August 29, 2023 • 21 mins
Welcome to a powerful conversation with diversity specialist and team coach, Karen Tan, PCC. Karen discusses her unique expertise in fostering collaboration between Eastern and Western cultures, throwing light on how diversity, can be channeled into a powerful tool for success.
Karen unpacks the complexities of disagreements within multicultural teams. She emphasizes the role of front-end conversations, team alignment, and team coaching. Karen also delves deep into the significance of cultural awareness, offering strategies to navigate and leverage cultural differences. If you're intrigued by the dynamics of multicultural teams, or if you're simply keen on unlocking the strength that lies in diversity, this episode is chock-full of little-known insights and practical tips. Buckle up for an enlightening ride with Karen Tan!
Connect with Karen:
https://www.thinkimpact.co
karen@thinkImpact.co
https://www.linkedin.com/in/thinkimpact/
Start for FREE
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
BelemLeaders–Your organization's trusted partner for leader and team development. Visit our website to connect: belemleaders.org or book a discovery call today! belem.as.me/discovery
Until next time, keep doing great things!
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hi there, welcome to Conversations where we seek to
advance your leader in teamexcellence by discussing
relevant topics that impacttoday's organizations.
Welcome to the show.
Hey there and welcome toConversations where today we
have Karen Tan, and for morethan 15 years Karen has
collaborated with global leadersto assist them in creating a
(00:22):
more substantial influence.
She specializes in facilitatingcollaboration between Eastern
and Western cultures.
Her expertise has enabledleaders and teams to
successfully leverage theircultural diversities to become
more creative.
Karen, welcome to the show.
How are you today?
Speaker 2 (00:44):
Thank you, kelly, so great to be here.
Speaker 1 (00:46):
Yeah, I'm glad you're here today.
You and I go back a coupleyears.
We met when we were both doinga team coach certification and I
knew when I met you that youwere kind of like a deep soul.
Yeah, I just love what youbrought to our group, to our
(01:09):
learning group, and I reallyappreciate you and the work that
you're doing, and so thank you.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
You're so kind, thank you.
Speaker 1 (01:18):
So let's hear, maybe give us just a little bit of a
high view of what you're doingthese days.
Speaker 2 (01:24):
Well, lately I completed a training in team
coaching and I have been workingwith leaders and leadership
development for many years.
But I realized that even if youhave the best leaders, the team
is like a system and they haveunique dynamics.
And so lately I moved more intoteam coaching, helping teams to
(01:48):
become more successful and morehigh performing, because I
realized that just leadershipdevelopment, even if you have
the best leader, it's notsufficient.
So I'm getting into that teamcoaching space lately.
Speaker 1 (02:02):
Yeah, and team coaching is an exciting space
right now.
Yes, it is.
And I think for me, the morethat I learn about team coaching
and the need for it and whythere is the need and the many
different facets of teamcoaching, because I think people
(02:22):
are still they're still notunderstanding exactly what team
coaching is and that can lookdifferent, you know, have
different flavors and whatnotExactly and I think that's the
path that you're doing, thatwork and yeah, and you're pretty
passionate about this.
Speaker 2 (02:40):
Yes, very much so.
Speaker 1 (02:42):
And why is that?
Speaker 2 (02:43):
Especially in the space of multicultural teams.
I read tons of research thatmulticultural teams, like global
diverse teams, are on the rise,and I realized that a lot of
the teams are not tapping intothe potential with that
diversity, and so I believe thatteam coaching can come in and
(03:05):
help to serve that purpose tohelp teams to tap into the
potential of the diversityinstead of allowing it to be a
liability or a point of tensionfor the team.
Yeah, yeah, I really have thatjoy of working with a few teams
(03:26):
that I have seen thetransformation that the team has
gone through after workingthrough the dynamics and
diversity.
Speaker 1 (03:34):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (03:34):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (03:37):
There's a slide I used to use in one of my
presentations I should pull thatup sometime and take a look at
it again and it was all abouthow you know teams.
We often think our teams shouldbe well-rounded.
However, it's important that welook at them with jagged edges,
(03:58):
like a mosaic, and how you knowtheir differences come together
and because of that, they'reable to do the good work in
front of them and be moreinnovative and whatnot.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
It's beautiful.
Yes, recently I just read tonsof research and I can post that
in the show notes.
Yeah, I can post the link tothose articles.
But all the research sets thatdiversity of teams directly
boost performance and innovationand I feel like a lot of teams
(04:32):
are not tapping into thatpotential and we can help them
to do that.
Speaker 1 (04:38):
Yeah, what do you find when you're thinking of
teams who just aren't tappinginto it?
Are they just not recognizingit, are they?
What are you saying?
Speaker 2 (04:50):
I see some of the common challenges of teams.
First is totally because theyare achieving the metrics like
the KPIs, and there is no severeconflicts within the team.
As our team leaders, they feellike the team is performing.
However, because also theadditional factor is also
(05:15):
because their projects arealways fast-paced and the
velocity of the projects areoften very quick and with the
time zone differences Every timethe teams get together they
feel like they don't have theluxury to really talk about team
dynamics, alignment, how tobuild team culture, and so they
(05:37):
don't really have the awarenessthat they can tap into a lot
more diversity and the potentialthe team can have.
I would say lack of awarenessis one of the main things.
Speaker 1 (05:49):
So it's important that, as team coaches are
working with the teams, thatthey open the door for that, for
opening up what is diversity?
What does that look like?
What does it look like for ourteam, even?
Right?
Speaker 2 (06:04):
Yeah, I worked as an intercultural trainer for many
years and a lot of companiesthey're providing intercultural
training for our teams.
But that is just creatingawareness.
It's a good first step, buthaving awareness is not enough,
because the team needs to usethat kind of awareness about
(06:26):
their differences and know howto tap into their own dynamics
and potential.
And that's where team coachingcomes in.
After their awareness, thenthey can come in and help build
alignment and also teamconversations.
Speaker 1 (06:44):
And I imagine, at least in what I've done, that
team leader is really importantto the whole problem when you're
working with a team.
What have you experienced withthat?
Speaker 2 (06:57):
Very much so, very much so.
However, the team leader, he orshe can serve as a facilitator
for those conversations.
Yet that was because he or sheis part of the team.
It comes with inherent power,dynamics and differences, and
also inherent implicit culturalbiases, and so the team coach,
(07:22):
as a third party coming in, canreally facilitate some neutral
conversations by creating apsychological safe space for the
whole team.
Speaker 1 (07:34):
And that's really important that psychological
safety when you think aboutbecause you've coached
multicultural teams and you havethis world view of culture and
the importance of it how do you,as a team coach, maybe
(07:54):
recognize what this team isgoing to need?
Is this something that youresearch on the front end or you
just know?
Why don't you talk a little bitabout that?
Speaker 2 (08:04):
Great question, thank you.
Well, I think having an initialconversation with the team
leader and the team members arevery important.
We do assessments and alsoquestionnaire surveys, like
personal interviews, so that Iget a sense of what are the
bottlenecks or what are the painpoints the team have.
(08:25):
And from there I would picksome of the topics that the team
might not be aware of, like,for example, speaking up in
meetings right.
Because I want to share a casewith you.
This is very interesting.
I work with a team that has ateam leader from the Americas
(08:51):
and team members from Asia andalso some team members from
Europe, the YMEA and during themeetings, the Asian members they
don't really speak up too much.
And over time the WesternAmerican leader he was thinking
okay, maybe the Asian membersdon't have strong opinions
(09:13):
because they hardly speak up inmeetings.
However, actually it's becauseof the educational system that
we are being brought up right.
The West, the education system,most of the education systems
are helping us to cultivate thatcritical thinking ability.
We question and we challenge,and it's perfectly okay.
(09:34):
But the Asian education systemis really about absorbing
information and respecting theauthority and processing that
information.
So critical thinking andvoicing out challenging the
authority is not how it is to be, how it's how we are being
brought up.
And so if the team they are notthey realize that well, every
(10:00):
meeting we have a good outcome,we have results from the meeting
, but they never tap into theinsights of the Asian team
members, not because they don'thave it, but because the way
they express it will be verydifferent from the Western team
members.
And so if I come into the teamdoing an interview, I would ask
(10:21):
about what are the pain pointsthey have and ask the specific
Asian team members or theAmerican team leader like what
will be something they wouldlike to see, and that way I can
provide some initial educationand then we will go into team
coaching with that kind ofcultural awareness.
Speaker 1 (10:42):
Yeah, yeah, those front end conversations,
particularly assessments, arewonderful, but I do love the
combination of having anassessment but then having those
interviews where I mean that'sdiscovery.
You are discovering things andit's only to help the team and
to help the engagement thatyou're going to be working
(11:05):
through with them.
Speaker 2 (11:08):
What do you love about the initial conversations,
the discovery process?
Speaker 1 (11:13):
Well, for me, I love meeting people.
That's why one of the reasonswhy I love doing this podcast,
because I get to bring people onand really, you know, hear
what's important to them.
And I think I take that intothose initial conversations
where I need to continue to becurious, right, because as
coaches, we always have to, youknow, get curious.
(11:34):
It's always, you know, top ofmind to get curious and trying
to figure out, without being,you know, be making like too
many puzzle pieces, but justunderstanding each individual
and how that then is acollective and what are those
themes.
And I love when I can, you know, pick out those themes and see,
(11:55):
aha, you know, and making that,as far as you know, what are
the next steps and how is thisteam going to move forward based
on some of those initial things, as well as a confidentiality
piece, I mean, it's, it's reallyfor us a holy ground where we
can keep what has been told tous, you know, confidence and and
(12:20):
using themes, yes, and bringingthose out in sessions.
But really some of thoseconversations, we never know
what's going to come up in themas a coach.
We can talking about one thingand something else comes up and
really you're into what are wehearing and what is underneath
(12:42):
all that?
That maybe we agree.
Speaker 2 (12:45):
Yeah, I agree, it's exciting process, it's
adventurous.
Speaker 1 (12:50):
Are there any other?
Are there any other challengesthat you've experienced with
with your team coaching?
Speaker 2 (12:58):
I'd love to hear.
Another huge area is how Eastand West handle disagreements.
South Americans are veryemotionally expressive and Asian
team members usually they arevery little, you know,
emotionally expressive, and sooftentimes disagreements are
(13:19):
really a healthy thing for theteam.
Right, because it brings outdiversity, is the point where
the team can really explore newideas.
But if the team members they,they don't understand each other
, it can become a point oftension or even escalate it
(13:40):
become a point of conflict.
So I have Asian team memberswho told me well, I really feel
a lot of tension when my SouthAmerican colleague was so
emotional in a meeting, and so Ithink that's a point of
challenge for many teams in howthey handle disagreements.
Speaker 1 (14:04):
Yeah, and another great opportunity for a coaching
moment.
I just step in there and Ithink that's one thing that a
lot of people don't understandabout team coaching is that
we're able to coach in themoment and have those you know
pauses, even call those timeoutswithin teams and just you know,
(14:27):
see what is happening in theroom and and sometimes even call
it out, depending on situation,and then that way we're able to
help people understand more inthe moment instead of, oh,
remember that meeting two weeksago when this happened.
It's already passed.
Speaker 2 (14:48):
Yes, yes.
Or even building team alignment, like right at the beginning,
by asking simple questions likehow do we want to be together
when things become difficult andhave members talk about how
they want respect.
What does respect look like indifferent cultures?
(15:08):
That would be some greatconversations for teams.
Speaker 1 (15:13):
Yeah, and always at the front end.
So we know and even for us as acoach, we know that this is the
expectation of the team.
The team is creating this.
We're not coming in and saying,okay, this is how it's going to
be, folks, but it's more that.
Okay, let's unpack this andlet's find out how this team is
going to operate, moving forward.
Speaker 2 (15:34):
Totally yeah, and they promote engagement and
ownership.
Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1 (15:39):
Absolutely and fully getting some of those quieter
voices, if there ispsychological safety that's been
created, getting them to voicehow they would like to respect.
Because, as you said, respectespecially is very different
east to west.
Very much so.
Speaker 2 (16:01):
Yes, very much so.
Yeah, we're getting into someprofound topics here.
Speaker 1 (16:10):
We've talked about a lot of things here today, karen
my gosh.
We've talked about diversitycoming into it and the
differences and really theimportance of having a team be
collaborative, helping themcreate psychological safety,
helping them have those frontend conversations with you as a
(16:32):
team coach, as well as when youcome in with a team, and having
the team kind of unpack thesethings about how the team is
going to operate, moving forward.
So how can team coaching helpbeyond that?
Is there anything else beyondit?
Because the field is just sovast and wide with the things
(16:53):
that we are able to show up anddo.
So what maybe is something thatyou haven't mentioned, that you
would love to mention aroundteam coaching?
Speaker 2 (17:03):
I would also love to tap into your wisdom here,
because I work with a lot ofmulticultural teams.
I believe that cultivating thatawareness probably is the first
step, even before team coachinghappens.
Because I believe that, justlike a fish, if you are in the
water, you don't really knowthat you're in the water until
(17:24):
you are being told that this iswater.
So I feel a lot of teams, whenthey work with each other,
because of that inherentcultural biases, we don't really
know how to leverage thedifferences in teams.
So I believe helping to createthat awareness is really the
(17:45):
first step.
Whatever we talked about justnow coming in to assess the team
, helping the team to havehonest conversations and
alignment I believe thatprobably is the essence, the
core of the process.
But more so, I feel like teamcoaching probably goes further
(18:05):
in helping the team members toreally step up, to feel that,
okay, I play a role in thesystem and I have the
responsibility and the power tohelp the system to become more
effective.
And I think in the process ofhelping team members to have
(18:27):
honest conversations, we arealso empowering them to take
ownership, more ownership ofthat system, which I'm really
excited about.
Speaker 1 (18:37):
And systems is something that I don't think.
Most teams, leaders, andwherever you are on the
hierarchy chart if you are on ahierarchy chart I don't think we
think about that enough.
Yes, who are we impacting?
Yes, and who are those?
(18:59):
And I know some people don'tlike the word stakeholders, but
stakeholders just means who arethe people that you're serving
and how is the work that you aredoing impact them?
Or lack of work, or lack ofconversation, lack of
relationship?
You know, it all is just really, really intriguing.
(19:20):
I think that's why I love teamcoaching so much and really
being embedded and watching thejourneys, because, just like you
you said in the beginning, thetransformation that you've seen
and that's what coaching isabout.
It's not about having theanswers for these teams, it's
really about being.
These teams start to formulatefor themselves and see how they
(19:42):
can then express themselves as ateam holistically and moving
forward together and helping inthat system for sure.
Speaker 2 (19:51):
You said it so well Leadership development and
leadership coaching.
We empower individuals for themto really be transformed and
scale that up.
You know, and you see that inthe team is really exciting.
Speaker 1 (20:08):
Some Karen, great conversation today.
Of course, I'm as passionate asyou are, so no surprise there
that this is going to be, youknow, just great information for
people who don't know aboutteam coaching, want to hear more
, and I would love to point themin your direction.
So how can people connect withyou, karen Tan, if they would
(20:29):
like more information about youand the services that you
provide?
Speaker 2 (20:33):
For sure.
I have a website, thinkimpactco.
I'm gonna give that year end.
You can put that in the shownotes and also I will provide my
email.
So if people are interested, Ioffer free complimentary
assessment with the leader andjust to get to know what are
their needs for the team.
So welcome to connect with meif you're interested and are you
(20:57):
a-, Dan?
I am, I am.
I also put the link from mylink in your show notes.
Speaker 1 (21:03):
Perfect, That'll be great, all right.
Well, karen Tan, it's been apleasure to have you on today.
I appreciate your knowledge,your expertise, all you are
doing, because you're reachingaround the world, and I just
love when I get to justcollaborate with a coach like
you who has that, and I knowthat there's a different lens
(21:27):
that you see things out of.
So I certainly appreciate itand I know that our listeners
are gonna appreciate that.
Wow.
Speaker 2 (21:35):
Thank you, kelly.
You are so kind and you knowit's always a pleasure to talk
with you.
You're inspiring.
Thank you, oh, you are welcome.
Speaker 1 (21:43):
And thank you for that.
All right.
Well, until next time.
You keep doing great things andwe'll see you soon, you too.
Speaker 2 (21:50):
Bye-bye.
You, you, you, you, you you.
Hi there, welcome to Conversations where we seek to
advance your leader in teamexcellence by discussing
relevant topics that impacttoday's organizations.
Welcome to the show.
Hey there and welcome toConversations where today we
have Karen Tan, and for morethan 15 years Karen has
collaborated with global leadersto assist them in creating a
(00:22):
more substantial influence.
She specializes in facilitatingcollaboration between Eastern
and Western cultures.
Her expertise has enabledleaders and teams to
successfully leverage theircultural diversities to become
more creative.
Karen, welcome to the show.
How are you today?
Speaker 2 (00:44):
Thank you, kelly, so great to be here.
Speaker 1 (00:46):
Yeah, I'm glad you're here today.
You and I go back a coupleyears.
We met when we were both doinga team coach certification and I
knew when I met you that youwere kind of like a deep soul.
Yeah, I just love what youbrought to our group, to our
(01:09):
learning group, and I reallyappreciate you and the work that
you're doing, and so thank you.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
You're so kind, thank you.
Speaker 1 (01:18):
So let's hear, maybe give us just a little bit of a
high view of what you're doingthese days.
Speaker 2 (01:24):
Well, lately I completed a training in team
coaching and I have been workingwith leaders and leadership
development for many years.
But I realized that even if youhave the best leaders, the team
is like a system and they haveunique dynamics.
And so lately I moved more intoteam coaching, helping teams to
(01:48):
become more successful and morehigh performing, because I
realized that just leadershipdevelopment, even if you have
the best leader, it's notsufficient.
So I'm getting into that teamcoaching space lately.
Speaker 1 (02:02):
Yeah, and team coaching is an exciting space
right now.
Yes, it is.
And I think for me, the morethat I learn about team coaching
and the need for it and whythere is the need and the many
different facets of teamcoaching, because I think people
(02:22):
are still they're still notunderstanding exactly what team
coaching is and that can lookdifferent, you know, have
different flavors and whatnotExactly and I think that's the
path that you're doing, thatwork and yeah, and you're pretty
passionate about this.
Speaker 2 (02:40):
Yes, very much so.
Speaker 1 (02:42):
And why is that?
Speaker 2 (02:43):
Especially in the space of multicultural teams.
I read tons of research thatmulticultural teams, like global
diverse teams, are on the rise,and I realized that a lot of
the teams are not tapping intothe potential with that
diversity, and so I believe thatteam coaching can come in and
(03:05):
help to serve that purpose tohelp teams to tap into the
potential of the diversityinstead of allowing it to be a
liability or a point of tensionfor the team.
Yeah, yeah, I really have thatjoy of working with a few teams
(03:26):
that I have seen thetransformation that the team has
gone through after workingthrough the dynamics and
diversity.
Speaker 1 (03:34):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (03:34):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (03:37):
There's a slide I used to use in one of my
presentations I should pull thatup sometime and take a look at
it again and it was all abouthow you know teams.
We often think our teams shouldbe well-rounded.
However, it's important that welook at them with jagged edges,
(03:58):
like a mosaic, and how you knowtheir differences come together
and because of that, they'reable to do the good work in
front of them and be moreinnovative and whatnot.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
It's beautiful.
Yes, recently I just read tonsof research and I can post that
in the show notes.
Yeah, I can post the link tothose articles.
But all the research sets thatdiversity of teams directly
boost performance and innovationand I feel like a lot of teams
(04:32):
are not tapping into thatpotential and we can help them
to do that.
Speaker 1 (04:38):
Yeah, what do you find when you're thinking of
teams who just aren't tappinginto it?
Are they just not recognizingit, are they?
What are you saying?
Speaker 2 (04:50):
I see some of the common challenges of teams.
First is totally because theyare achieving the metrics like
the KPIs, and there is no severeconflicts within the team.
As our team leaders, they feellike the team is performing.
However, because also theadditional factor is also
(05:15):
because their projects arealways fast-paced and the
velocity of the projects areoften very quick and with the
time zone differences Every timethe teams get together they
feel like they don't have theluxury to really talk about team
dynamics, alignment, how tobuild team culture, and so they
(05:37):
don't really have the awarenessthat they can tap into a lot
more diversity and the potentialthe team can have.
I would say lack of awarenessis one of the main things.
Speaker 1 (05:49):
So it's important that, as team coaches are
working with the teams, thatthey open the door for that, for
opening up what is diversity?
What does that look like?
What does it look like for ourteam, even?
Right?
Speaker 2 (06:04):
Yeah, I worked as an intercultural trainer for many
years and a lot of companiesthey're providing intercultural
training for our teams.
But that is just creatingawareness.
It's a good first step, buthaving awareness is not enough,
because the team needs to usethat kind of awareness about
(06:26):
their differences and know howto tap into their own dynamics
and potential.
And that's where team coachingcomes in.
After their awareness, thenthey can come in and help build
alignment and also teamconversations.
Speaker 1 (06:44):
And I imagine, at least in what I've done, that
team leader is really importantto the whole problem when you're
working with a team.
What have you experienced withthat?
Speaker 2 (06:57):
Very much so, very much so.
However, the team leader, he orshe can serve as a facilitator
for those conversations.
Yet that was because he or sheis part of the team.
It comes with inherent power,dynamics and differences, and
also inherent implicit culturalbiases, and so the team coach,
(07:22):
as a third party coming in, canreally facilitate some neutral
conversations by creating apsychological safe space for the
whole team.
Speaker 1 (07:34):
And that's really important that psychological
safety when you think aboutbecause you've coached
multicultural teams and you havethis world view of culture and
the importance of it how do you,as a team coach, maybe
(07:54):
recognize what this team isgoing to need?
Is this something that youresearch on the front end or you
just know?
Why don't you talk a little bitabout that?
Speaker 2 (08:04):
Great question, thank you.
Well, I think having an initialconversation with the team
leader and the team members arevery important.
We do assessments and alsoquestionnaire surveys, like
personal interviews, so that Iget a sense of what are the
bottlenecks or what are the painpoints the team have.
(08:25):
And from there I would picksome of the topics that the team
might not be aware of, like,for example, speaking up in
meetings right.
Because I want to share a casewith you.
This is very interesting.
I work with a team that has ateam leader from the Americas
(08:51):
and team members from Asia andalso some team members from
Europe, the YMEA and during themeetings, the Asian members they
don't really speak up too much.
And over time the WesternAmerican leader he was thinking
okay, maybe the Asian membersdon't have strong opinions
(09:13):
because they hardly speak up inmeetings.
However, actually it's becauseof the educational system that
we are being brought up right.
The West, the education system,most of the education systems
are helping us to cultivate thatcritical thinking ability.
We question and we challenge,and it's perfectly okay.
(09:34):
But the Asian education systemis really about absorbing
information and respecting theauthority and processing that
information.
So critical thinking andvoicing out challenging the
authority is not how it is to be, how it's how we are being
brought up.
And so if the team they are notthey realize that well, every
(10:00):
meeting we have a good outcome,we have results from the meeting
, but they never tap into theinsights of the Asian team
members, not because they don'thave it, but because the way
they express it will be verydifferent from the Western team
members.
And so if I come into the teamdoing an interview, I would ask
(10:21):
about what are the pain pointsthey have and ask the specific
Asian team members or theAmerican team leader like what
will be something they wouldlike to see, and that way I can
provide some initial educationand then we will go into team
coaching with that kind ofcultural awareness.
Speaker 1 (10:42):
Yeah, yeah, those front end conversations,
particularly assessments, arewonderful, but I do love the
combination of having anassessment but then having those
interviews where I mean that'sdiscovery.
You are discovering things andit's only to help the team and
to help the engagement thatyou're going to be working
(11:05):
through with them.
Speaker 2 (11:08):
What do you love about the initial conversations,
the discovery process?
Speaker 1 (11:13):
Well, for me, I love meeting people.
That's why one of the reasonswhy I love doing this podcast,
because I get to bring people onand really, you know, hear
what's important to them.
And I think I take that intothose initial conversations
where I need to continue to becurious, right, because as
coaches, we always have to, youknow, get curious.
(11:34):
It's always, you know, top ofmind to get curious and trying
to figure out, without being,you know, be making like too
many puzzle pieces, but justunderstanding each individual
and how that then is acollective and what are those
themes.
And I love when I can, you know, pick out those themes and see,
(11:55):
aha, you know, and making that,as far as you know, what are
the next steps and how is thisteam going to move forward based
on some of those initial things, as well as a confidentiality
piece, I mean, it's, it's reallyfor us a holy ground where we
can keep what has been told tous, you know, confidence and and
(12:20):
using themes, yes, and bringingthose out in sessions.
But really some of thoseconversations, we never know
what's going to come up in themas a coach.
We can talking about one thingand something else comes up and
really you're into what are wehearing and what is underneath
(12:42):
all that?
That maybe we agree.
Speaker 2 (12:45):
Yeah, I agree, it's exciting process, it's
adventurous.
Speaker 1 (12:50):
Are there any other?
Are there any other challengesthat you've experienced with
with your team coaching?
Speaker 2 (12:58):
I'd love to hear.
Another huge area is how Eastand West handle disagreements.
South Americans are veryemotionally expressive and Asian
team members usually they arevery little, you know,
emotionally expressive, and sooftentimes disagreements are
(13:19):
really a healthy thing for theteam.
Right, because it brings outdiversity, is the point where
the team can really explore newideas.
But if the team members they,they don't understand each other
, it can become a point oftension or even escalate it
(13:40):
become a point of conflict.
So I have Asian team memberswho told me well, I really feel
a lot of tension when my SouthAmerican colleague was so
emotional in a meeting, and so Ithink that's a point of
challenge for many teams in howthey handle disagreements.
Speaker 1 (14:04):
Yeah, and another great opportunity for a coaching
moment.
I just step in there and Ithink that's one thing that a
lot of people don't understandabout team coaching is that
we're able to coach in themoment and have those you know
pauses, even call those timeoutswithin teams and just you know,
(14:27):
see what is happening in theroom and and sometimes even call
it out, depending on situation,and then that way we're able to
help people understand more inthe moment instead of, oh,
remember that meeting two weeksago when this happened.
It's already passed.
Speaker 2 (14:48):
Yes, yes.
Or even building team alignment, like right at the beginning,
by asking simple questions likehow do we want to be together
when things become difficult andhave members talk about how
they want respect.
What does respect look like indifferent cultures?
(15:08):
That would be some greatconversations for teams.
Speaker 1 (15:13):
Yeah, and always at the front end.
So we know and even for us as acoach, we know that this is the
expectation of the team.
The team is creating this.
We're not coming in and saying,okay, this is how it's going to
be, folks, but it's more that.
Okay, let's unpack this andlet's find out how this team is
going to operate, moving forward.
Speaker 2 (15:34):
Totally yeah, and they promote engagement and
ownership.
Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1 (15:39):
Absolutely and fully getting some of those quieter
voices, if there ispsychological safety that's been
created, getting them to voicehow they would like to respect.
Because, as you said, respectespecially is very different
east to west.
Very much so.
Speaker 2 (16:01):
Yes, very much so.
Yeah, we're getting into someprofound topics here.
Speaker 1 (16:10):
We've talked about a lot of things here today, karen
my gosh.
We've talked about diversitycoming into it and the
differences and really theimportance of having a team be
collaborative, helping themcreate psychological safety,
helping them have those frontend conversations with you as a
(16:32):
team coach, as well as when youcome in with a team, and having
the team kind of unpack thesethings about how the team is
going to operate, moving forward.
So how can team coaching helpbeyond that?
Is there anything else beyondit?
Because the field is just sovast and wide with the things
(16:53):
that we are able to show up anddo.
So what maybe is something thatyou haven't mentioned, that you
would love to mention aroundteam coaching?
Speaker 2 (17:03):
I would also love to tap into your wisdom here,
because I work with a lot ofmulticultural teams.
I believe that cultivating thatawareness probably is the first
step, even before team coachinghappens.
Because I believe that, justlike a fish, if you are in the
water, you don't really knowthat you're in the water until
(17:24):
you are being told that this iswater.
So I feel a lot of teams, whenthey work with each other,
because of that inherentcultural biases, we don't really
know how to leverage thedifferences in teams.
So I believe helping to createthat awareness is really the
(17:45):
first step.
Whatever we talked about justnow coming in to assess the team
, helping the team to havehonest conversations and
alignment I believe thatprobably is the essence, the
core of the process.
But more so, I feel like teamcoaching probably goes further
(18:05):
in helping the team members toreally step up, to feel that,
okay, I play a role in thesystem and I have the
responsibility and the power tohelp the system to become more
effective.
And I think in the process ofhelping team members to have
(18:27):
honest conversations, we arealso empowering them to take
ownership, more ownership ofthat system, which I'm really
excited about.
Speaker 1 (18:37):
And systems is something that I don't think.
Most teams, leaders, andwherever you are on the
hierarchy chart if you are on ahierarchy chart I don't think we
think about that enough.
Yes, who are we impacting?
Yes, and who are those?
(18:59):
And I know some people don'tlike the word stakeholders, but
stakeholders just means who arethe people that you're serving
and how is the work that you aredoing impact them?
Or lack of work, or lack ofconversation, lack of
relationship?
You know, it all is just really, really intriguing.
(19:20):
I think that's why I love teamcoaching so much and really
being embedded and watching thejourneys, because, just like you
you said in the beginning, thetransformation that you've seen
and that's what coaching isabout.
It's not about having theanswers for these teams, it's
really about being.
These teams start to formulatefor themselves and see how they
(19:42):
can then express themselves as ateam holistically and moving
forward together and helping inthat system for sure.
Speaker 2 (19:51):
You said it so well Leadership development and
leadership coaching.
We empower individuals for themto really be transformed and
scale that up.
You know, and you see that inthe team is really exciting.
Speaker 1 (20:08):
Some Karen, great conversation today.
Of course, I'm as passionate asyou are, so no surprise there
that this is going to be, youknow, just great information for
people who don't know aboutteam coaching, want to hear more
, and I would love to point themin your direction.
So how can people connect withyou, karen Tan, if they would
(20:29):
like more information about youand the services that you
provide?
Speaker 2 (20:33):
For sure.
I have a website, thinkimpactco.
I'm gonna give that year end.
You can put that in the shownotes and also I will provide my
email.
So if people are interested, Ioffer free complimentary
assessment with the leader andjust to get to know what are
their needs for the team.
So welcome to connect with meif you're interested and are you
(20:57):
a-, Dan?
I am, I am.
I also put the link from mylink in your show notes.
Speaker 1 (21:03):
Perfect, That'll be great, all right.
Well, karen Tan, it's been apleasure to have you on today.
I appreciate your knowledge,your expertise, all you are
doing, because you're reachingaround the world, and I just
love when I get to justcollaborate with a coach like
you who has that, and I knowthat there's a different lens
(21:27):
that you see things out of.
So I certainly appreciate itand I know that our listeners
are gonna appreciate that.
Wow.
Speaker 2 (21:35):
Thank you, kelly.
You are so kind and you knowit's always a pleasure to talk
with you.
You're inspiring.
Thank you, oh, you are welcome.
Speaker 1 (21:43):
And thank you for that.
All right.
Well, until next time.
You keep doing great things andwe'll see you soon, you too.
Speaker 2 (21:50):
Bye-bye.
You, you, you, you, you you.
Popular Podcasts
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.
Ridiculous History
History is beautiful, brutal and, often, ridiculous. Join Ben Bowlin and Noel Brown as they dive into some of the weirdest stories from across the span of human civilization in Ridiculous History, a podcast by iHeartRadio.