Last month I enrolled in a coaching course.

I have coached teachers how to implement best teaching practices in their classroom for five years.

I was confident sharing research and how to implement it through practical strategies. It was the coaching aspect that I felt could use some more intensive study.

In one module called Building Rapport and Trust the concept of mirroring came up.

Mirroring is the behaviour where one person (typically unconsciously) imitates the other person through attitude, speech patterns, eye contact, posture, facial expressions, etc.

Mirroring naturally occurs in the company of good friends.

Mirroring also appears to be a common strategy in the world of coaching to build rapport.

When done correctly, it is meant to be positive, promote openness and a willingness to grow. Yet, somehow it seems sneaky.

Artificially building rapport by strategically mirroring my behaviour or speech. I don’t know.

Then I wondered, is implementing research any different?

Through my doctoral research I learned the best practices of implementing a province-wide program. When I was hired to run this exact program a year later at a school board, I mirrored the best practices I had learned.

I didn’t mirror someone’s speech patterns or posture, but I did mirror certain attitudes and behaviours that I had observed. They worked. Why wouldn’t I mirror this positive behaviour?

Many business books I’ve read and in my own start-up entrepreneurial experiences I’ve learned the same thing.

Save yourself time and struggle. Mirror what is tried and true and then tweak it to make it your own.

It isn’t sneaky. It is good business. It is smart and strategic.

In the context of business and program implementation, this makes sense. In the context of people, I’m still not sure.

What I do know for sure is that when implementing anything – from programming to home renovations to personal hobbies or interests - it is in my best interest to mirror best practices.

Learning from those who paved the way before me, and then altering it to fit my unique context has been key to any success I’ve experienced.

I have found mirroring crucial to success. I invite you to give it a try.

Best wishes, Lauren

p.s. If you would like to learn strategies on how to implement best practices in your own organizations, feel free to book a free 30-minute consultation to see if we can help.