Ask anyone to define the word coach and you will get a wide
variety of responses. Some will say a coach is a sort of
tutor or instructor, but others will say it's a large,
multi-wheeled railway carriage. Unfortunately, the second
definition is about as helpful as the first in deciding
what coaching at work is all about.
To be a 'Coach' and to participate in 'Coaching' are both
currently trendy terms but are both widely misunderstood.
Coaching is ultimately about raising the levels of human
performance and, as such, has connections with teaching,
training, counselling and mentoring. However, there are
subtle but important differences that we need to understand.
In essence, coaching has two main facets. Firstly it is
performance focused which means it is concerned with
helping individuals perform tasks to the best of their
ability. Secondly,it is person centred which means that it
is the individuals being coached who are seen as having the
important insights. Fundamentally then, coaching is about
drawing out, not putting in.
By using coaching we can tap into the huge reserves of
talent and potential which lay dormant in most people. As
managers, we can develop people without having to rely on
passing on our own skills and knowledge, which may already
be out of date. Without an ability to coach we are left to
trust the tired old methods of teaching and instruction
which are proving increasingly ineffective in the world of
constant change to which we are all having to adjust.
When most people think about coaching, they think about a
sports coach shouting and yelling at the players and trying
to help them succeed without being directly involved. In
sport,the role of coach is crucial in helping people
perform at their peak, and even the most accomplished
sportspeople such as Tiger Woods or Roger Federer still
gain huge benefit from a good relationship with their coach.
The role of the coach in organizations is broadly similar.
Whether the coaching is delivered by a manger as a general
part of their duties or by a specific coach, they will
still be trying to achieve results through others. In
thinking about coaching in this way we can see that there
is great benefit to be had from having someone in the
organization who has the skills and abilities to draw the
best out of others. If it were possible to have everyone in
an organization improve their performance by as little as
one or two per cent then the results would be staggering.
Many organizations are now taking the power of coaching
very seriously and appointing people to the specific role
of coach. Whilst managers may have the skills and abilities
to coach well they are often preoccupied with more task
oriented matters and can struggle to find the time to coach
effectively.
Increasingly we are able to tap into coaching outside our
organizations. There are many small consultancies offering
Executive Coaching, where top-level managers in
organizations can have regular weekly or monthly sessions
with a trained coach to help them work through their
current issues. It can often be of great benefit to have a
coach who does not work in the organization and who is,
therefore, not involved in the same issues. Similarly, some
people are now seeking the services of Life Coaches to help
them work through personal problems, achieve goals and
strike an effective work/life balance.
Whatever the context, we can see that coaching is intended
to be a means by which one individual seeks to help another
move forward and develop in some way.
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Matt Somers is a coaching practitioner of many years'
experience. He works with a host of clients in North East
England where his firm is based and throughout the UK and
Europe. Matt understands that people are working with their
true potential locked away. He shows how coaching provides
a simple yet elegant key to this lock. For a bumper load of
coaching tips and tricks - including FREE resources - visit
http://www.mattsomers.com
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