Stop perfecting your top performers. Start building your next ones.

Earlier in my leadership career, I thought I was a pretty great coach. But over time I realized the people I was coaching were the ones that were great. 

I have always loved coaching top performers. Who doesn’t? It’s energizing. You throw out an idea, they run with it. You see immediate improvement. The conversation flows. You walk away feeling like a great leader.

Only until I started working with low performers, did I recognize I may not be as great as I thought I was. 

It feels different coaching struggling performers. Progress is slow, frustration builds, and I left those conversations drained rather than energized. I had to watch my words and figure out how to be supportive but also see the change 

It’s no wonder that many leaders gravitate towards spending more time with their top performers. Simply put, it’s easier and more enjoyable. Top performers are typically more self aware, motivated, and hungry for feedback. They’re able to translate your insights into action with ease and that’s very gratifying.

But high performers will likely improve whether you coach them brilliantly or not. They're self directed learners who seek feedback from multiple sources and are driven by internal standards of excellence. Your coaching accelerates their growth, but it's not the determining factor in their success.

Once I became a leader of leaders, I realized how important (and rare) it was to find a leader who was able to make their entire team better. Balanced performance across their team as I believe this is a mark of a great coach. 

If you have 1 rep make it to Club, hats off to them. If you have 6 reps make it to Club, hats off to you! 

The reason this is so rare is that we apply the same coaching approach to low performers as high performers. Most leaders default to gap analysis: here's where you are, here's where you need to be, now close that gap. Go!  

Sound familiar?

This works for people who just need direction. It fails for people who need development.

For someone already struggling, this approach can be demoralizing rather than motivating. It confirms what they already fear: “I’m not good enough”.

Why you need to take a different approach: 

You don’t need to lower standards but you need to be realistic about the path you take to get there. The progress made with low performers is measured in small increments rather than dramatic breakthroughs. You might revisit the same issues multiple times. The wins are harder to spot and take longer to materialize.

With high performers, you can start with the destination and let them figure out the route. Your coaching is about expanding their thinking, challenging assumptions, and opening new possibilities they haven't considered. The conversation is future focused and exploratory.

With low performers, you need to start with the foundation and build systematically. Your coaching is about breaking down complex skills into manageable steps, celebrating small wins, and rebuilding confidence alongside competence. The conversation is present, focused and constructive.

High performers need coaching that stretches them. 

Low performers need coaching that supports them. 

Some coaching approaches to try with low performers:

Replace "Why aren't you doing X?" with "What's making X difficult right now?" Shift the conversation from judgment to problem solving. Seek to uncover obstacles you didn't know existed (unclear processes, missing resources, skill gaps, or even personal challenges affecting performance).

Identify one skill to build rather than five problems to fix. Low performers are often drowning in feedback. They don’t know where to focus. They hear everything they're doing wrong and shut down. Start with the most important one skill that, if improved, would create the most meaningful change. Break it down and be specific on what behaviours need to change and how they can improve. 

Schedule shorter, more frequent check-ins instead of comprehensive quarterly reviews. Struggling performers need more touchpoints. A weekly conversation allows you ask "What went well this week? What was challenging? What support do you need?". This is more valuable than a quarterly performance review recounting months of missed expectations.

Celebrate visible effort, not just outcomes. High performers are results driven and recognizing their outcomes fuels them. Low performers often need to see that effort matters before they believe results are possible. Notice when they try something new, ask for help, or apply previous feedback. Acknowledge it and reinforce what they’re doing right. 

One last thought to consider: 

What if your struggling performers are actually capable of more, they just need your help to unlock what’s already within them.  

The leaders who develop truly high performing teams aren't the ones who are great at coaching people who are already great. 

They're the ones who figure out how to unlock potential in people everyone else has written off.

That's the heavy lifting. And that's where leadership actually matters.