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What the Heck is Coaching, Anyway? How this misunderstood field can help you get unstuck and reach your potential By Dan Trommater
“You are perfect exactly as you are and there’s always room for improvement.”
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hat’s a Zen philosophy that I embody in my coaching practice. At first glance, it’s counterintuitive. If you’re ‘perfect’, then there shouldn’t be room for improvement. But in this context, perfection isn’t about being flawless. Perfection isn’t being the best. It’s accepting yourself (flaws and all) and knowing that you can always get better. Coaching can be a fantastic way to do just that. Coaching is a buzzword lately. Life coaches and executive coaches seem to be everywhere. But what does ‘coaching’ even mean? If you’ve ever wondered what coaching is all about (and if it is a good fit for you), I’m writing this for you. The International Coaching Federation (the world’s leading coach accrediting organization) defines coaching as “partnering with clients in a thought-provoking and creative process that inspires them to maximize their personal and professional potential.” That’s great, but what does it really mean? Let’s start with a high-level answer, then I’ll dig in a little deeper and
IHM News • Winter 2022
explain what it actually looks like in practice. Broadly stated, coaching is for people who want to grow, achieve goals, and reach their potential; and they want a trusted partner to assist them along the way.
Coaching is about looking at the current state of affairs and then working towards a better future. WHAT COACHING IS: Coaching is an equal partnership between a coach and a client – It’s a structured conversational partnership that leads to the client moving from where they are, to where they want to be in any area of their life. Depending upon the client, ‘where they want to be’ can mean different things. I’ve worked with a wide variety of clients with a wide variety of goals ranging from career concerns to relationship struggles to increasing confidence. While it’s an equal partnership, it’s one in which the client leads. It’s up to the client to decide what areas to focus upon, as well as the goals for each
session. That brings us to the next quality of good coaching… Coaching is a confidential and judgement-free process – The coach’s main goal is to create a safe, judgement-free environment in which the client can improve and move toward their goals. The ‘judgement-free’ part is important. A good coach will push their client to new heights, but will never harshly judge any shortcomings. Once that safe environment is created, the coach asks questions designed to help the client get clear on their goals and how they’ll reach them. Coaching is rooted in curiosity – Instead of judgement, a coach’s power comes from curiosity. By turning down the judgement and cranking up the curiosity, we can move past guilt and shame, and start to make forward momentum. By asking powerful questions, the coach helps the client uncover assumptions and find new approaches. Coaching is future-focused. – While it may be interesting to think about why things are the way they are, it’s not always very productive. Coaching is about looking at the current state of affairs and then working towards a better future. It’s like this – would you rather figure out Continued on page 4
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