What Is Coaching?
The Pyramid Resource Group
 | |
 | What is coaching?
Coaching is one of the most effective resources in leadership development. It is a co-creative process that capitalizes on the existing wisdom of the client coupled with the specific skills of the coach. Together, the coach and client work together to map out and execute a development plan that guarantees positive results for both the client and their company. Coaching is a method of development that catalyzes the capacity for learning and growth and helps leaders sort through options for improvement to make clear decisions. Coaching conversations open a wisdom channel between heart and mind, so that people are valued in the process of a business. |
Coaching = Partnership + Wisdom + Action
What is a Coach?
- An external, personal and professional partner
- A resource who supports a person’s professional and personal best
- A mirror to wisdom and strengths, so people grow and take action to achieve the extraordinary
How can you tell you are ready for coaching?
Are you …
- Willing to try new concepts and ideas without fear of failure or exposure?
- Willing to tell the truth – speak honestly about what you really think and feel?
- Open to professional and personal growth, and willing to discuss these with a committed partner?
- Engaged and willing to share insights, questions, reservations and concerns?
- Ready, willing, and able to make changes?
- Be fully committed to the coaching process?
Why provide Coaching?
- To grow and nurture leaders who will consistently demonstrate behaviors and drive the culture shift from managing to leading
- To maximize personal and professional effectiveness
- A unique win/win retention tool
- Great people become greater
- Accelerated development
- Assist with job transitions, new cultural situations
- Effectiveness in change and leading change
- Maximize learning
- Increase confidence in leading and taking action
How do people use a coach?
- To develop strategic thinking – considering business context in work and effectively communicating strategic business needs to others
- To work on ambitious production goals with the constraints of time and resources
- To develop specific skills: influencing, conflict management, negotiation, communication, & leadership.
- To cope with rapid change
- To create a better future: no more success, more money, and a higher quality of life
- To help to address questions such as: Am I doing what I enjoy the most? Am I tolerating anything? Do I have what I want most?
- To explore opportunities for different positions within the organization
- To improve personal interaction style within a group
What Coaching is not…
- A program
- Mentoring or teaching
- A short term fix for problem employees
- A therapy session
- It will not make someone something they are not
- The most effective way to introduce basic management skills
How does the Coaching process work?
- There is no cookie cutter approach : sessions are designed around participants’ goals/needs
- Fieldwork: participants are given formulas, new perspectives, or challenges to try something a new way. Each fieldwork period lasts for the time between calls - - one to two weeks. Assignments are kept short and meaningful.
- The coach is a resource: participants can call or email if they are “stuck.” They may need to share a victory or get feedback. Unscheduled calls are limited to 5 – 10 minutes.
- The coaching is CONFIDENTIAL: the coach does not report the content of coaching conversations to anyone.
- The coach’s work is to coach the client: a coach will evoke answers about goals, managing others, and taking care of yourself.
- Coaches work primarily by phone: the coach wants to fit into the business flow. Telephoning makes it easy to stay in the coaching relationship from anywhere. The coaches have been trained to use finely honed listening skills very well via phone.
- There is a choice: participants have the option of working with a coach who is strong/comfortable match.
- You make the call: the participant calls the coach at an appropriately scheduled time.
Differences between coaching and other disciplines:
| Therapy | Mentoring | Consulting | Coaching |
Focus of Work | Deals with past and trauma, seeks healing | Deals mostly with succession training | Deals mostly with problems, and seeks to provide expertise | Deals with the present |
Relationship | Therapist has answers | Mentor has the answers | Consultant has answers | Coach helps client discover own answers |
Process | The therapist diagnoses | The mentor observes and provides guidance and wisdom | The consultant evaluates a situation and advises | The coach and client work together; the client is held accountable |
Coaching can help managers and executives…
- Manage an organizational growth spurt
- Deal with an over-pressured, burned out work force
- Make an immediate impact on a new team
- Encounter resistance
- Help you deal with people who hate their jobs
- Help you deal with negative perceptions from your team
- Find their voice if they are in a minority position in their company
- Remain “human” while leading high performance organizations
- Craft a legacy before considering retirement
- Navigate their way on the fast track
- Polish competencies while waiting for that promotion
- Become more aware of their significant contributions
- Ease the struggle with innovation
- Break through a glass ceiling
- Merge their company cultures