I’m always searching for new and interesting ways to describe coaching skills to the coaches I’m mentoring toward their ICF credential.
This is one metaphor I’ve used for a while, so thought I’d share it here too. It involves a helicopter and the different views it offers us depending on our coaching skills ...
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Hands up anyone who enjoys being in conflict with someone? Conflict is a serious disagreement or argument with someone where there is often a ‘winner’ and a loser’ mentality. Maybe some people enjoy conflict, yet for the majority of people, we do not have a good experience of being in conflict with another person.
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14
JAN
2019
I’ve recently been using this metaphor with mentoring clients, to convey how a coach engages with their client.
Metaphor is a direct form of communication, as it cuts through a lot of words and mental churn.
Through metaphor, our client connects more holistically to an internal picture that has movement, feeling, energy and sound. It’s a fully immersive ...
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I’m pretty sure every coach has had a client who speaks a lot. And then speaks a lot more. And then some. You may have heard the term ‘verbal processor’ used to describe such people.
I understand there may be learning styles and brain wiring that is at play. I’m not going to address ...
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There’s a paradox present for coaches; simultaneously to know and practice good coaching skills, and yet not knowing how those coaching skills will best serve our client, in this coaching session.
I’m working from the premise that we believe that as a coach, our job is to serve our client. What that ...
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When I first began coaching 20 years ago, I was like every other new coach; trying to figure out how to use questions as a main way of drawing out knowledge from my client. This was so different than the consulting work I was doing, where I was paid for my expertise, therefore ...
Imagine you are walking down a path with beautiful trees on either side. The sun is shining through the trees, creating a soft glow of light on the path ahead. There’s a puddle and you easily jump over it. As you continue walking at a comfortable pace, you hear a sound nearby. Then you see a ...
Most often, our clients come to a coaching session with a topic they want to explore.
Our initial focus as the coach is to understand exactly what it is about their topic they want more clarity around, in order to move toward their desired future state. We need to understand ...
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Recently, one of our mentoring clients was coaching on our group mentoring call, and we noticed a very powerful thing occur. The coach (thank you Laura) was using a lot of “How” questions.
The client was able to articulate her perceptions, ...
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I’ve uncovered a blind spot, which I always find exciting! Because it’s often challenging to notice a blind spot in ourselves. Others most often can see in us what we cannot.