Have you ever attended a workshop on coaching or leadership? Have you read a few good books which were useful to you as a coach or a leader? Do you consider you and your leadership team to already be “good enough†as coaches and leaders? Are your employees fully engaged? Have you fully tapped into their potential? Suppose you could learn a disciplined practice where you continuously honed your skills while leading your organization. Imagine each time that you exercise your leadership or coaching skills as a feedback opportunity, a chance for continuous improvement, a means to further hone your skills.

Have you ever felt stymied when you wanted to help a colleague, customer or supplier to see a particular situation differently? Do you know someone you would love to motivate to take action, to perform at a higher level? What if you and your leadership team could expand your capacity to produce results and empower others to perform at a higher level? What if you learned a powerful way to spark the people in your organization to become more passionate and engaged? What if you could unleash their creativity?

Have you ever been disappointed by the results of a change initiative? Have you ever worked with someone who was renowned for being late in completing projects or attending meetings? Have you heard: “Change takes a long time.†“Change is hard.†“People do not like change.†“People resist change.†Have you found these comments to be consistent with your past experiences? Would you be interested in experiencing change in a more effective and empowering way?

This story about Ben illustrates how easily a leader can shift a team member’s self-limiting perceptions. Progressive leaders and their leadership teams can learn to effect similar changes to produce breakthroughs in performance and gain a competitive edge. For leaders and team members, it is their perception of reality, not reality itself, which constrains them.