Here is a checklist of attitudes that instructors and coaches must have.
- You do not have to be right all the time to be credible. Credibility actually comes from genuine listening.
- You gain respect not by demanding it, nor by demonstrating prowess; you gain respect by giving it.
- Every reasoning person who believes a thing is in some way correct. Find that first.
- When challenged, always start by backing up and finding agreement. It’s always there.
- Ask questions they can probably answer. Minimize trick questions and gotcha’s.
- Never put a student under pressure, never put them on the spot.
- Never make a student wrong, or feel that they have “lost”. You win only if they win. If you defeat them, you’ve failed.
- Teaching is leading, and vice-versa.
- “A good leader does not get people to do good work. A good leader develops people through work.” (Peter Drucker)
- You’re not there to give them answers, you’re there to strength their ability to find the answers, in their own way, without you.