You don’t know what you don’t know. Often times, we get blind to what is happening right in front of us, because we get used to what we see and don’t look at the subtle changes anymore. What if you couldn't see the shortcut right next to you because you didn't know you needed to turn around?
The best athletes in the world have coaches. Why is that? The top professional athletes are capable of amazing things, yet always remain under the guidance of a coach or mentor. Coaches are trained to manage a person, to reduce the impact of their weaknesses and strengthen their best traits. A good coach knows each player’s personality and how to work with them to achieve better results for the sake of the team.
Coaches also provide external motivation to improve. When an athlete, or any person, feels like they are at the top of their game they tend to slack off and slow down a little. They feel like they have peaked, they've made it and there is no longer a need to push as hard. A coach is good at preventing this stall. The importance is when others have continued to improve; the athlete can become ineffective and not even know it, until it is too late.
Coaches study film and watch other players and other teams. A coach has put in the time to learn from other teams and watch how players perform. The knowledge can then be passed to the athlete, but in a manner that helps each player know what they need to know. That leads to working more efficiently without wasting time going through all the material.
When developing your abilities, there are always observations that cannot be seen by yourself, but only by another person watching and helping. Call them a coach, mentor, or accountability partner. A person will always be bias towards their own abilities, see themselves how they want to or see the situation for how they believe it to be. It is the coaches that can be more realistic in the situation that will help the athlete understand what is happening.
Now, forget about sports, athletes and coaches. What about production teams in an office? To have a coach working across teams and companies available is a heavy benefit. The team members are smart and capable of many great tasks, but can also be blind to what they can’t see and ignorant to what they don’t know. Why not enlist the aid of a coach or mentor to help each team member improve their strengths and enlighten their knowledge?
Who is your coach? Who is your mentor? Who are you mentoring?
“The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is that little extra.” – Jimmy Johnson
-Craig
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