Frequently Asked Questions
Can't find what you are looking for? Drop me an email.
What is coaching?
Coaching is a new profession. Coaches:
- Help people set better goals and then
reach those goals.
- Ask their clients to do more than they
would have done on their own.
- Help their client to focus better so
as to produce results more quickly.
- Provide clients with the tools,
support and structure to accomplish more.
"My clients get focused and producing
faster because they have a coach."
Back to the Top
Where did the
coaching field first get started and who started it?
In the past, many people did a form of
coaching, but did not call themselves coaches. The field as we know it
started in the early 1980s. Here's an account by Thomas Leonard, one of
the first coaches and Founder of Coach U.
"I began coaching in the early 80s,
before I even knew what coaching was and long before we had developed the
advanced tools that most coaches take for granted today. I had been
working as an accountant and certified financial planner for ten years.
One day, I found myself with six of my 'yuppier' clients, discussing how
many kids they wanted, what kind of cars to buy, where to go on vacations,
when to retire, etc. I found that they had no one to talk with about these
types of things. They were reasonably well-adjusted emotionally, they had
happy families and they were successful in their business and careers, so
there weren't any 'needs' or crises to handle. We had a great time
'creating their future' together, and they entrusted me with some long
hoped for dreams that they'd either given up on or figured they'd do
'later.'
They let me help them identify what they
really wanted in life and when they wanted it. Then we got to work on
helping them realize their wants in this lifetime! Because I was a
financial planner, I figured I must have been doing "life planning." Over
time, I adopted the word coach, which has become the word of choice among
the professionals who do this type of work.
What I have discovered is that coaching
happens most easily when clients use a coach to help them set goals, grow,
get a great life, make changes, make more money. This, rather than the
coach trying to 'help' the client. We're adults here; no parenting or
therapy allowed in the coaching relationship. And, most clients really
enjoy and appreciate the interdevelopmental nature of the relationship.
You're 'growing' the client and the client is coaching you on how to coach
them even better! In fact, we say that our organization (Coach U) can
teach you the 20%-absolutely-essential skills and technology of coaching,
but that your clients will teach you the other 80%, if you'll just ask
them to. (And, yes, they'll still write you a check.) Doesn't it make
sense that we, as consumers, can and should direct the professionals in
our lives to help us our way? The coaching profession has advanced along
this line of thinking, and that's one reason coaching works so well.
Back to the Top
How is coaching
different from consulting? Therapy? Sports coaching? A best friend?
Consulting. Coaching is rather like consulting.
However, the coach stays with the client to help implement the new skills,
changes and goals, to make sure that they really happen.
Therapy. Coaching is not therapy. Coaches don't
work on "issues" or get into the past or deal much with understanding
human behavior. That knowledge may come as clients move forward toward
personal and professional goals that will give them the life they really
want, but it should not be the focus of a coaching relationship.
Sports. Coaching includes several principles
from sports coaching, like teamwork, going for the goal, being your best.
Unlike sports coaching, most professional coaching is not competition or
win/lose based. Coaches focus on strengthening their clients' skills, not
on helping them beat the other team. Coaches look for win/win solutions.
Best friend. A best friend is wonderful to
have. But is your best friend a professional who you will trust to work
with you on the most important aspects of your life and/or business? Have
both - a best friend and a coach.
Back to the Top
What is the basic
philosophy of coaching?
Simply put, it is that we humans are great,
that we're all discovering what we really want, and that we can get what
we want faster and more easily by having a coach who's been there and who
can help us.
Back to the Top
Who hires a coach
and why?
People hire a coach because:
- They want more.
- They want to grow.
- They want to do things more easily.
It's as simple as that. Coaches help a
client get all three, quickly.
Back to the Top
What happens when
you hire a coach?
Many things, but the most important are:
- You take yourself more seriously.
- You take more effective and focused
actions immediately.
- You stop putting up with what is
dragging you down.
- You create momentum so that it's
easier to get results.
- You set better goals that are more
exactly what YOU want.
Back to the Top
Does the coach work
on personal goals or business/professional goals?
Both, actually. With the line between personal
and business life blurring, as it is in the 90s, the coach is the only
professional trained to work with all aspects of you.
Back to the Top
Where does the
coach focus with an average client?
Coaches focus where their clients need them the
most. Part of their discussions often include:
- Getting the client's Personal
Foundation strengthened.
- Helping the client beef up their
Reserve.
- Helping the client set goals based on
individual Personal Values.
By including these with what each client
wants, coaches help their clients have fewer problems and focus on what
will make them the most successful. Clients really enjoy this approach.
Back to the Top
Why does coaching
work?
Coaching works for several reasons:
- Synergy between the coach and client
creates momentum.
- Better goals are set -- ones that
naturally pull the client toward the goal rather than goals that require
the client to push themselves to the goal.
- The client develops new skills, and
these skills translate into more success.
Back to the Top
Why is coaching
becoming so popular?
Coaching is becoming popular for several
reasons:
- Many people are tired of doing what
they think they "should" do and are ready to do something special and
meaningful for the rest of their lives. One problem is that many can't
see what this is or, if they can, they can't find a way to reorient
their life around it. A coach can help them do both.
- People are realizing how simple it can
be to accomplish something that several years ago might have felt out of
reach or like a pipedream. A coach is not a miracle worker (well,
sometimes they are), but a coach does have a large tool kit to help the
Big Idea become a Reality. Fortunately, people now have time and
resources to invest in themselves in this kind of growth.
- Spirituality. If you tracked the
phenomenal success of James Redfield's Celestine Prophecy on the NY
Times bestseller list back in 1994, you got a sense of just how many
people are willing to look at, and consider, the notion of spirituality.
Wow. Many coaches are spiritually based -- even the ones who coach IBM
and AT&T. America is growing more spiritual very quickly. (Our working
definition of spirituality? "How connected you are with yourself and
others.") The coach helps the clients to tune in better to themselves
and to others.
Back to the Top
Please, give me
some context about coaching...
A personal coach does just what an athletic
coach or music teacher does, only in a more complete and bigger way. A
coach challenges you and takes the time to find out what winning in life
means to you. A coach is your partner in living the life you know you can
accomplish, personally and professionally. A coach is someone to hold you
accountable for your life, to make sure you really do live up to your
potential.
No matter where you are in life, there is
always a desire for more. More success, more money, closer relationships,
a deeper feeling of meaning in life, etc. It is the nature of people to
want to attain more, become more, be more, and we all struggle with how to
get what we're looking for.
Most people believe that "hard work and
doing it on your own" are the keys to finding the life, success, money, or
happiness that they seek. They believe that a price must be paid to attain
what they want, and often that price is poor health, not having enough
time to enjoy life, strained family relationships or lessened
productivity. The saddest part is that, even though this effort may result
in more of something, it is often not the something you had in mind, and
you end up back where you started, or worse, further from your real
intentions.
Athletes and performers know about this
trap. They know they need someone else, a trained someone else to help
them set goals, discover real needs, and work effectively toward ultimate
goals of excellence. So, they are willing to hire a coach or a teacher. No
serious athlete or musician would expect to progress very far without one.
Back to the Top
What about people
who are already doing really well in their lives. Why would they need a
coach?
They might not need a coach. But it is helpful
to find out: Are they doing what they most enjoy? Are they tolerating
anything? Is life easy? Are they going to be financially independent
within the next 15 years? Do they have what they most want? We've
discovered that, often, people need to expect more out of their lives. A
coach can help in this process.
Back to the Top
Can a dependency be
created between coach and client?
Not really. The client may "need" the coach in
order to maximize an opportunity or accelerate their growth, yet not be
"dependent" on the coach. Anyone who's working on major changes "needs"
structure, advice, support and a place to brag, so, in that sense, the
coach is certainly helpful, but an emotional, psychological dependency is
not created. The coach works with people who are just fine and strong
enough on their own. Remember, we're not resolving issues here. The coach
is helping the client to create a better future: More success, more money,
and a higher quality of life.
Back to the Top
Can coaching hurt
someone?
No. Remember, coaches aren't doing
psychological work. They're not trying to control the client's thinking.
They're not cattle prods; they're partners.
Back to the Top
Can I hire a coach just
for a short-term, special project?
Yes. Some clients hire a coach to help them
accomplish specific goals or projects. Usually, however, the client keeps
working with the coach after that because there are even more interesting
things to accomplish.
Back to the Top
How long must I
commit if I start working with a coach?
Most coaches ask for a three to six month
commitment but usually let you stop immediately if coaching is not working
for you right now. A signed agreement is simply
good business.
Back to the Top
|
