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Coaching is a non-judgemental way of supporting people through change. If everything in your life is currently going really well and you do not want to change anything, then you have no need for a coach. If, however, you feel that there may be areas of your life that could do with a review or a positive change, then you may find it useful to work with a coach.

The aims of coaching are to help and support people to live a more fulfilling life. This is done by encouraging people to think about and pursue what they find most fulfilling. It deals with all areas of life and aims to support people who want live a value based and sustainable life style.

As a coach the tools I use to support my clients are listening, questioning and reviewing. It is never for me to tell anyone what they should do or want. The client always chooses what they want and what they are prepared to do to achieve this. I sometimes describe it as “thinking out loud.” You are welcome to think out loud anytime, and it may well be useful, but is often even more helpful when someone else is there to respond and keep you on track. Thinking out loud by yourself, if overheard, may also sometimes be mis-interpreted as early signs of dementia and you could end up in sorts of trouble!

If there is someone in your life who will actively listen to your thoughts and feelings without judging you or advising you, then you do not need a coach. Most people find it difficult to be totally open and honest with those who are closest to them as it is sometimes difficult to maintain the distance and objectivity required to be effective as a coach.

I have practiced and studied coaching for over two years now and am still learning. One of my favourite things in life is learning and as I understand more about how to live a fulfilling and sustainable life I bring this into my coaching work. I will continue to write about my understanding of coaching as I practice and learn. Feel free to contact me to ask or discuss any questions you have around coaching. Take care, Mark.

Coaching is a client centred process. That means that each client owns the goals and the outcomes from the sessions. They are in control of the what, where and why.

Each client is unique and has a wealth of resources and experiences to bring to the session. Each session is also different. Taking that into account there are some common steps to the coaching process. Many people are not sure whether they want to take on a coach as they are not sure how the process of coaching operates. So this is a brief description of the process within my coaching practice.

As it feels a bit cold to keep describing the people I work with as “a client”, lets call this client John.

When John contacts me we have a brief discussion around how the sessions operate, how long they last and when we are both available. If John feels that he would like to know more I will give him an agreement to read through and sign. This outlines my responsibilities and John’s responsibilities. A clear description of the charges and the payment terms is included in the agreement.

If John feels this is acceptable he will sign the agreement and return a copy to me. We can then book a suitable time for the sessions. They generally last for six sessions and most people find that once a week or once a fortnight gets the best results. I am happy to fit in with whatever John feels is best. We can block book these appointments or book them as we go along.

Lets say that John books six sessions to take place on six consecutive Tuesday evenings and that we are going to work using the phone. For the first session I will call John at the agreed time and we will start by John describing which area of his life he would like to concentrate on. It could be his work, his health, his social or family life. It is up to him to choose the area that is most important to him at this time. If he finds this difficult we can discuss some ways and tools he could use to identify which area of his life is currently most important to him.

Some of the clients I work with want to look at their work life and feel that they could get more satisfaction out of the time they spend earning a living. If John decided this was an area he wanted to work on, I would encourage him to describe his current situation and then to describe how it would have to look for him to be totally happy. 

I believe that whenever we want to make a change in our lives it is a good idea to start with a clear picture of where we want to be. What does it look like and how does it feel? It may be that the intial picture changes as we get nearer to it, but if we are not sure about where we want to be, it will be difficult to know how to get there. So I will encourage John to start with the end in mind. I do this by listening and asking questions. My questions are designed to help John be clear about what he wants. My questions aim to help John focus on what he wants and what he is happy to do to acheive this, as it up to him to take ownership of his goals and how he wants to acheive them.

At the end of the first session John may have identified an area that he feels needs attention and he may also have identified a goal. The pace will be set by John so he can get to this point in one or several sessions, it is up to him. He will also have made a note of actions that he needs to take to move towards his goal. Once John is happy with his goal and the actions he has chosen, we will end the session and he will take one or several of those actions to complete before the next session.

My job is to ask non-judgemental and pertinent questions and help John focus on his goal and the actions required to acheive it. Although I do not motivate John, he may find it helps to have someone there to listen to him, reflect on his answers and review his actions and thoughts. He may also find that this helps him to focus on the positive steps he needs to take to ensure that he is living a life that is fulfilling and sustainable.

I am always happy to discuss any area of my coaching work and my way of working, so if you have any questions use the contacts (on the right) to get in touch. Take care, Mark.