial services, manufacturing and you hear people talk and complain. And I was at an organization about 30 to 45 days ago from this podcast and I could hear employees discussing all the poor decisions management made and I just smiled at them and they stopped talking when I walked by. I go, that's okay, I can hear you. I said by the way, can I ask you guys a question? They begrudgingly said what I said. Have any of you ever been a leader? One person goes, well, no. I said you know what? Then I think you're the right people to complain Keep going. And I walked away.
Speaker 1:What was funny is it immediately dispersed. Two people saw me in the hallway, came up and said hey, we're really sorry about what you saw. We didn't agree with what was being said. I said I challenged that. And both ladies said what do you mean? I said why didn't you speak up? And they just sat there and they said well, we don't know.
Speaker 1:I said well, sure, you chose not to. It's not magical. You chose not to. Yet you also chose to stay and listen. So when someone walks by, guess what? Your view is? A green. You became a duck. You flocked together and complained Eagles choose to soar above the rest. You have to be strong enough to walk away and say you know what? Everybody, this is not for me. Continue the conversation, but I don't want to participate. It's tough. Yeah, you're going to lose some friendships. See, people flock together because in groups we feel comfortable. We don't have to leave our comfort zone.
Speaker 1:Here's the third concept grit, teaching people perseverance and passion over time. When we go from point A to point B, to point C, all the way to point Z, whatever that means, it's not a straight line, it's a squiggly line that goes up and down. Up means some good things are happening. We have to embrace it. And when the line goes downward, we have a choice of overcoming or succumbing. Most people will choose fight or flight, right. So when someone chooses flight, they give up, just like the person who didn't get the job. Why would I want to expose myself to that again? I said then don't, but don't complain about the lack of opportunity. That isn't the company not giving you opportunity. You just made the choice to not go after those opportunities.
Speaker 1:See, here's the tough thing. We need to have these conversations with people so they can look in the mirror and quit changing their own narrative. See what happens with employees is they go home? My boss was a jerk. My supervisor was just riding me all day. They never give me a chance. And do you know what we hear when we go home? We hear what we want to hear People say things like oh, your boss sounds like a jerk. By the way, your spouse or family members don't know your boss.
Speaker 1:If you really want to create a differentiating factor in someone's life, teach them to seek out people who don't agree with them. Teach them to seek out people who'll give them honest feedback, not the feedback they want to hear. The employee difference is about teaching people to own their careers. Look in the mirror, go to that next level and be honest with themselves. It starts with self-awareness, it starts with the mindset of ducks versus eagles. And then, third, do you have grit, perseverance and passion, no matter the bumps in the road, the detours, the exits where you have to get off and fix a tire and get back on the road? Do you have that gumption? Do you have that perseverance? Do you have that stick-to-itiveness? That's the employee difference and that's what employees need to have nurtured so they understand one fundamental thing they are in control of themselves. That's what employees need to have nurtured themselves.