Is Coaching Right For You?
IS COACHING RIGHT FOR YOU?
How ready are you for coaching? Read these statements, and consider how much they represent what you think.
Listen to Your Intuition. Consider each statement, and note your reaction. Does it ring true for you and affirm your sense of readiness? Or does it create doubt and discomfort? The more the statements seem true about you, the more likely you are to experience success with coaching.
1. I have a genuine desire to stretch and change.
- Motivation for change has to come from within you, not to please someone else.
2. I am willing to try new concepts and experiment with different ways of doing things.
- Unless you shift perspectives and try new behaviours, little is likely to change.
3. I value collaboration and am willing to ask for help when I need it.
- The stoic, go-it-alone leader who thinks asking for help is an admission of weakness is less likely to appreciate coaching.
4. I am disciplined about following through on commitments.
- Doing “homework” between sessions - reading, self-observations, practices, and action steps - is important to produce genuine, sustainable shifts over time.
5. I am candid and open in my relationships.
- Coaching is a partnership that requires you to be assertive in asking for what you want and to speak up when something is not working.
6. I am open to candid feedback from my coach and others.
- Listening to your coach and others will challenge established paradigms and require reconsideration of behaviour which may be deeply embedded.
7. I am willing to discuss my journey with others.
- If you need to keep your learning process a secret, are you really committed to change?
8. I am willing to invest the necessary time in coaching.
- Coaching is a powerful tool, but it requires willingness to make the proper investment. It only makes sense if you are serious about the process.
9. I will make this effort a priority for at least six months.
- If you’re expecting a quick fix, save your investment. Real change results from learning, practice and feedback over time. Given this, you can expect real, observable and sustainable changes.
10. This is the right time for me to be doing this; I have the motivation and there’s no reason to delay.
- It’s best to time coaching to coincide with a real need so you have both the motivation and the opportunity to apply what you’re learning.
Based on document by Doug Silsbee
HOW TO GET THE BEST FROM YOUR COACHING
People choose to work with a coach for many different reasons but they all share a desire to make a significant change in one or more aspects of their lives. Working with a coach gives you special, uninterrupted time to focus completely on you and what you want to achieve.
During that time you can:
- Gain clarity around what you really want to achieve
- Identify your unique attributes
- Discover what's really important to you and understand what makes you successful
- Fully tap into your own potential
- Explore future possibilities
- Learn to make choices more easily
- Discover new strategies and tactics for success
- Increase your self-awareness, confidence and discover your development areas
- Learn from both success and disappointment
- Break through barriers that may have held you back in the past
- Get the results you want
What will you need to do to get results:
- Take responsibility for your own learning
- Have a genuine desire to stretch and change
- Be willing to try new concepts, and experiment with different ways of doing things
- Be open to candid feedback from your coach and others
- Be prepared to invest the necessary time in coaching
- Use coaching time effectively and make this effort a priority for at least six months
- Present yourself and your work openly and honestly
- Apply learning from your coaching to your performance at work
- Be aware of other stakeholders in the coaching arrangements e.g. the team you work in, your organisation, professional bodies
- On-going reflection on your coaching experience
- Feedback to yourself and to others (e.g. your organisation).
