Acting coaching for managers: A sensible investment in modern leadership skills?

What it’s all about

There are a variety of ways for managers to improve their skills and strengthen their leadership qualities. One interesting and increasingly popular method is acting coaching, which aims to integrate acting techniques into everyday leadership. But does it really make sense for a manager to utilise this unusual form of coaching, and what impact does it have on authenticity and confidence?

The benefits

Acting coaching offers managers a variety of benefits. Firstly, it promotes self-awareness and emotional intelligence. Actors need to understand and express their own emotions in order to play convincing roles. This ability for self-reflection and emotional expression is also invaluable for leaders. A manager who better understands their own emotions and those of their employees can communicate more effectively and lead more empathetically. This leads to a better working atmosphere and promotes well-being within the team.

In addition, this form of coaching can significantly improve communication skills and actors know how to consciously use their voice, body language and facial expressions to achieve a certain effect. Managers can use these techniques to communicate more clearly and convincingly. This is crucial for conveying visions, motivating employees and resolving conflicts. A manager who can communicate convincingly and authentically is more likely to be perceived as credible and trustworthy.

Another advantage of acting coaching is the ability to improvise and be flexible. Managers often have to react quickly to unforeseen challenges and find creative solutions. Acting exercises based on improvisation sharpen these skills and strengthen self-confidence to act confidently in uncertain situations.

The questions

Despite these benefits, the question arises as to how acting techniques affect a manager’s authenticity. Critics argue that the use of acting techniques leads to artificial and inauthentic leadership. However, authenticity is not synonymous with the renunciation of learnt techniques. Rather, it is about using these techniques in such a way that they support and reinforce the natural personality of the manager. A well-trained manager can learn when and how to use certain techniques in order to remain authentic and credible.

Trust is another key issue when discussing acting coaching. Trust is created when employees feel that their manager is honest and reliable. A manager who uses acting techniques to improve their communication and demeanour can actually strengthen this trust as long as they remain authentic. If the techniques are used to convey one’s personality more clearly and convincingly, they can increase trust in the manager.

Examples

The Strasberg Method

Also known as Method Acting, is an acting technique used in executive coaching to improve authenticity, presence and emotional expressiveness. Core principles of the Strasberg Method in executive coaching include:

Emotional memory: leaders learn to use personal experiences to create authentic emotions in presentations and speeches,
Substitution: This technique helps leaders to put themselves in different situations and perspectives, which leads to better understanding and improved communication
Presence in the here and now: The method promotes the ability to be present in the moment, which is important for convincing performances and spontaneous reactions,
Relaxation and specificity: Leaders learn to relax and be precise in their communication, which leads to a more natural and convincing presence,
Personal connection: The method encourages personalising content, which increases authenticity and credibility.

By applying these principles, leaders can improve their presentation skills, appear more authentic and build a stronger emotional connection with their audience.

Other methods

The following methods offer different approaches to improving communication, presence and authenticity that can be used in executive coaching:

Meisner technique: focusses on spontaneous reactions and living in the moment. Managers can learn to be more authentic and present in interactions,
Adler Method: Emphasises imagination, discipline and focus on the character. This can help managers to better empathise with different roles and situations,
Wachtangow method: Emphasises imagination, physicality and emotional authenticity. These aspects can improve the presence and expressiveness of leaders,
Biomechanics: A physical approach that emphasises movement and body language. This can be useful for non-verbal communication and posture,
Improvisation: Promotes spontaneity and adaptability, which can be valuable for leaders in unexpected situations,
Role biography and role interview: These techniques can help leaders to better empathise with different perspectives and develop empathy.

Conclusion

To summarise, acting coaching can be a sensible and worthwhile investment for managers. It offers valuable tools for improving self-awareness, communication skills and flexibility. However, it is important that the techniques learnt are used authentically and appropriately to the situation in order to strengthen the confidence of employees and maintain one’s own credibility. If this is successful, acting coaching can help managers to act even more effectively and inspiringly and thus lead their teams more successfully.