A Coaching Power Tool By Melissa Chapman, Organizational Health/Leadership Coach, UNITED STATES
What Is the Difference Between Challenge vs. Opportunity
How Turning Challenges Into Opportunities Can Provide Growth
Personal growth usually happens when one combines self-awareness and curiosity and is typically triggered by some kind of uncomfortable or unwanted experience. From that discomfort comes the ability to look at things differently, to see things from a different perspective. The ability to consider a new approach creates an opening for personal growth. Personal growth has a direct effect on many areas of one’s life, including one’s career.
Turning challenges into opportunities is a change in perspective. The set of circumstances the client is dealing with remains the same, but the filter through which the situation is viewed can have a significant impact on the client’s experience and feelings, and the outcome. When our minds shift, so do our bodies. When our bodies shift, so do our minds. While we have limited control over the facts, we have the choice of how to approach those facts. The choice between viewing a situation as a challenge vs. opportunity can change the trajectory of a situation because these two different perspectives inspire different behaviors and emotions – inaction vs action, anxiety vs excitement, avoidance vs engagement, isolation vs collaboration, victimhood vs empowerment.
Challenge vs. Opportunity Power Tool
We will explore how the shift from looking through the ‘challenge’ lens to the ‘opportunity’ lens can be an impactful power tool when used in coaching.
Challenges
Often times when people think of the word ‘challenge’, there is a negative emotion connected to its meaning. The word ‘challenge’ (as a noun) is defined as a problem that has to be solved or fixed, something that requires action. That action can involve many steps, layers, outside influences, unforeseen complexities, and other perceived intimidating or overwhelming elements. Facing a challenge can sometimes feel daunting resulting in feeling stuck or afraid to approach the situation in order to find a resolution.
Professional challenges such as not getting a promotion, facing a difficult conversation with a co-worker, boss, or direct report, not getting the internal support needed to do your job, or losing a job can present anxiety and fear that interferes with our ability to take action. Most often, fear is the main driver in viewing challenges as this negative force field that cannot be penetrated. Whether it is fear of the unknown or the fear of the many scenarios one can imagine, that fear can be so powerful that it can prevent us from making any forward progress. When one is in that mindset, it can feel lonely and overwhelming, and the human instinct of fight or flight can kick in pretty quickly.
Example 1 – Individual Coaching – The Challenge
In a recent client session, the client (Kris) was discussing her ‘challenges’ with her employees’ attendance behaviors. She identified that there were several employees on her staff that were a source of frustration for her because they were not showing up to work at their scheduled times on a regular and consistent basis. However, when these particular employees did show up, they contributed and delivered quality results despite not being reliable. Through our coaching session, we uncovered what Kris found so ‘challenging’ about dealing with this situation:
Facts
- Several employees were not showing up to work on a consistent basis
- It was negatively impacting her ability to effectively run her business
- It was affecting other employees’ morale
Perspective
- She was afraid to hold the employees with attendance issues accountable for fear they would quit as she didn’t want to have to go through the hiring process
- She was feeling stuck and overwhelmed, thus avoiding taking action to resolve the situation
- By not addressing the situation, Kris was feeling anxious and wanting it to just go away
Many people are like Kris. According to workplace resource startup Bravely, 70 percent of employees are avoiding difficult conversations with their boss, colleagues, and direct reports. However, as many of us know, avoidance does not make a challenge go away. Rather, it can make it greater in size and consequence.
Example 2 – Group Coaching – The Challenge
In a recent team workshop, the client (a marketing department within a large conservative company) was struggling with effectively communicating to the stakeholders within their organization their creative vision of how to engage their customers to meet company objectives. As many know, marketing teams are typically folks that think ‘big picture’ and in non-linear ways and this client was no different. Their ‘challenge’ was that their internal stakeholders were not taking their work seriously and did not understand what they were doing, which created distrust within the organization. The client was frustrated as they knew from their research and experience, that their vision would be effective, but could not get buy-in from leadership. They felt demotivated and dissatisfied with their work, their jobs, and their employer and many of the team members were looking elsewhere for employment.
Facts
- The marketing team could not get buy-in on their vision
- The organization and its leadership did not trust their marketing department
- It was affecting the team’s morale
Perspective
- The team was frustrated and felt stuck
- The team felt that they were not valued and trusted for their expertise
- The team had low morale and wanted to give up and leave the organization
This situation is not unique. According to business and economics research firm, McKinsey Global Institute, 97% of employees and executives believe lack of alignment within a team impacts the outcome of a task or project. Focusing on the ‘challenge’ at hand as a roadblock, created a ripple effect of negativity and distrust.
Opportunity
Contrary to Kris, the marketing team, and many other thinkers, there is another way to approach challenging situations. That approach is through the belief that adversity can create ‘opportunity’. ‘Opportunity’ is defined as a set of circumstances that makes it possible to do something, or to take action. While there will always be elements of a situation that is beyond our control, that does not mean that there aren’t options available to us to help lessen the current gravity of the situation.
Utilizing the lens of opportunity to address a situation removes the negative emotion and replaces it with positive energy and excitement. The opportunity allows for creative thinking, a sense of adventure, resourcefulness, collaboration, and connection with others. Rather than having the urge to run away, the opportunity provides a means to run towards making something better and brighter.
Using the Power Tool – Challenge vs. Opportunity
Creating a space for the client to look at the situation differently can be met with some resistance. It is human nature to resist change. However, careful consideration given to how questions are presented to the client can result in a meaningful exercise in personal growth. Asking questions such as:
- “What would it looks like to put your/your team’s/your company’s needs first?”
- “What would it look like/feel like if you could do what you really wanted to do right now?”
- “What role do you think you play in this current scenario?”
- “How is that serving you?”
- “If you could do something differently, what would it be?”
When a pattern emerges of the client using “should,” “have to,” and “need to”, reflection to the client can create awareness.
- “What’s keeping you feeling stuck in this place right now?”
- “What do you think is your biggest hurdle in overcoming this situation?”
- “What choice(s) are you able to make?”
- “What other options could you consider other than the ones you’ve mentioned?”
To help the client move from challenge to opportunity, questions to consider asking the client include:
- “If there were no consequences and you could explore any options that you wanted, what would you choose to pursue?”
- “What kind of opportunities could emerge from your pursuits?”
- “What could these opportunities provide you/your team?”
- “What does opportunity look like for you/your team?”
- “If you could imagine creating these opportunities, how would you feel about it?”
- “What kind of support do you/your team need to begin implementing the change(s) you wish to occur?“
Example 1 – Individual Coaching – The Opportunity
During the coaching session with Kris, we explored what it could look and feel like for her when considering her current set of circumstances as an opportunity. After much consideration, Kris was able to recognize that this could potentially be a turning point for her business. She recognized that she could not do this alone and needed support from her business partner and her employees. She acknowledged that she had a choice in the matter. She could choose many different paths in how to address her employee attendance challenges and she could choose how she felt about the entire situation. By realizing that she had options, Kris felt more empowered to rally her troops and create ways to address the many people this scenario affected, feeling more energized.
Example 2 – Group Coaching – The Opportunity
The marketing team dug deep into our coaching workshop and after much discussion, the team began to shift from being stuck in the challenge and looking at ways in which they could approach the situation as an opportunity to connect with their stakeholders to understand their needs better so that can meet them in their delivery. They worked together to recognize that engaging their peers in the process, creates transparency and trust. That trust then provides more opportunity for candid conversation and collaboration in developing their plans and getting the buy-in they needed to pursue their vision. The team felt motivated, invigorated, and ready to move forward.
Utilizing the Power Tool Challenge vs. Opportunity
While many experience trials in their careers whether individually or as part of a team, it is those that can approach those trials with the question of ‘What are my options in how to approach this situation?’ or ‘How can we make the most of this predicament?’ that will find more fulfillment and forward progress. The fear may still be there, but they are choosing to channel it in a different way. Utilizing the Power Tool ‘Challenge vs Opportunity’ can help those struggling with being stuck in their ‘challenge’ to grow and move to a space where ‘opportunity’ abounds.
References
Neades, John (2022). https://learnloft.com/2022/04/06/challenges-as-opportunities/
Ansari, Mohsin (2022). https://hypercontext.com/blog/communication/team-collaboration
Schneider, Michael (2018). https://www.inc.com/michael-schneider/70-percent-of-employees-avoid-difficult-conversations-their-companies-are-suffering-as-a-result.html
Author Unknown – Bravely (2018).