Is Professional Coaching for me?
Wouldn’t it be great to have someone who has a keen eye like an eagle and has the gift of foresight? Someone who knows and can see what needs to be done and developed in order for you to mature and succeed in whatever role you are in. Well, this someone is called a coach.
The role of a coach is to help clients in every aspect of their life – be it in their communication, relationships, performance, or career. Coaches help clients clarify and set their goals, identify the obstacles that are holding them back, and then assist the client to come up with strategies to overcome each obstacle.
Now, you might be thinking that you want to BE that someone who helps others achieve their life and work goals, yet you may be hesitant because of the thought that you don’t have what it takes. That’s where you’re wrong! Every one of us is capable of becoming a great coach.
How would you know if you would make a great coach?
1. Are you a good listener?
2. Do others approach you to help them with their problems?
3. Are you committed to helping people work through their challenges?
4. Are you able to withhold your judgement of others?
5. Do you believe in helping people take charge of their future so that they succeed?
6. Are you passionate about working with a particular group of people to make a difference?
7. Are you willing to learn new things (and possibly unlearn some of your current habits)?
8. Are you committed to living a fulfilling and successful life?
9. Are you willing to coach ethically and responsibly in the best interests of your client?
10. Are you prepared to invest the time and energy to make a well-informed decision about your future?
If you answered ‘Yes’ to at least 7 of these questions then you will make an excellent Professional Coach! (We can teach you the rest.)
To coach successfully, a Professional Coach must build a trusting relationship with the client and assist them on their journey of personal discovery. Here’s how you will do that:
Listening: In coaching, listening is more important than talking. By listening, people can be helped to overcome their fears, become completely objective, given their undivided attention and unparalleled support. This leads to the intuitive questioning that allows the client to explore what is going on for them.
Communication skills: Coaching is a two-way process. While listening is crucial, so is being able to interpret and reflect back in ways that remove barriers, pre-conceptions, bias and negativity. Communicating well enables trust and meaningful understanding on both sides. Good coaching uses communication not to give the client the answers but to help clients find their own answers – the ones that are right for them!
Rapport-building: A coach’s ability to build rapport is vital. This ability stems from a desire to help people, which all coaches tend to possess. Rapport-building is made far easier in coaching compared with other services because the coach’s only focus is on the client. When a Coach supports a person in this way it quite naturally accelerates the rapport-building process.
Curiosity, flexibility and courage: Coaching patterns vary; people’s needs are different; circumstances and timings are unpredictable. Therefore coaching relationships do not follow a single-set formula. Remembering that everyone is different and has different needs is an essential part of being a coach. Ultimately everyone is human so coaches take human emotions and feelings into account. The coach’s curiosity enables the client’s journey to be full and far-reaching. Both Coach and client are often surprised at how expectations are exceeded and how much people grow.
All of these qualities are the characteristics of a great coach but there are still more, including:
• Developing knowledge of how psychology informs our understanding of human behaviour.
• Using of psychological models to motivate clients to change.
• Applying the principles and practices of neuro-linguistic programming to coaching situations.
• Coaching ethically and responsibly to international standards.
• Applying an understanding of individual differences in the workplace.
• Communicating effectively and assertively.
• Designing, planning and delivering coaching programs.
You will learn all about these areas of human development when you complete a coach- training course with the Australian Institute of Professional Coaches.
Being a great coach takes a lot of work but we can help you become one by supporting you on your journey. All of this just takes courage! Coaches generally have a strong belief in themselves, a strong determination to do their best for their clients and a belief that inherently people are capable of achieving their innermost goals, given the right level of assistance and support.
If you want to become a Professional Coach or incorporate coaching into your organisation , contact the Australian Institute of Professional Coaches 1300 309 306 or email us at [email protected] . We look forward to speaking with you soon.
