Optimistic

Coaching and Self - Development Guidelines

You tend to be a natural optimist. You are inclined to have a positive outlook and to see why ideas, plans or proposals can work. You are willing to take risks and are quick to act to get things going forward. You are likely to be a lively communicator who infects others with your enthusiasm and energy. Your confident, affirming approach to tasks and challenges is likely to have a positive effect on the moral of others.
High scorers can however also display some of the counter – productive behaviours associated with this trait. They can be inclined to be over – enthusiastic and rush into things without thinking them through properly. They miss potential pitfalls and can under – estimate the effort and resources it may take to accomplish certain tasks or projects. They may be inclined to think that things are easier than they are in reality. They may take on too many projects at once.
While they usually are good starters and able to generate enthusiasm for projects, they can also be poor finishers, losing interest once the initial excitement is over. You may also be inclined to think that others are like you – full of enthusiasm and energy. You may therefore run the risk of over – estimating the capability of your staff or colleagues and of over – stretching some staff members, especially those who are naturally more cautious, and/or less experienced than you is.

It may be important for you to think about the impact it has on others when projects are started, but not seen through. How does this impact on your credibility? If you are a manager, how does it impact on your staff if you overcommit them to projects and objectives? What impact does it have if goalposts are continuously shifted? What is the cost to the business and to yourself if real obstacles and pitfalls are overlooked or under – estimated and projects fail or goals aren’t achieved? These are some of the questions you may need to reflect on challenge yourself with.

You may also need to work on controlling your enthusiasm and your impulse to take on things and to move forward. Many of the Expert Articles listed below can help you counteract potential counterproductive behaviours you may be displaying that are associated with this trait. Working through and applying the article on Goal Setting Mistakes is a good place to begin – this will help you to ensure that your goals are realistic which will eliminate a plethora of potential problems associated with over – reaching yourself or others.

Then work through the articles on Action Program and To Do Lists. This will help you to unpack the various elements of a task and be able to realistically appraise how much work is involved. The articles on Action Plans, Estimating Time Accurately and Project Schedule Development will help to inject a further element of realism in your planning. Finally, working through the article on Delegation will help you to delegate effectively and not swamp your colleagues with too much work.

Key Coaching Points

Reflect on the potential pitfalls of being over – optimistic and on underestimating tasks. Develop realistic goals, project plans and task completion time lines. Develop professional delegation skills. Think about the reputational damage to over – committing and under – delivery. Reflect on the impact on morale of over – loading others.

Target Behaviours

Realistic Goal Setting
Realistic Time Estimation
Realistic Task and Project Planning
Effective Delegation Skills
Task Completing Behaviour

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