Manel Fernández Jaria: "The secret is in finding a purpose".

We spoke with Manel Fernández Jaria, author of the book "Work in attitude mode".

Companies are complex systems in which the whole is more than the sum of its parts. Therefore, it is necessary to have a global and strategic vision about everything that happens in the companies, departments, teams, etc. And, on the other hand, this point of view must take into account not only the technical aspects of the work, but also the human factor, which is a determining factor for a good understanding of what is happening in an organization.

For years, coaching has been focusing a large part of its efforts on understanding this mix of technical and emotional/relational elements that take place in companies, which is why organizations are nowadays among the contexts on which the work of coaches is most focused. But... What exactly does a coaching professional dedicated to the field of management and business do? We talk about it with Manel Fernández Jaria, coach and author of the book "Work in attitude mode".

Interview with Manel Fernández Jaria: what is achieved through coaching?

Manel Fernández Jaria is a trainer and business coach; he has been working for years giving support to organizations, managers and entrepreneurs both through coaching intervention and through training sessions and conferences. In this interview he talks to us about the role of the coach in its most practical and applied aspects.

Do people often underestimate what they can achieve by initiating a coaching process?

When a client is committed to a process of change and encounters the expertise of the coach, there is nothing that cannot be achieved. I see it every day in the processes I work on. The secret is to find a purpose, a mission, whatever it is, I don't care: big, small... it doesn't matter; then you have to align your life and your actions with that purpose.

Everybody gives advice every day, and I tell them in the first session: "hey, you're a mess" and it works, because nobody usually talks like that, first of all, and secondly I tell them that we are together to bring their issue forward, which is really the only important thing with a client: to activate them to regain all their personal power.

Could you give some examples of people who, after seeking help from a coach, have achieved much more than overcoming a problem or getting rid of a source of discomfort that was affecting them?

Many professionals, managers, athletes... work with a coach, in my case I help entrepreneurs, managers and professionals with professional projection who want to work on their self-leadership. Because the key is in the mindset.

My favorite aphorism on this subject is "whether you think you can or you think you can't, you are right". From here you decide and I will accompany you in the process unconditionally.

I have worked with people who were looking to boost their career path and ended up writing a book that opened up many possibilities and boosted their self-esteem.

I have also worked with managers who needed to improve their confidence to lead their team more efficiently. I have accompanied technicians who moved to a managerial position, and the leap was so big that they began to feel paralysis by analysis. And new entrepreneurs who didn't know they were entrepreneurs and needed to expand in another direction.

I have also worked with strong people, with big personalities and strong characters. They thought they didn't need to improve their soft skills, but they were wrong, and now they are much happier because they have improved their interpersonal relationships. And I have accompanied people with difficulties in public speaking or making good presentations.

There are many profiles and topics covered over the years, but what I can say is that the moment a person moves in one direction, results come. Always!

In your opinion, what are the main types of goals to be achieved through coaching?

The goals can be very varied, but basically the basic thing is the ability to overcome fears. Fear of failure, of what people will say, of not making it, of being mediocre, of being judged.

Fear, before a decision, causes emotional tension that can lead us to not being able to express our best version; and here begin the problems, insecurities, we begin to postpone our dreams and conformism appears as a way of life.

If we work hard on the level of consciousness and self-leadership, then public speaking, writing a book, changing jobs, entrepreneurship, going to live in another country, starting studies or other similar issues are anecdotal.

The key is to identify the strengths to face a challenge the first time and dare to expand our circle of influence. Then you just copy the template and replicate it for new challenges.

What are soft skills and why are they important as an element to consider in personal development?

Everything changed forever in the professional world when Daniel Goleman wrote: "great leaders have more emotional intelligence".

To lead we need two things, to know what you are talking about (to know your professional field well) and to have behavioral skills. No one can ever appoint themselves as a leader of a team or an organization, the power of the leader is deserved and received.

One of the demands that have grown in recent years for managerial profiles, and will continue to do so, is that, in addition to technical knowledge, soft skills must be added. Here the list is endless, I summarize it in raising the level of consciousness in everything you do and think so that your user experience on this planet is satisfactory every day.

It may sound very utopian, but we already know what makes us increase well-being. The acronym is PERMA (Martin Seligman) we work with the coachee in this line.

In my work with individuals and teams, we always start with a good diagnosis that allows us to identify areas for improvement, from here I propose key competencies and the client applies the Deliberate Practice methodology. This is the best way of integrating competencies that I know.

Otherwise, you learn concepts, but you make them your own. I always insist to my clients that learning comes when you experience and apply those competencies to your daily life. And you see the results quickly.

The seventh habit that Steven Covey proposes is to sharpen the saw. All human beings should cultivate soft skills to improve in all areas.

Are more common the cases of people who turn to a coach to achieve a specific goal related to specific personal or professional projects, or the cases of people who simply want to train certain skills for day-to-day life? For example, it is one thing to prepare for competitive examinations knowing how to manage stress and another to improve social skills.

There are people who know well what a coach is and hire me to work on a specific and concrete objective. We draw a plan of action and we go quickly in that direction.

On other occasions they are people who have not clearly identified their WHY. In these cases we initiate a search process and then direct the actions in a targeted way.

I also work on soft skills individually or in teams. Working in groups allows participants to get feedback from each other's experiences.

We can also work one on one and in a more personalized way. Here each client chooses what is most appropriate for them at any given moment. We address their specific problems and apply ad hoc solutions.

For people who do not have time and who are very busy or worried, I have designed a full day program in nature (walking meeting). Here we put things in order and design the personal strategy for the future. When this is clear it aligns everything you do much more strongly because you know where you have to put your energy every day.

In your last book, "Work in attitude mode", you talked about, among other things, the importance of taking care of one's own well-being also in the professional sphere. Does this include learning and strengthening soft skills to perform better and not waste time at work?

It is very important to work and live in attitude mode. Attitude is the place from where we do things. To promote a wellness-oriented attitude, in each chapter of the book I propose a series of practical actions that help the reader to discover an experiential path to transform that attitude and feel much better at work and in life.

I speak of an experiential path because everything that appears in the book I have experienced in first person, also with my coaching clients, and I know perfectly well that it works.

The world of organizations is very important. I understand that a large part of our life will be spent in a job or in a professional project.

Learning how to take care of ourselves so that we don't waste our lives at work should be a compulsory and cross-cutting subject. Now organizations are hiring me to teach this pending subject in companies. Helping people to empower themselves in their well-being is part of my purpose and I love doing it because I feel useful to my purpose.

Broadly speaking, how can we achieve a mindset from which it is easier to initiate a process of change for the better, and get out of the comfort zone in the best possible way?

The first point is to raise the level of consciousness, to learn to identify the type of thoughts we generate.

Secondly, to observe how these thoughts influence our emotions.

The third important point is to see how the sequence triggers our actions. Finally, we analyze the results we obtain in the projects. The results we obtain are always a consequence of this equation.

To accelerate the processes and boost all our unconscious potential I usually introduce the Lego Serious Play methodology in the sessions. People are surprised by the power of this tool.

My best client in this pandemic period has been my daughter Júlia. We worked on her university future. He is happy with the choice.