I’m not a huge basketball fan (I’m more of a baseball and hockey guy), but a few days ago something happened in the NBA playoffs that caught my attention – and got me thinking about coaching.

In the dying seconds of the Cleveland/Chicago game, LeBron James vetoed the decision of his coach, David Blatt, and dictated his own play:

 

James said he “scratched” the play and told his coach: “Just give me the ball and either we go to overtime or I was gonna win it for us. That simple”

Blatt gave in and luckily everything worked out for Cleveland, since James hit a buzzer-beater in the final second to win the game.  But a lot of people criticized him for not listening to his coach.

So this got me thinking about a different type of coaching … our world is different than professional sports.  We don’t dictate to clients what they do – it’s a collaborative effort. We give guidance, help hold the client accountable and then watch the play unfold.  But how accountable do you hold your clients?

What do you do when the client isn’t listening to the coach?  How do you keep the client accountable?  And finally, do you continue working with a client if he/she isn’t taking your advice (even if they pull off some victories like James did)?