6 phases of the “jeopardy filter”
When leading and/or coaching others, run your thoughts, words, and actions through the questions below in order to maximize your (positive) impact on others
1: How can i re-phrase in the form of a question?
Before making a statement or suggestion, determine whether you can re-word your thoughts into a question so that others remain actively engaged.
2: How many seconds should I wait for a response?
Jeopardy! contestants only have 5 seconds to respond after buzzing in; however, the longer you can “hold the silence” as others choose how to respond to you, the deeper and more impactful the response will be (plus, the silence is often an indication that you asked a really good question!).
3: Have I really “got a quick question for ya?”
How often do you say or hear, “I’ve got a quick question for ya?” And how often does that “quick question” result in a conversation that’s anything but quick? Either way, don’t lie to yourself and others about the brevity of a question (and answer); instead, strive to be like Jeopardy!: make your questions and answers clear and concise.
4: How can I showcase my “buzzer mastery?”
Record-setting Jeopardy! champions aren’t necessarily smarter than the other contestants; but they all have mastered “the art of the buzzer.” That being said, picture yourself as a Jeopardy! contestant and ask whether the audience would see you as someone with “executive presence” who calmly and confidently rings in at just the right time…or as someone frantically pushing the button and growing frustrated as other contestants buzz in before you.
5: How would it feel to “make it a true Daily Double?”
A “true Daily Double” risks everything contestants have for a chance of doubling what they’re earned thus far; when helping others make big decisions, make sure you ask them to truly think about how taking a risk—and potentially losing everything—would feel to them. In many situations, people will decide ahead of time that a given risk “isn’t worth it” without every being challenged—by a coach, friend, or leader—to imagine “what it would feel like” to actually take that risk.
6: Are we still in the same category?
Being an effective coach or leader means helping others remain focused; therefore, it’s valuable to check in regularly during a conversation to make sure you and/or the person you’re working with haven’t unwittingly veered off track.
Coaching 101
“𝐈 𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠. 𝐈 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐈 𝐚𝐬𝐤 𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬.”
Effective coaching isn’t about “re-inventing the wheel” or “telling people what to do.” It’s about leveraging and improving upon existing resources so that individuals and teams can optimize performance…and it can be done by employing these 5 “SPEed coaching” questions:
1: What’s your goal?
2: what’s already been done?
3: Is this what I’m hearing?
4: What are all the possible paths?
5: How can I hold you accountable?
To download a coaching and “Jeopardy Filter” cheat sheet, click here:
For more details on how coaching works, check out this episode of The Energy Detox podcast:
A Trillion Dollar Crash and the Coaching Playbook That Will Fuel Energy’s Recovery
In this episode of The Energy Detox, you’ll jump into the shoes of a football coach whose team is losing by two touchdowns at half-time. And you’ll ask yourself whether you’re currently doing things that are helping your team recover from this deficit and emerge victorious…or whether you’re doing things that are more likely to have your star players checked out and thinking about the next game, the next season, or perhaps an entirely different sport.
This discussion is based upon the biography of Bill Campbell, a college football coach who transitioned into coaching some of Silicon Valley’s most successful leaders, as documented in Trillion Dollar Coach.
