How to coach someone better than you

Some thoughts on this tweet and the question it poses:

Coaches and managers do not set the bar with their individual performance. They set the bar with their understanding of excellence. A thread on coaching/managing people more talented than you:

Problems with "if you don't move perfectly yourself": 

i) Puts an impossible standard on managers. Anytime "perfection" is the bar, there is failure.

ii) This sets the manager as the ideal. As leaders, we want our teams to *exceed* our capabilities and accomplishments.

Think of the following people:

1) Serena Williams' coach
2) The Rock's personal trainer
3) Satya Nadella's biz strategy prof

None of these people can come close to outperforming their protégé. There are countless examples of this.

So how, without being capable of personally exemplifying it, can we get our teams to exceed our own abilities?

a) Coach fundamentals. The foundation they build on is crucial.

b) Develop a deep understanding of the subject matter. Filter through the garbage and deliver pure signal to your trainee.

c) Demonstrate what it looks like to *strive* for excellence. Work ethic is far more effective when it's a habit, not a discipline.

d) Encourage good risk-taking and shield them from failure. Reassure them that "your successes are yours, your failures are mine."

e) Never allow yourself as a manager to be threatened by a team member's abilities exceeding your own. In fact, this is your crown.

f) Closely related, get very familiar with your own limitations. Only then can you guide others past them.

g) Continue to guide them as long as you can be helpful. When you know they have more potential but have plateaued, find additional resources or bow out.

h) Create incentives that reward this behavior for your managers. J&J has/d a bonus for managers whose direct reports were promoted. They received 10x as large a bonus when direct reports were promoted above them.

i) Recognize that your satisfaction must derive from investing in another human, not accolades. As an illustration, please name Serena's Williams' coach, The Rock's personal trainer, and Satya Nadella's biz strat prof. I'll wait...

j) Remember that coaching and managing aren't the same thing. Putting talented people at the intersection of deep subject matter knowledge and adept administration is an unlock.