October 14, 2025 • 18 mins
Culture doesn’t shift through policy—it transforms through presence.
In this episode, Katie Trotter, Chief Program Officer at the Chapman Foundation, explores how a coaching-centered culture is built not through programs, but through everyday conversations.
Katie shares that coaching culture starts with intention, not titles. It’s about how we show up: listening with curiosity, asking thoughtful questions, and supporting ownership. She goes on to unpack how leaders and teammates can foster growth through small, meaningful interactions.
Katie wraps up with six practical tips to help you start building a coaching culture today:
- Listen with curiosity
- Use powerful questions wisely
- Support ownership
- Set clear goals
- Make it safe to grow
- Take one step at a time
Whether you're leading a team or supporting a colleague, this episode offers actionable insights to help you grow others with care and clarity.
SKILL SNIPPET - FIVE REFLECTIVE LISTENING SKILLS: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2462065/episodes/16817640
005-HOW TO BUILD AN OWNERSHIP MINDSET - https://www.chapmancommunities.org/btc-005/
CONNECT WITH US: https://www.chapmancommunities.org/speaking-and-public-engagement/
BLOG: https://www.chapmancommunities.org/coaching-culture/
Coaching culture is a key component of our third foundational class, Our Community Transforms, within our model for Caring Leadership and our Caring Workplaces program. To learn more, visit https://www.chapmancommunities.org/partnerships/.
Note: You must be an alumnus of Our Community Listens to register for Our Community Transforms.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
KATIE TROTTER (00:01):
When we shift how we engage with others, even in
these really small ways, we arestarting to shape the culture
around us.
ADAM SALGAT (00:10):
Welcome to Beyond the Class, from Knowledge to
Action, the audio cast thathelps Chapman Foundation alumni
continue the journey of applyingthe skills they've built and
turning them into practical,intentional actions for everyday
life.
I'm your host, Adam Sulven, andtoday we're diving into a topic
that's been buzzing inleadership circles for a while
(00:30):
now, coaching culture.
That being said, maybe you'veheard this sentiment before.
We need to build a coachingculture.
And then maybe you've askedyourself, what does that
actually mean?
Why does it matter?
Can it bring my team closertogether?
Will it improve performance?
And how do we do it withoutadding yet another layer of
complexity to our already fullplates?
(00:53):
Joining me again to giveinsight on all of those
questions and also to answer howmuch wood would a woodchuck
chuck if a woodchuck could chuckwood is Katie Trotter, Chief
Program Officer at the ChapmanFoundation for Caring
Communities.
Katie, welcome back.
KATIE TROTTER (01:08):
Thanks for having me, Adam.
I am incredibly excited tounpack this topic.
It's one that for me is bothpractical and powerful.
And one of the things that Iappreciate about this coaching
culture concept is that itdoesn't require a specific title
or even a formal program forpeople to get started.
I will say I'm hoping that wewill get to cover almost all of
(01:29):
the questions that you posed,but I'm not entirely sure I'll
be very helpful with the woodchuck question.
ADAM SALGAT (01:35):
That's completely fair.
And I do guess that riddle justgoes on another day without a
without a concrete answer then.
So let's focus in, let's getstarted, and let's get started
with the basics.
When people hear coachingculture, they might think of a
formal coaching session orleadership retreats, but as you
just suggested, it's moreaccessible than that.
(01:56):
Can you break it down for us?
KATIE TROTTER (01:57):
A coaching culture is really about how we
show up in our everydayinteractions with the people
around us.
It's about listening withcuriosity, asking thoughtful
questions, and supportingownership.
You don't need a certificationor a new job title.
You just need intention, whichI feel like is a word we often
bring up on this audio cast.
When we shift how we engagewith others, even in these
(02:21):
really small ways, we arestarting to shape the culture
around us.
ADAM SALGAT (02:25):
This reminds me of the sentiment be the change you
want to see in the world.
KATIE TROTTER (02:29):
Yes, I love that.
Anytime I talk with peopleabout shifting culture, we can
talk about the fact that thereare some parts that are
systematic or procedural, right?
If you really want to focus oncoaching, you might name
coaching as an organizationalskill.
You might make sure people havetraining and then check in on
progress in your job performancereviews.
(02:50):
But at the same time, sinceculture is formed in all of
those small day-to-day moments,every single person is able to
start actively creating theculture that they want to see
more of.
I had a person I was in aconversation with one time who
words it as focusing on theircorner of the world.
And that's a comment that'sreally stuck with me.
ADAM SALGAT (03:11):
I do love that.
Yeah, that's a great way tothink of it too.
And one of the first shifts orfirst tips that we're going to
bring up here is listening withcuriosity.
That sounds simple, but it'snot always that easy.
What does it look like inpractice?
KATIE TROTTER (03:27):
It really does require us to be fully present
and reflective.
So instead of jumping in withour advice for a person or all
of those brilliant solutionsthat pop into our brain, we're
really going to try to insteadsay things like, What I'm
hearing is, or it sounds like.
And when we use phrases likethat, it can show that we're
(03:47):
truly listening and that theirperspective matters.
We're trying to reallyunderstand what it is that
they're saying.
And that type of listening iswhat really helps us as leaders
to build trust and can reallyopen the door for honest and
meaningful conversations.
ADAM SALGAT (04:01):
That's an opportunity then to really build
deep connections.
But what else can it do?
KATIE TROTTER (04:05):
Curiosity can help us to shift from thinking
of ourselves as a problem solverand instead think of ourselves
as a people grower.
If I just want to fixsomething, I'm just going to
give my advice or give mysolution.
But if I'm really wanting tobuild up other people to lead,
then I want to be curious aboutthem.
I want to be curious about howthey are thinking about the
(04:28):
challenge they have.
What framework are they usingto make their decisions?
What is the lens that they'relooking through that is
informing the way that they seethat problem?
So that curiosity allows us toreally grow people in a better
way.
ADAM SALGAT (04:42):
This listening with curiosity concept reminds me of
utilizing our reflectivelistening skills that we learned
in our community listens,specifically reflective
response, right?
So do you mind giving us aquick reminder of the five
reflective listening skills?
KATIE TROTTER (04:57):
Oh, I love it that you give pop quizzes right
in the middle of one of these.
Uh yes, there are fivereflective listening skills of
attending behaviors,acknowledgments, and those can
be both verbal or nonverbal,silence, door openers, and then
as you mentioned, Adam, thatreflective response.
And we always mention that it'scritical that all five of those
(05:18):
are wrapped in empathy.
ADAM SALGAT (05:20):
Thanks, Katie.
You passed the pop quiz.
Well done.
And uh for our listeners outthere, we do have a five-minute
skill snippet around this topicfrom a few years ago.
I will put that link in thedescription if anyone wants to
go check it out and dig a littledeeper and have an expanded
view of the five reflectivelistening skills.
Next, you suggest askingpowerful questions.
Can you explain how powerfulquestions are different than
(05:44):
reflectively responding withcuriosity?
KATIE TROTTER (05:46):
Yes, I have found powerful questions to be an
incredibly helpful tool, but itis an artful balance of when to
use them.
So I I always like to say myfirst default is still
reflective listening.
ADAM SALGAT (06:01):
Awesome.
KATIE TROTTER (06:01):
Oftentimes that space of just being fully
present and listening is enoughfor the other person to come up
with their own solution or tovent through the emotions
they're experiencing.
That being said, sometimes aperson is feeling, for lack of a
better term, just stuck andthey don't really have a lot of
emotion around it, or maybethey're struggling to come up
(06:22):
with a new or differentperspective on a challenge
they've been wrestling with fora while.
Those are just some greatmoments to pull out powerful
questions.
ADAM SALGAT (06:30):
I think I have a few examples in my mind of what
you're talking about, about theidea of feeling stuck and
hearing people kind of, youknow, bring things up often.
But can you give us a fewexamples?
KATIE TROTTER (06:41):
Absolutely.
Uh so if you have a personwho's venting about a hundred
reasons, they're bothered byanother team member, you could
ask, what is the mostchallenging part of all of that
for you?
If a person is hesitant to trya new thing or to learn a new
skill, a powerful questionexample might be, what do you
risk if you don't take thisopportunity?
(07:02):
And when a person feels likethey have little to no control
over a crappy situation,powerful questions can help
shift the focus on what they cancontrol by asking something
like, What's important to youabout how you want to show up in
this challenge?
You might be able to tell Adam,like, we need more time because
I could talk about these forhours.
They can be used in so manydifferent settings.
ADAM SALGAT (07:24):
Sounds like we could do an entire audio cast on
just powerful questions.
Absolutely.
Um, but I and I really lovethese examples, but I'm curious
if you do have like a real lifecoaching moment when you've used
powerful questions.
And could you talk a little bitabout that outcome?
KATIE TROTTER (07:37):
Yeah, I was actually working for a different
organization earlier on in mycareer, and I was supervising a
leader who frequently would comeinto my office to ask
questions, um, get my thoughts,get my opinions, get some
guidance on moving forward.
And partway through thisprocess, I started realizing
that when I was just solving allof the problems, really what I
(08:00):
was teaching that team memberwas what you do when you have a
problem is take it to somebodyelse.
And so I started using some ofthis shift to curiosity, using
some coaching and powerfulquestions, having them maintain
the ownership of the solutionand driving that forward.
And Adam, it was less than ayear and they were fully on
their own running their owndepartment after that.
ADAM SALGAT (08:22):
That's outstanding.
Really giving them theopportunity instead of feeling
like they're just going to cometo you for an answer, or you're
teaching them to not be reliant,is what I'm hearing also.
KATIE TROTTER (08:31):
Absolutely.
And it was amazing to see andalso humbling as a leader to
realize um, I mean, I didn'thave any ill intent, but if
we're not utilizing thesecoaching skills, in some ways
we're really limiting the growthof the people around us.
ADAM SALGAT (08:43):
That's a great way to put it too.
As an organization, can youtell me where we first introduce
powerful questions?
KATIE TROTTER (08:50):
Yeah, in our courses, we first talk about
powerful questions in ourcommunity serves class, and then
we do a deeper dive and includesome actual coaching practice
with peers and our communitytransforms.
ADAM SALGAT (09:02):
Awesome.
So there's opportunity foralumni out there to check those
classes out and see if anythingfits within your schedule for
the next step.
All right, our next part of acoaching culture that we're
going to discuss is supportingownership.
I heard you mention it just inthat story that you shared.
You have shared that reflectionwithout judgment helps build
(09:22):
accountability.
Can you expand on that?
KATIE TROTTER (09:25):
Definitely.
And I I do like to say thisownership part with powerful
questions and in that piece, itreally does require a high level
of skill because you have tomake sure that no judgment is
coming through also in your toneand your other nonverbals,
right?
So even if you're picking theright words, I just like to
remind everybody, like we coverin our community listens, most
(09:47):
of your message is comingthrough your nonverbals.
So when we're focused onquestions that are based around
allowing the other person tokeep ownership or explore
ownership, sometimes it's noteven on their radar.
Let's take an example.
Let's say you have a teammember who had a really bad
experience with a coworker andthey're just focused on what the
other person did wrong.
(10:07):
A couple of powerful questionexamples could be, hey, in that
situation, what else could youhave done?
Or how might your response haveadded to the tension?
So in those examples, whatwe're doing is we're inviting
people to reflect.
It's not about blame, it'sabout growth.
And over time, as you createthis space for people, they can
(10:28):
start to build confidence andhelps people to take the wheel
in their own development.
Which, Adam, I feel like we'verecently talked about ownership
mindset on the audio cast.
ADAM SALGAT (10:37):
Yeah, we have actually two episodes ago.
It focused directly on how todevelop an ownership mindset
within ourselves.
How to look for that 2% we canown, even if failure largely
landed on someone else or maybeanother department.
KATIE TROTTER (10:52):
Yes, that's right.
And one of the differences thatI would see in that, right?
In that audio cast, we'relooking at ownership mindset
through the lens of meinternally, how can I look at
all of these differentsituations to see where I can
personally take ownership?
When we're talking about itthrough this coaching lens, it's
really about creating a spacefor someone else to consider
(11:14):
looking at different ways thatthey could take ownership.
So there is a little bit of adifferentiation there.
And we want to make sure thatwe don't, in our own coaching
conversations, start to turn itto be about us.
ADAM SALGAT (11:26):
Yep, that's a great reminder.
Yeah, we don't want to bring intoo much of what we've been
through because that can kind ofshift the focus, right?
So if you're interested inlearning more about developing
your own ownership mindset,check into episode five of
Beyond the Class.
Just came out this last August.
I'll put the link in thedescription of this episode as
well.
(11:46):
I believe there's an elementthat we should quickly bring up
when we're talking about usingreflective listening and
listening with curiosity andutilizing powerful questions.
And that to me has to do withsomeone's emotion, the logic
emotion bubble.
When is the right time to bringin coaching?
Can you touch on that?
KATIE TROTTER (12:04):
Yeah, I love Adam that you brought up the emotion
logic bubble, right?
So this idea of when a personis filled with emotion, they're
not using all of those beautifullogic parts of their brain in
the way that they can when theyget back into balance.
And so if you're coaching andyou're asking some powerful
questions, right, it's achallenge that they don't have a
lot of emotion around.
It's not uncommon that all of asudden in the middle of that
(12:26):
coaching, you will see theperson start to experience
heightened emotion again.
And as soon as that happens, wealways want to rock back into
that reflective listening.
Anytime there's heightenedemotion, that should always be
where we go first so that theperson can get back into balance
before you would considerasking another powerful
question.
ADAM SALGAT (12:45):
Awesome.
Great reminder.
Let's move on to our next tip,and that is focused around
goals.
One of the ways to build acoaching culture is to set
goals.
You mentioned SMART goalsbefore, which are specific,
measurable, achievable,relevant, and time-bound.
How does it fit into coachingculture?
KATIE TROTTER (13:05):
Despite what some people still struggle with,
coaching is not just aboutconversation.
It's not just let's just sitand talk about all of these
things forever and ever.
It's about movement.
So setting clear goals reallygives us direction and momentum.
So when we help someoneidentify what success looks like
and what might get in the way,we're setting them up for
(13:26):
progress.
And I love that because it'sit's practical, but it's also
empowering for people.
ADAM SALGAT (13:31):
If you don't mind, I I can jump in here because
recently I've been setting SMARTgoals for myself on a weekly
basis.
I spend time each Friday, scopeout my next week, and sometimes
even the following week, andthen I share them with my
leader.
KATIE TROTTER (13:44):
That's a great approach, Adam.
I'm curious, what's that beendoing for you?
ADAM SALGAT (13:48):
Yeah, for me, it's really been creating a strong
sense of accountability and evena deeper sense of
accomplishment.
Because at the end of the week,the week that I planned out, I
get to see all the things that Ihad set forth and have clearly
finished them.
Setting SMART goals for me hasmade a difference in my
productivity, which iscontributing directly to the
(14:08):
organization, which isultimately helping us grow.
KATIE TROTTER (14:11):
Ah, Adam, right there.
I think you just touched on oneof your questions from the very
beginning, right?
Will developing a coachingculture improve performance?
And clearly, in your examplethat you gave, setting those
SMART goals with your leader isreally making a difference.
And I truly believe that takingthe time to do this step is
something that would make adifference for a lot of other
people as well.
ADAM SALGAT (14:31):
Yes.
And I I agree with you.
And I encourage if you'restruggling to find motivation,
start setting a couple SMARTgoals, even just one or two a
week, and see see how it startsto snowball for you.
Because that's exactly whatit's been doing for me.
The next area we want to coveris creating a safe place to
grow.
That feels like a heart of acoaching culture, if you ask me.
KATIE TROTTER (14:52):
Yes, I growth just it requires vulnerability.
I've not found a way around ityet.
But when we celebrate progressand take time to recognize
effort that people are makingand make space for that
meaningful work, people can feelreally supported.
And when people start to feelthat sense of safety, they're
more willing to lean in, takesome risks, and try some new
(15:14):
things.
ADAM SALGAT (15:15):
You just mentioned taking risks and learning.
I mean, that's exactly whatwe're talking about here is that
this coaching is helping usmove forward.
And I love that, you know, youbring that up and doing that in
a safe place.
I mean, that seems like awonderful, wonderful space to be
in, to be able to do that.
KATIE TROTTER (15:32):
Yeah, Adam, I think about even within our
organization, how often we'vepracticed coaching.
Like it feels more natural now.
But the first few times that Iapproached a leader to get some
coaching when I was stuck oruncertain about something, it
can feel kind of scary.
You're wondering how much toshare and how much to open up.
And after you have a fewmoments where you truly feel
(15:52):
like the person's not judgingyou, it's just a safe space to
kind of process through what'shappening and figure out a path
forward.
It makes it so much easier forme now to not waste time
struggling and instead just goseek out the coaching a little
bit sooner.
ADAM SALGAT (16:06):
That's awesome.
And I love hearing you talkabout how it's being done
without judgment and you startto feel comfortable and you can
move forward as a team.
Okay, let's wrap these tips upwith a powerful reminder that
this shift doesn't have to behuge or immediate.
It can start with one personmaking one small change.
And to me, that's encouraging.
(16:27):
As you know, Katie, I lovepositivity.
KATIE TROTTER (16:31):
Exactly.
You do not need permission orto wait for that perfect
coaching program to get rolledout by your leadership.
You just need to choose to showup a little bit differently.
Just kind of really thinkingabout how do you want to impact
your corner of the world.
ADAM SALGAT (16:52):
Katie, let's concisely recap these six tips
to help create a coachingculture.
Can you please give me numberone through three?
KATIE TROTTER (17:01):
Absolutely.
Let's talk about listening withcuriosity, asking those
powerful questions when emotionsaren't heightened, and
supporting ownership.
ADAM SALGAT (17:11):
And then number four, five, and six.
KATIE TROTTER (17:14):
Work towards clear goals, make it safe to
grow, and take it one step at atime.
ADAM SALGAT (17:21):
If you didn't have opportunity to write those six
tips down, don't worry.
They are listed in thedescription of this audio cast,
and I will have the link to theblog.
I always love to give you thechance to provide our audience
with a level up opportunity.
So go for it, Katie.
KATIE TROTTER (17:36):
I'd encourage everyone listening to think
about one conversation thatyou'll have this week, maybe
with a teammate, a friend, or afamily member, and ask yourself,
how can I show up with morecuriosity and less control?
That one small shift could bethe start of something powerful.
ADAM SALGAT (17:54):
So if you're ready to deepen your leadership
journey and help build acoaching-centered culture, reach
out to us about becoming acaring workplace.
Or on your own individualjourney, you could sign up for
our community transforms.
It's a powerful way to growyour skills and connect with
others doing the same.
KATIE TROTTER (18:12):
And if this episode resonated with you,
share it with a colleague orfriend.
Let's keep the ripple going.
ADAM SALGAT (18:18):
Katie, thank you so much for being on the audio
cast today.
I'm grateful for your time.
KATIE TROTTER (18:22):
Adam, I always enjoy it.
Thanks for having me.
ADAM SALGAT (18:25):
So until next time, we're inviting you to walk your
path with intention because youare the message.
Take care, my friends.
When we shift how we engage with others, even in
these really small ways, we arestarting to shape the culture
around us.
ADAM SALGAT (00:10):
Welcome to Beyond the Class, from Knowledge to
Action, the audio cast thathelps Chapman Foundation alumni
continue the journey of applyingthe skills they've built and
turning them into practical,intentional actions for everyday
life.
I'm your host, Adam Sulven, andtoday we're diving into a topic
that's been buzzing inleadership circles for a while
(00:30):
now, coaching culture.
That being said, maybe you'veheard this sentiment before.
We need to build a coachingculture.
And then maybe you've askedyourself, what does that
actually mean?
Why does it matter?
Can it bring my team closertogether?
Will it improve performance?
And how do we do it withoutadding yet another layer of
complexity to our already fullplates?
(00:53):
Joining me again to giveinsight on all of those
questions and also to answer howmuch wood would a woodchuck
chuck if a woodchuck could chuckwood is Katie Trotter, Chief
Program Officer at the ChapmanFoundation for Caring
Communities.
Katie, welcome back.
KATIE TROTTER (01:08):
Thanks for having me, Adam.
I am incredibly excited tounpack this topic.
It's one that for me is bothpractical and powerful.
And one of the things that Iappreciate about this coaching
culture concept is that itdoesn't require a specific title
or even a formal program forpeople to get started.
I will say I'm hoping that wewill get to cover almost all of
(01:29):
the questions that you posed,but I'm not entirely sure I'll
be very helpful with the woodchuck question.
ADAM SALGAT (01:35):
That's completely fair.
And I do guess that riddle justgoes on another day without a
without a concrete answer then.
So let's focus in, let's getstarted, and let's get started
with the basics.
When people hear coachingculture, they might think of a
formal coaching session orleadership retreats, but as you
just suggested, it's moreaccessible than that.
(01:56):
Can you break it down for us?
KATIE TROTTER (01:57):
A coaching culture is really about how we
show up in our everydayinteractions with the people
around us.
It's about listening withcuriosity, asking thoughtful
questions, and supportingownership.
You don't need a certificationor a new job title.
You just need intention, whichI feel like is a word we often
bring up on this audio cast.
When we shift how we engagewith others, even in these
(02:21):
really small ways, we arestarting to shape the culture
around us.
ADAM SALGAT (02:25):
This reminds me of the sentiment be the change you
want to see in the world.
KATIE TROTTER (02:29):
Yes, I love that.
Anytime I talk with peopleabout shifting culture, we can
talk about the fact that thereare some parts that are
systematic or procedural, right?
If you really want to focus oncoaching, you might name
coaching as an organizationalskill.
You might make sure people havetraining and then check in on
progress in your job performancereviews.
(02:50):
But at the same time, sinceculture is formed in all of
those small day-to-day moments,every single person is able to
start actively creating theculture that they want to see
more of.
I had a person I was in aconversation with one time who
words it as focusing on theircorner of the world.
And that's a comment that'sreally stuck with me.
ADAM SALGAT (03:11):
I do love that.
Yeah, that's a great way tothink of it too.
And one of the first shifts orfirst tips that we're going to
bring up here is listening withcuriosity.
That sounds simple, but it'snot always that easy.
What does it look like inpractice?
KATIE TROTTER (03:27):
It really does require us to be fully present
and reflective.
So instead of jumping in withour advice for a person or all
of those brilliant solutionsthat pop into our brain, we're
really going to try to insteadsay things like, What I'm
hearing is, or it sounds like.
And when we use phrases likethat, it can show that we're
(03:47):
truly listening and that theirperspective matters.
We're trying to reallyunderstand what it is that
they're saying.
And that type of listening iswhat really helps us as leaders
to build trust and can reallyopen the door for honest and
meaningful conversations.
ADAM SALGAT (04:01):
That's an opportunity then to really build
deep connections.
But what else can it do?
KATIE TROTTER (04:05):
Curiosity can help us to shift from thinking
of ourselves as a problem solverand instead think of ourselves
as a people grower.
If I just want to fixsomething, I'm just going to
give my advice or give mysolution.
But if I'm really wanting tobuild up other people to lead,
then I want to be curious aboutthem.
I want to be curious about howthey are thinking about the
(04:28):
challenge they have.
What framework are they usingto make their decisions?
What is the lens that they'relooking through that is
informing the way that they seethat problem?
So that curiosity allows us toreally grow people in a better
way.
ADAM SALGAT (04:42):
This listening with curiosity concept reminds me of
utilizing our reflectivelistening skills that we learned
in our community listens,specifically reflective
response, right?
So do you mind giving us aquick reminder of the five
reflective listening skills?
KATIE TROTTER (04:57):
Oh, I love it that you give pop quizzes right
in the middle of one of these.
Uh yes, there are fivereflective listening skills of
attending behaviors,acknowledgments, and those can
be both verbal or nonverbal,silence, door openers, and then
as you mentioned, Adam, thatreflective response.
And we always mention that it'scritical that all five of those
(05:18):
are wrapped in empathy.
ADAM SALGAT (05:20):
Thanks, Katie.
You passed the pop quiz.
Well done.
And uh for our listeners outthere, we do have a five-minute
skill snippet around this topicfrom a few years ago.
I will put that link in thedescription if anyone wants to
go check it out and dig a littledeeper and have an expanded
view of the five reflectivelistening skills.
Next, you suggest askingpowerful questions.
Can you explain how powerfulquestions are different than
(05:44):
reflectively responding withcuriosity?
KATIE TROTTER (05:46):
Yes, I have found powerful questions to be an
incredibly helpful tool, but itis an artful balance of when to
use them.
So I I always like to say myfirst default is still
reflective listening.
ADAM SALGAT (06:01):
Awesome.
KATIE TROTTER (06:01):
Oftentimes that space of just being fully
present and listening is enoughfor the other person to come up
with their own solution or tovent through the emotions
they're experiencing.
That being said, sometimes aperson is feeling, for lack of a
better term, just stuck andthey don't really have a lot of
emotion around it, or maybethey're struggling to come up
(06:22):
with a new or differentperspective on a challenge
they've been wrestling with fora while.
Those are just some greatmoments to pull out powerful
questions.
ADAM SALGAT (06:30):
I think I have a few examples in my mind of what
you're talking about, about theidea of feeling stuck and
hearing people kind of, youknow, bring things up often.
But can you give us a fewexamples?
KATIE TROTTER (06:41):
Absolutely.
Uh so if you have a personwho's venting about a hundred
reasons, they're bothered byanother team member, you could
ask, what is the mostchallenging part of all of that
for you?
If a person is hesitant to trya new thing or to learn a new
skill, a powerful questionexample might be, what do you
risk if you don't take thisopportunity?
(07:02):
And when a person feels likethey have little to no control
over a crappy situation,powerful questions can help
shift the focus on what they cancontrol by asking something
like, What's important to youabout how you want to show up in
this challenge?
You might be able to tell Adam,like, we need more time because
I could talk about these forhours.
They can be used in so manydifferent settings.
ADAM SALGAT (07:24):
Sounds like we could do an entire audio cast on
just powerful questions.
Absolutely.
Um, but I and I really lovethese examples, but I'm curious
if you do have like a real lifecoaching moment when you've used
powerful questions.
And could you talk a little bitabout that outcome?
KATIE TROTTER (07:37):
Yeah, I was actually working for a different
organization earlier on in mycareer, and I was supervising a
leader who frequently would comeinto my office to ask
questions, um, get my thoughts,get my opinions, get some
guidance on moving forward.
And partway through thisprocess, I started realizing
that when I was just solving allof the problems, really what I
(08:00):
was teaching that team memberwas what you do when you have a
problem is take it to somebodyelse.
And so I started using some ofthis shift to curiosity, using
some coaching and powerfulquestions, having them maintain
the ownership of the solutionand driving that forward.
And Adam, it was less than ayear and they were fully on
their own running their owndepartment after that.
ADAM SALGAT (08:22):
That's outstanding.
Really giving them theopportunity instead of feeling
like they're just going to cometo you for an answer, or you're
teaching them to not be reliant,is what I'm hearing also.
KATIE TROTTER (08:31):
Absolutely.
And it was amazing to see andalso humbling as a leader to
realize um, I mean, I didn'thave any ill intent, but if
we're not utilizing thesecoaching skills, in some ways
we're really limiting the growthof the people around us.
ADAM SALGAT (08:43):
That's a great way to put it too.
As an organization, can youtell me where we first introduce
powerful questions?
KATIE TROTTER (08:50):
Yeah, in our courses, we first talk about
powerful questions in ourcommunity serves class, and then
we do a deeper dive and includesome actual coaching practice
with peers and our communitytransforms.
ADAM SALGAT (09:02):
Awesome.
So there's opportunity foralumni out there to check those
classes out and see if anythingfits within your schedule for
the next step.
All right, our next part of acoaching culture that we're
going to discuss is supportingownership.
I heard you mention it just inthat story that you shared.
You have shared that reflectionwithout judgment helps build
(09:22):
accountability.
Can you expand on that?
KATIE TROTTER (09:25):
Definitely.
And I I do like to say thisownership part with powerful
questions and in that piece, itreally does require a high level
of skill because you have tomake sure that no judgment is
coming through also in your toneand your other nonverbals,
right?
So even if you're picking theright words, I just like to
remind everybody, like we coverin our community listens, most
(09:47):
of your message is comingthrough your nonverbals.
So when we're focused onquestions that are based around
allowing the other person tokeep ownership or explore
ownership, sometimes it's noteven on their radar.
Let's take an example.
Let's say you have a teammember who had a really bad
experience with a coworker andthey're just focused on what the
other person did wrong.
(10:07):
A couple of powerful questionexamples could be, hey, in that
situation, what else could youhave done?
Or how might your response haveadded to the tension?
So in those examples, whatwe're doing is we're inviting
people to reflect.
It's not about blame, it'sabout growth.
And over time, as you createthis space for people, they can
(10:28):
start to build confidence andhelps people to take the wheel
in their own development.
Which, Adam, I feel like we'verecently talked about ownership
mindset on the audio cast.
ADAM SALGAT (10:37):
Yeah, we have actually two episodes ago.
It focused directly on how todevelop an ownership mindset
within ourselves.
How to look for that 2% we canown, even if failure largely
landed on someone else or maybeanother department.
KATIE TROTTER (10:52):
Yes, that's right.
And one of the differences thatI would see in that, right?
In that audio cast, we'relooking at ownership mindset
through the lens of meinternally, how can I look at
all of these differentsituations to see where I can
personally take ownership?
When we're talking about itthrough this coaching lens, it's
really about creating a spacefor someone else to consider
(11:14):
looking at different ways thatthey could take ownership.
So there is a little bit of adifferentiation there.
And we want to make sure thatwe don't, in our own coaching
conversations, start to turn itto be about us.
ADAM SALGAT (11:26):
Yep, that's a great reminder.
Yeah, we don't want to bring intoo much of what we've been
through because that can kind ofshift the focus, right?
So if you're interested inlearning more about developing
your own ownership mindset,check into episode five of
Beyond the Class.
Just came out this last August.
I'll put the link in thedescription of this episode as
well.
(11:46):
I believe there's an elementthat we should quickly bring up
when we're talking about usingreflective listening and
listening with curiosity andutilizing powerful questions.
And that to me has to do withsomeone's emotion, the logic
emotion bubble.
When is the right time to bringin coaching?
Can you touch on that?
KATIE TROTTER (12:04):
Yeah, I love Adam that you brought up the emotion
logic bubble, right?
So this idea of when a personis filled with emotion, they're
not using all of those beautifullogic parts of their brain in
the way that they can when theyget back into balance.
And so if you're coaching andyou're asking some powerful
questions, right, it's achallenge that they don't have a
lot of emotion around.
It's not uncommon that all of asudden in the middle of that
(12:26):
coaching, you will see theperson start to experience
heightened emotion again.
And as soon as that happens, wealways want to rock back into
that reflective listening.
Anytime there's heightenedemotion, that should always be
where we go first so that theperson can get back into balance
before you would considerasking another powerful
question.
ADAM SALGAT (12:45):
Awesome.
Great reminder.
Let's move on to our next tip,and that is focused around
goals.
One of the ways to build acoaching culture is to set
goals.
You mentioned SMART goalsbefore, which are specific,
measurable, achievable,relevant, and time-bound.
How does it fit into coachingculture?
KATIE TROTTER (13:05):
Despite what some people still struggle with,
coaching is not just aboutconversation.
It's not just let's just sitand talk about all of these
things forever and ever.
It's about movement.
So setting clear goals reallygives us direction and momentum.
So when we help someoneidentify what success looks like
and what might get in the way,we're setting them up for
(13:26):
progress.
And I love that because it'sit's practical, but it's also
empowering for people.
ADAM SALGAT (13:31):
If you don't mind, I I can jump in here because
recently I've been setting SMARTgoals for myself on a weekly
basis.
I spend time each Friday, scopeout my next week, and sometimes
even the following week, andthen I share them with my
leader.
KATIE TROTTER (13:44):
That's a great approach, Adam.
I'm curious, what's that beendoing for you?
ADAM SALGAT (13:48):
Yeah, for me, it's really been creating a strong
sense of accountability and evena deeper sense of
accomplishment.
Because at the end of the week,the week that I planned out, I
get to see all the things that Ihad set forth and have clearly
finished them.
Setting SMART goals for me hasmade a difference in my
productivity, which iscontributing directly to the
(14:08):
organization, which isultimately helping us grow.
KATIE TROTTER (14:11):
Ah, Adam, right there.
I think you just touched on oneof your questions from the very
beginning, right?
Will developing a coachingculture improve performance?
And clearly, in your examplethat you gave, setting those
SMART goals with your leader isreally making a difference.
And I truly believe that takingthe time to do this step is
something that would make adifference for a lot of other
people as well.
ADAM SALGAT (14:31):
Yes.
And I I agree with you.
And I encourage if you'restruggling to find motivation,
start setting a couple SMARTgoals, even just one or two a
week, and see see how it startsto snowball for you.
Because that's exactly whatit's been doing for me.
The next area we want to coveris creating a safe place to
grow.
That feels like a heart of acoaching culture, if you ask me.
KATIE TROTTER (14:52):
Yes, I growth just it requires vulnerability.
I've not found a way around ityet.
But when we celebrate progressand take time to recognize
effort that people are makingand make space for that
meaningful work, people can feelreally supported.
And when people start to feelthat sense of safety, they're
more willing to lean in, takesome risks, and try some new
(15:14):
things.
ADAM SALGAT (15:15):
You just mentioned taking risks and learning.
I mean, that's exactly whatwe're talking about here is that
this coaching is helping usmove forward.
And I love that, you know, youbring that up and doing that in
a safe place.
I mean, that seems like awonderful, wonderful space to be
in, to be able to do that.
KATIE TROTTER (15:32):
Yeah, Adam, I think about even within our
organization, how often we'vepracticed coaching.
Like it feels more natural now.
But the first few times that Iapproached a leader to get some
coaching when I was stuck oruncertain about something, it
can feel kind of scary.
You're wondering how much toshare and how much to open up.
And after you have a fewmoments where you truly feel
(15:52):
like the person's not judgingyou, it's just a safe space to
kind of process through what'shappening and figure out a path
forward.
It makes it so much easier forme now to not waste time
struggling and instead just goseek out the coaching a little
bit sooner.
ADAM SALGAT (16:06):
That's awesome.
And I love hearing you talkabout how it's being done
without judgment and you startto feel comfortable and you can
move forward as a team.
Okay, let's wrap these tips upwith a powerful reminder that
this shift doesn't have to behuge or immediate.
It can start with one personmaking one small change.
And to me, that's encouraging.
(16:27):
As you know, Katie, I lovepositivity.
KATIE TROTTER (16:31):
Exactly.
You do not need permission orto wait for that perfect
coaching program to get rolledout by your leadership.
You just need to choose to showup a little bit differently.
Just kind of really thinkingabout how do you want to impact
your corner of the world.
ADAM SALGAT (16:52):
Katie, let's concisely recap these six tips
to help create a coachingculture.
Can you please give me numberone through three?
KATIE TROTTER (17:01):
Absolutely.
Let's talk about listening withcuriosity, asking those
powerful questions when emotionsaren't heightened, and
supporting ownership.
ADAM SALGAT (17:11):
And then number four, five, and six.
KATIE TROTTER (17:14):
Work towards clear goals, make it safe to
grow, and take it one step at atime.
ADAM SALGAT (17:21):
If you didn't have opportunity to write those six
tips down, don't worry.
They are listed in thedescription of this audio cast,
and I will have the link to theblog.
I always love to give you thechance to provide our audience
with a level up opportunity.
So go for it, Katie.
KATIE TROTTER (17:36):
I'd encourage everyone listening to think
about one conversation thatyou'll have this week, maybe
with a teammate, a friend, or afamily member, and ask yourself,
how can I show up with morecuriosity and less control?
That one small shift could bethe start of something powerful.
ADAM SALGAT (17:54):
So if you're ready to deepen your leadership
journey and help build acoaching-centered culture, reach
out to us about becoming acaring workplace.
Or on your own individualjourney, you could sign up for
our community transforms.
It's a powerful way to growyour skills and connect with
others doing the same.
KATIE TROTTER (18:12):
And if this episode resonated with you,
share it with a colleague orfriend.
Let's keep the ripple going.
ADAM SALGAT (18:18):
Katie, thank you so much for being on the audio
cast today.
I'm grateful for your time.
KATIE TROTTER (18:22):
Adam, I always enjoy it.
Thanks for having me.
ADAM SALGAT (18:25):
So until next time, we're inviting you to walk your
path with intention because youare the message.
Take care, my friends.
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