What Traits Are Not Coachable?

Do you think about what qualities in your players are coachable, and which ones are not? It’s probably worth your time to figure out… what is worth your time.

From @AdmiredLeaders:

Can someone with low self-awareness become highly self-aware with the right coaching? 

How about judgment? Can a team member with poor judgment learn to make consistently good predictions and decisions with the right counsel? 

Exactly what is coachable, and what is uncoachable? While there are no definitive answers to these questions, the consensus among leadership experts is that most skills, traits, and aptitudes are coachable. However, there is a short list of competencies and qualities that are not. 

What talents are on that list? This is hotly debated largely because, over long periods of time, people can make small strides in even the hardest-to-change skills. 

But that doesn’t mean it is a good use of time for leaders to coach others while hoping for change regarding a quality that is unlikely, if not impossible, to improve. 

Here's what we all agree on. Good leaders coach others to success. They work hard to advance the skills and elevate the thinking of team members with the goal of helping them reach their true potential. 

Through conversations, assignments, feedback, practice drills, skill assessments, and role-playing, leaders facilitate learning and enhance the critical competencies of those on the team. 

The best coaches seek to amplify existing strengths as well as address glaring weaknesses. In the hands of a great leader and coach, team members can make big strides in their personal growth and development.  

Great leaders recognize the transformative power of coaching while also accepting that some skills and traits are uncoachable. The list of uncoachable skills is small. But these areas that are nearly impossible to change, at least through coaching, are often critical to success. 

Accepting what can and can’t be changed in people through the coaching process is critical for all leaders to grasp. The failure to do so equates to an enormous waste of time and energy and almost always results in frustration for both parties. 

While leaders can provide support and guidance to develop various aspects of these skills and traits, the ability to make big gains is severely limited. The best leaders focus their attention on other areas and try not to run a river that can’t be navigated. 

Those with extensive coaching experience offer the following traits and skills as largely uncoachable: Self-awareness, Intrinsic Motivation, Creativity, Resilience, Judgment, and Performance Anxiety. 

Over the life course, people do make small gains and advancements in these areas, but not typically as a direct result of coaching. 

Every leader must decide for themselves what skills and traits they believe are uncoachable and invest their time accordingly. The shortlist above is neither exhaustive nor conclusive. The key is for leaders to ponder the question of what talents are uncoachable before they attempt to lead others to success.

Spending more time on coachable qualities will likely promote more team member growth and development while accepting what can’t be markedly changed will result in less disappointment and friction. 

What is on your list of uncoachable qualities? Decide before you invest the time to push an immovable rock uphill in a storm.