Does that surprise you?

A coaching client this week was telling me about pressures from his boss in the form of unexpected requests for information or action. I asked him if the requests surprised him. His reply was informative. “No, they are entirely predictable.” "Hmmm", I replied, "so not really unexpected then". My client laughed.

As we talked it through in detail, he could see his boss was under pressure from various sources and for various reasons. The impact was seemingly random requests that add a significant unplanned load to the leader I’m coaching.

This particular leader is great at anticipating logistical issues and providing a solid plan/process to avoid significant problems. He suddenly made the connection that what was happening with his boss is the same thing, only it’s about information rather than logistics. The next jump was to see that being as proactive with information as he is with logistics would address many of the ‘unexpected’ requests before they were a problem for his boss. That means he has much more control over his work flow and plan.

This pattern shows up quite often in my coaching work. Something feels ‘unexpected’, but on examination it is predictable. Anticipating it and proactively addressing it is a great way to add value, reduce stress and take some of the frantic busyness out of your day.

Sometimes the opportunities are hard to spot, especially if you are under the pump. If you’d like a hand with that, you know where to find me.