What is Enablement?
Enablement. We shout about it from the rooftops. Talk about it at every opportunity we can. We even have an entire Accelerator Programme built around it. But what is it?
It sounds a little bit like a made-up word – but we assure you it is not. It is in fact the secret sauce we use here at Evolve. As per the dictionary, the official definition for enablement is:
1. The action of giving someone the authority or means to do something.
2. The action of making a device or system operational; activation.
Whilst this stands as the official dictionary definition, our definition brings in elements of the two but with a much more empowering twist. We believe that enablement in the context of business and entrepreneurship is like coaching to help you unlock the ability to give yourself the authority to move through a challenge or block. It is about asking, *at times* provocative questions that help you see through your own limiting beliefs.
The ethos and background to enablement is about helping someone to remove their own barriers to growth. It's a essential approach for our accelerators because our aim is to build great people who build great businesses. If we provided all the answers, opened all the doors and advised OUR way of doing things, then when founders leave our programme they will not have learned self-reliance, initiative, bravery or discipline.
The world of business is hard, and our role is not to make it easier (which is impossible) but to help founders navigate it better and faster. The approach is led by coaching, with the addition of strong challenge, a culture of high expectations, and feedback and guidance based on our deep experience in entrepreneurial growth. Enablement is a philosophy that is embedded in the roots of our programmes, not just in 1:1s. It shapes the way we run workshops, the way we communicate, the founders we select: always with a bias towards mindset development and meaningful action. It straddles the world of personal and business coaching because the person at the heart of the business (particularly in a startup) is what makes it succeed or fail. And finally, it embodies the view that all changes of outcome start with a change of thought - you can't take different action unless you first think differently, so that's where enablement starts.
Enabler Experience
Ashleigh is one of our experienced enablers who has worked with hundreds of entrepreneurs to help them break through their limiting beliefs to get to the other side of their stuck points. We caught up with Ashleigh to ask her about her initial impression of enablement and experiences in witnessing and advocating for breakthroughs.
‘Initially, I thought it was coaching or counselling – which of course it does fall into that realm. However, a discovered it was much more objective. It is about being a sounding board for them to speak and vent their thoughts out loud, especially if they are solo founders as they can get stuck in their heads.”
She explained how it is easy to offer unbiased opinions when there is no stake in the business and no close eye on the day-to-day logistics of the business. “It is about challenging them on their decision-making and the steps it took to make that decision, as well as exploring alternatives.”
Enablement Perspectives Story
Ashleigh shares of her experience enabling a founder who had employed a team of two who were unpaid. They were holding C-Suite roles but weren’t engaged in the work and the founder started to experience dissatisfaction with their investment into the company. Ashleigh and the entrepreneur went through how she engaged with them as a leader to work out what elements were missing and what more she could do. “We discussed incentivisation. Of course, she was the visionary for the company, but the other two roles were held by friends – however they had no other tangible reason to be there and show up for the work.
She hadn’t considered that she expected a lot without compensation and driving force. She then had a conversation on how to incentivise them and they came to a better conclusion together. She came back to a session a few weeks later and they had collectively reached a resolution. They were more engaged and satisfied with the agreement. That was an example of it. The enablement helped the founder consider their point of view and how she was only considering her level of dissatisfaction with their productivity.
Enabling Breakthroughs Story
This entrepreneur was preparing to pitch for investment. He spoke about he felt high levels of anxiety about the process. “We dug into which part exactly was making him nervous. Was it the delivery or the ask? We discovered that it was in fact him asking for something, money to be specific. After exploring it further, we found that it was an anxiety rooted in the past. He expressed how growing up he didn’t like to ask his parents for anything and was responsible at a young age. So, we decided to rephrase the ask at the end of the pitch from asking for money to outlining the vision or aim that he is working to achieve. The aim of the business going forward is to raise ‘X’ amount of money which was also better for investors as they are better able to connect with the vision. It took pressure off the entrepreneur and was a small rephrasing change that made a big difference for him.
We hope your understanding of enablement has evolved (if you’ll pardon the pun.) It is designed to help your figure out what is the best perspective, action and belief to take. If you want to dive deeper and understand how we cater to entrepreneurs and how we can help you, click through to book a 1:1 call with Lily, our Accelerator Lead and Community Manager below!