Book excerpt: If you want to create a lean, mean, working machine in today’s environment you need a game plan for building employee morale and commitment. By coaching and mentoring your work force—instead of implementing staid traditional management techniques—you’ll start to see tremendous results. Regardless of where you find yourself on the corporate ladder and what level of authority you carry, what you and other managers share in common is the responsibility for the performance of others. Coaching and Mentoring For Dummies can open your eyes to this innovative way of managing and show you the best way to get the most out of those who work for you. Coaching and Mentoring For Dummies provides the foundation for understanding what business coaching is all about, and helps you gain or improve the coaching skills that drive employee performance and commitment. These skills, which serve as the main topics of this book, involve: getting employees to deliver the results you need; guiding employees to think and do for themselves; motivating employees to take on responsibility and perform effectively; and growing employee capabilities that lead to career development and success You’ll also discover how to: Use questions rather than commands Be a delegator, not a doer Complete performance reviews without anxiety Grow your employees’ talents Increase productivity and decrease turnover With Coaching and Mentoring For Dummies as your guide, you can start to put these techniques and tools to work for you and inspire your employees in ways you never imagined. From tried-and-true worksheets to tools that you can tailor to you own situation, this friendly guide helps you call all the right plays with regards to your employees. Forget about micromanaging! When you become a coach, you’ll be surprised by the tasks your group can perform.The fun and easy guide to today's hottest trends in management training, Coaching and Mentoring For Dummies shows managers how to take advantage of these state-of-the-art management tools -- without spending hundreds of dollars on training seminars! This book features Guidance on being a coach rather than a doer" and giving feedback in a positive way Advice on motivating, grooming, and growing employees Tips on tackling diversity issues, performance reviews, and other challenges Put these techniques and tools to work and inspire your employees in ways you never imagined. Forget about micromanaging! When you become a coach, you'll be surprised by the tasks your group can perform.