The Art of Coaching Teams - by Elena Aguilar (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

The Art of Coaching Teams is the manual you never received when you signed on to lead a team. Being a great teacher is one thing, but leading a team, or team development, is an entirely different dynamic. Your successes are public, but so are your failures--and there's no specific rubric or curriculum to give you direction. Team development is an art form, and this book is your how-to guide to doing it effectively. You'll learn the administrative tasks that keep your team on track, and you'll gain access to a wealth of downloadable tools that simplify the "getting organized" process. Just as importantly, you'll explore what it means to be the kind of leader that can bring people together to accomplish difficult tasks. You'll find practical suggestions, tools, and clear instructions for the logistics of team development as well as for building trust, developing healthy communication, and managing conflict.

Inside these pages you'll find concrete guidance on:

• Designing agendas, making decisions, establishing effective protocols, and more
• Boosting your resilience, understanding and managing your emotions, and meeting your goals
• Cultivating your team's emotional intelligence and dealing with cynicism
• Utilizing practical tools to create a customized framework for developing highly effective teams

There is no universal formula for building a great team, because every team is different. Different skills, abilities, personalities, and goals make a one-size-fits-all approach ineffective at best. Instead, The Art of Coaching Teams provides a practical framework to help you develop your group as a whole, and keep the team moving toward their common goals.

From the Back Cover

Your How-to Manual for Building Effective Teams.

Team development is an art form, and The Art of Coaching Teams is your how-to guide to doing it effectively. You'll learn the administrative tasks that keep your team on track, and you'll gain access to a wealth of downloadable tools that simplify the process. You'll also explore what it means to be the kind of leader that can bring people together to accomplish difficult tasks. You'll find practical suggestions, tools, and clear instructions for the logistics of team development as well as for building trust, developing healthy communication, and managing conflict.

There's no universal formula for building a great team, because every team is different. Instead, The Art of Coaching Teams provides a practical framework to help you develop your group as a whole, and keep the team moving toward their common goals.

"An amazing resource for all team leaders, no matter what type of team you lead. Elena knows how challenging the work of leading a team can be, and her book is both practical and inspiring. A great combination."
--Jennifer Abrams, author of Having Hard Conversations and The Multigenerational Workplace

"An extremely practical guide to leading teams that doesn't ignore the complexity of that important work. If you're a coach who leads teams, this is a must-read."
--Jim Knight, author of Instructional Coaching: A Partnership to Improving Instruction

"A book that will make anyone a better and more reflective leader."
--Kent D. Peterson, emeritus professor, University of Wisconsin-Madison, author of Shaping School Culture

About the Author

ELENA AGUILAR is a teacher, coach and consultant with over twenty years of experience working in schools. Elena is also the author of The Art of Coaching: Effective Strategies for School Transformation. She has been a frequent writer for Edutopia since 2008 and writes a blog on EdWeek Teacher for coaches.