Athletes and actors have long hired coaches to help prepare for a specific competition or role. But they aren't the only ones who can benefit from expert advice. Coaches are available to help people in any field improve their "game."

If you think leaders don't need coaches because they are already at the top, think again. Professional coach Daniel Pendley says that executives need coaches for the same reasons that high-performing individuals rely on them: "We cannot see our own mistakes, and if we are not getting better, we are getting worse."

Let me add a third reason why leaders need coaches: They are setting examples for and coaching their employees. Leaders need solid professional skills and superior people skills to establish their credibility and position themselves to move their organizations forward.

That puts leaders in a sandwich role: needing help to develop their leadership skills while coaching those whom they manage to develop in their own roles. We are all leaders, if you think about it. We lead families, teams and organizations. Experience has taught me that being a respected leader or manager has little to do with relying on titles and everything to do with listening to people.

People love or leave their jobs for many reasons. Volumes of research have been conducted to help companies increase their retention rates. It all seems to boil down to one simple question: How important do people feel in their work?

Leaders who understand that they have a great responsibility in coaching should be able to answer that question easily. Here are some follow-up questions: When was the last time you, as a leader, made it possible for people to be proud of their work and achievements? What are you as a leader doing to make work satisfying, challenging and interesting?

Robert Townsend, former CEO of Avis Rent-A-Car, summarized his view on leadership: "The real essence of leadership is to care about your people, to help them get as much as they can out of the business environment, and to have as much fun as they can. Anybody who can do that -- and really mean it -- is a leader."

Leaders and managers have a tremendous responsibility helping employees develop and learn. This challenge calls for coaching that is active and involved. Let me offer some proven advice to help you, as a leader, perfect your coaching skills.

-- Delivery is as important as the message. Before you offer up some constructive feedback, assess whether your attitude is oriented toward problem-solving or punishment. Make sure you are giving feedback that produces positive results, not demoralizing employees.

-- Tailor your coaching to the individual's style. Understand that people learn in a variety of ways: hands-on experience, visual learning or team projects. Keep in mind the individual's level of experience as well. This approach may require a little more effort, but the results will pay off.

-- Coaching takes time and patience. When you are busy with pressing matters, it's tempting to take the easy way out by deferring concerns or questions. But that tactic may backfire. Employees begin to suspect that you don't care and stop sharing valuable information that could prevent future problems. Keep lines of communication open, even during crunch times. Establish specific times when you can be available or designate someone who can act on your behalf, if necessary.

-- Explore options with your employees. While it may be simpler just to provide solutions, your goal is to teach employees how to handle similar issues in the future. Help them explore possibilities and analyze problems so they can arrive at solutions. That approach teaches critical thinking, awareness of consequences, creativity and cost-benefit analysis. A great coach doesn't just solve problems, but instead guides employees to develop their own abilities.

-- Emulate the best coaches you know. We have all had help along the way, and that's a great place to start. Find good coaches inside your own industry as well as in other businesses. Learn from their successes.

-- Practice what you preach. Set a great example, and remind those you are managing that they have the same responsibility to those whom they manage. Look for ways to be a coach in staff meetings, workplace conversations, even email and voicemail. The standards and examples you set will speak louder than any statements you make.

Mackay's Moral: If you want to build a great team, be a great coach.

Have you ever wondered where all your time goes?

You're not alone. People have been talking about time for centuries. Consider this excerpt from "The Book of Fate," written by Voltaire in the 17th century: "Of all the things in the world, which is the longest and shortest, the quickest and the slowest, the most divisible and the most extensive, the most disregarded and the most regretted, without which nothing can happen, which devours everything that is little, and gives life everything that is great?"

The answer is time. According to Voltaire, "Nothing is longer ... since it is the measure of eternity. Nothing is shorter, since it is lacking in all our plans. Nothing is slower for him who waits. Nothing is quicker for him who enjoys. It extends to the infinitely little. All men disregard it. All men regret the loss of it. Nothing happens without it. It makes forgotten everything unworthy of posterity, and it immortalizes the great things."

I have a saying that I've often used: "Killing time isn't murder; it's suicide." We all start out in life with one thing in common; we all have the same amount of time each day, each week, each month and each year. Now it's just a matter of what we do with it.

I've seen estimates that the average person spends seven years in the bathroom, six years eating, four years cleaning house, five years waiting in line, two years trying to return phone calls to people who aren't there, three years preparing meals, one year searching for misplaced items and six months sitting at red traffic lights.

That's nearly 30 years, and it doesn't include a lot of what you might need or want to do. Prioritizing your time should be a top priority.

Getting more done doesn't always mean doing more things. Sometimes it's about doing less. Don't try to schedule every minute of every day. When you make and prioritize your to-do list, leave yourself some flexibility to handle interruptions and unplanned tasks that are bound to come up. You should block out segments of your day for important tasks, but be sure to reserve enough time so that you don't have to rush through things. Taking your time can sometimes be the best use of your time.

Do you need to manage your time better at work? Who doesn't? One of the first things you have to take control of is your time. It always seems like there's not enough time to accomplish everything when you're working hard, but Bob Nelson in "1001 Ways to Take Initiative at Work," says there are some steps you can take to rescue your time. Here is some of his advice:

-- When you get to the end of your day, make a to-do list for tomorrow. Put whatever's most important to accomplish at the top of your list. That way, when you walk in, you'll know just what you need to do and where to start.

-- Make a commitment to arrive at work a half-hour early every day. Then you can get started on whatever's most important and work without interruption for that period of time.

-- Don't jump down on your list to lower-priority tasks until you have made sufficient progress on your higher-priority tasks.

-- Use a calendar and plan. It will organize you, and you won't have to spend time asking what you're supposed to be doing. You'll already know.

-- Go through your inbox at least once a day and prioritize it.

-- Say goodbye to unimportant meetings. If you don't need to be there, don't go. It will waste your time, and your list won't get any smaller.

-- Focus on what only you can do. Then, when possible, delegate to others.

-- Take a couple of hours every week to sit down and look at your big-picture goals. Are you making progress? Set or reset your goals appropriately.

-- Learn to say no. Be polite, but firm. Otherwise, you won't have the focus or energy to attain your goals.

Remember the old saying: "If we take care of the minutes, the years will take care of themselves." A minute doesn't seem like much, but the cumulative value of those minutes determines the quality of a lifetime. Don't waste another second!

Mackay's Moral: If you want to have the time of your life, make the most of your minutes.

A rancher left 17 horses as a bequest for his three children. When the rancher passed away, his children opened his will.

The will stated that the eldest child should get half of his 17 horses.

The middle child should get one-third of the 17 horses.

The youngest child should be given one-ninth of the 17 horses.

Because it is not possible to divide 17 into halves or thirds or ninths, the heirs started to fight among themselves as to the distribution. So they agreed to consult a wise old neighbor.

The wise neighbor listened patiently to the will. After giving the instructions much thought, the wise man brought one of his own horses and added it to the 17, bringing the total count to 18.

Then he started reading the will again. Half of 18 is 9, so he gave the eldest child 9 horses. One-third of 18 is 6, so he gave the middle child 6 horses. One-ninth of 18 is 2, so he gave the youngest child 2 horses.

He had distributed 9 plus 6 plus 2 horses, which came to 17. Then he took his own horse back.

Problem solved.

In this case, the wise neighbor started by acknowledging there was a problem and finding the "18th horse" -- the common ground. In order to reach a solution, you must believe that there is a solution. Once the parties find the common ground, a solution may well follow.

In my opinion, this lesson should be taught not only in every problem-solving workshop but also in every team-building exercise.

Too often, we make problems larger than they are by rushing to solutions. Methodical thinking, breaking down the problem into manageable parts, and considering unorthodox approaches are necessary skills that feed into practical outcomes.

Following are a few simple steps that will lead to more successful problem-solving.

-- Identify the problem. Believe it or not, this step is often overlooked. You know something is wrong, but you haven't identified it. Example: Sales are down. Reason: Inferior product? Ineffective sales force? Competition? Pricing strategy? Get to the root of the problem, or you will not be able to address it.

-- Come up with a list of solutions. Let your brain roam freely. Even bad ideas can lead to good ideas. Stay open-minded and be willing to listen. Consider a variety of ideas and assess the merits and pitfalls of each.

-- Trim the list to one or two solutions. Think about how those actions would best solve the problem at hand. Do you have the resources or personnel to put those solutions into action? Will committing more money help, or hurt elsewhere and create a new set of problems?

-- Take action. Decide what your ideal outcome will be. What help will you need? What is your strategy when you encounter an obstacle? Do you have the flexibility to alter your plans if the problem persists?

-- Finally, evaluate. If you have achieved a satisfactory result, can you sustain your progress? What changes would you make to improve the outcome? Can you use your plan to address other issues?

It's helpful to have a strategy prepared for when problems arise, because problems are a fact of life despite your best efforts. Accept that, but you don't have to surrender to them. Read on for a very creative solution.

A woman tells a psychiatrist: "Doctor, I have a problem and I really need help. Every night I have this terrible feeling that something or someone is under the bed, just waiting to get me."

"That sounds very serious," the doctor replied, "but I think I can help you. It will require many hours of treatment and could take several months. And it could get expensive."

"How expensive?" the patient asked.

"Each session will cost $150," the doctor replied.

"Let me think about it and get back to you," she said.

A week later the woman called the doctor and told him she would not require his services.

"Are you still planning on having therapy for your problem?" he asked.

"No, when I told my husband how much it would cost, he said he could cure me, and he has," she said.

"Really?" the incredulous doctor asked.

"Yes," she said. "He cut the legs off the bed."

Mackay's Moral: You can't solve a problem until you first admit you have one.