Coaching FAQ from The Developers' Coach

Home

Design Your Life

Personal Coaching

Team Coaching

free eZine

About

Articles

Links

Frequently Asked Questions About Coaching

What is coaching?

My role as a coach is to help you find out what you want in your life, assist you in exploring ways of reaching those goals, and giving support and encouragement as you put your plans into action. As an NLP Coach I can also help you identify and change limiting beliefs, behaviours and thought patterns that may hold you back.

Coaching is different from consulting or therapy:
A consultant is an expert paid to offer advice. As a coach I am not an expert in how to run your life - you are! I will help you find your own answers by asking tough questions and getting you to look at your situation in new ways. I may offer suggestions and exercises from time to time, but they are just that - suggestions. If you feel they are not right for you then say so, and we can work out something that is more appropriate for your needs.

Therapy is based on the assumption that there is something wrong with you that needs fixing. Most therapies examine your past to find out what went wrong, in order to 'fix' the way you are now. Coaching is based on the belief that you are fine as you are, and looks at where you want to be in the future, starting from where you are now.

What can I work on during a coaching session?

You can use the coaching to examine and work on any area of your life. Areas that other people have worked on include:

Career - changing jobs or improving an existing job
Business - many business owners use coaching to find ways to grow and improve their business
Improving work/life balance
Time management and working more effectively
Relationships - either improving an existing relationship or finding a new partner
Health and fitness, including weight loss
Social life - becoming more confident, finding new hobbies and interests

What happens during a coaching session?

I typically coach through a thirty-minute or a one-hour phone call at regular intervals, depending on the level of service selected. It is your responsibility as the client to ring at the appointed time. You are paying for my time, so if you are ten minutes late in phoning for a thirty minute session, then you will get a twenty minute session. I also provide email support between coaching sessions when appropriate.

During the session I will typically help you to:

Explore what you want to achieve in your life
Set specific goals and plan a course of action to achieve them
Examine issues or beliefs that may hold you back
Look at the behavioural patterns and systems that may help or hinder change
Brainstorm solutions to problems, using a wide range of creative thinking techniques

I may also:

Ask thought-provoking questions to stimulate you to look at things in new ways
Listen, really listen to what you say. Not only to the surface content of what you are saying, but also listening for the patterns, beliefs and feelings behind content
Give honest feedback on what I observe
Set you assignments to do between coaching sessions

I will also hold you accountable to the actions that you commit to take between coaching sessions. This means that when you take those actions I will congratulate you and celebrate with you. If you do not manage to take an action that you have committed to then we will examine the reasons why not, and perhaps adjust the action to one that you can truly commit to. I will not browbeat you, guilt trip you or tell you off. You are ultimately responsible for your own life. Many people find that by making specific commitments to their coach, they achieve far more than they would normally do.

Every coaching relationship is an alliance - I am a resource for you to use in the way that suits you best. If you choose to be coached by me then we will spend some time designing the coaching alliance and set long term goals for the coaching. This alliance is not set in stone, but will evolve over time.

How should I prepare for a coaching session?

You should start each coaching session with a clear idea of you want out of that session. Spend some time before you pick up the phone thinking through what the important issues and goals are in your life at that moment. Review what actions you have taken and what progress you have made since the last session.

You should also have pen and paper to hand for making notes. Ensure that you are in a quiet environment with no distractions - coaching demands full attention - and with sufficient privacy.

How long should I continue coaching?

That is up to you. While you can get a lot of benefit from a single coaching session, the effects are cumulative and the true power of coaching emerges over time. Some people take coaching for a few weeks in order to work on a specific issue, goal or project. Others continue working with the same coach for many months or even years. Still others will change coaches every few months to get a fresh perspective on their life. Some people have several coaches at once and work on a different area of their life with each coach.

If you decide that you want to work with a different coach for whatever reason, then I will do my best to help you find a coach suitable for your specific needs.

What about confidentiality?

Everything that happens in the coaching sessions is confidential and will not be discussed with anyone else without your permission. I may occasionally wish to tape sessions so that I can review my coaching afterwards, or for review by a supervisor. In these cases I will ask permission first and explain what the tape will be used for and who will listen to it. You always have the right to say no.