The Art Of Coaching Teams (building Resilient Communities That Transform Schools)

By (author) Aguilar Elena
Short description/annotation:
The missing how-to manual for being an effective team leader The Art of Coaching Teams is the manual you never received when you signed on to lead a team. Being a great teacher is one thing, but leading a team, or team development, is an entirely different dynamic.
Description:
The missing how-to manual for being an effective team leader

The Art of Coaching Teams is the manual you never received when you signed on to lead a team. Being a great teacher is one thing, but leading a team, or team development, is an entirely different dynamic. Your successes are public, but so are your failures—and there''s no specific rubric or curriculum to give you direction. Team development is an art form, and this book is your how-to guide to doing it effectively. You''ll learn the administrative tasks that keep your team on track, and you''ll gain access to a wealth of downloadable tools that simplify the "getting organized" process. Just as importantly, you''ll explore what it means to be the kind of leader that can bring people together to accomplish difficult tasks. You''ll find practical suggestions, tools, and clear instructions for the logistics of team development as well as for building trust, developing healthy communication, and managing conflict.

Inside these pages you''ll find concrete guidance on:

• Designing agendas, making decisions, establishing effective protocols, and more
• Boosting your resilience, understanding and managing your emotions, and meeting your goals
• Cultivating your team''s emotional intelligence and dealing with cynicism
• Utilizing practical tools to create a customized framework for developing highly effective teams

There is no universal formula for building a great team, because every team is different. Different skills, abilities, personalities, and goals make a one-size-fits-all approach ineffective at best. Instead, The Art of Coaching Teams provides a practical framework to help you develop your group as a whole, and keep the team moving toward their common goals.

Table of contents:

Introduction xv

A Tale of Two Teams • What’s in This Book? • Who Is This Book For? • Toward a Beloved Community

Chapter 1: Refining a Vision 1

A Note on Terms • What Is a Great Team? • What Makes an Effective Team? • Why Do We Need Teams? • When Do We Really Need a Team? • How Do We Build Teams?

Chapter 2: Knowing Ourselves as Leaders 13

The Amygdala in a Strange Land • Exploring the Terrain of Leadership • The Potential of Transformational Leadership • Spotting the Tentacles of Power • Emotions Are Contagious

Chapter 3: Creating a Culture of Trust 39

Why Human Bingo Doesn’t Build Trust • Trust Isn’t Built in a Day, But We Can Lay Bricks Every Hour • Use Hindsight to Strengthen Foresight

Chapter 4: Defining Purpose, Process, and Product 63

The Necessity of a Reason for Being • It’s All about How We Work Together • What Are We Going to Do Together? • Mapping Out the Journey

Chapter 5: Laying a Foundation for Trust 95

Community Agreements Build Culture • A Good Norm Is Not Hard to Find • Getting from Here to Norms • Make Your Norms Serve You • Setting Intentions: A Counterpart to Norms • A Beloved Community

Chapter 6: Developing the Emotional Intelligence of a Team 121

What Is the Emotional Intelligence of a Team? • How Do I Create an Emotionally Intelligent Team? • Managing Unexpected Change • Taming the Stress Demons

Chapter 7: Cultivating Healthy Communication 137

A Blueprint for Transformational Conversations • Constructing Good Conversations • Twenty Ways to Improve Your Team’s Communication • Giving Feedback • Equity of Participation

Chapter 8: Making Good Decisions