Results Coaching Part 1

“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” — Chinese Proverb

The RESULTS Coaching Model.

R- Reason for being there
E- Establish
S- Self awareness
U- Understanding
L- Learning
T- Time to reflect
S- Success

As a coach it is important to have an attitude of curiosity and to use powerful questions to get to the deep structure of what is going on in the client’s life. So the questions we ask as a coach serve a purpose, and need to be well thought out. The questions will depend on the client and the situation, so you may have some standard type of questions, but it is important not to limit yourself as a coach by only having a set of questions set in stone. Your curiosity as a coach will also help guide you as to which questions may be pertinent to the situation.

In using these powerful, probing, thought provoking questions it is very important for the coach to be actively listening and to be present. Being totally there with the client and not being lost in other thoughts not relating to the client. That does not serve the client and will also not endear you to them as it will become obvious to the client that you are not fully there for them. An easy to read book which demonstrates very well the importance of being present is called “Fish Tales” by Stephen C. Lundin, Harry Paul & John Christensen.

So bearing this in mind, let’s look at what we mean by each of the parts of this model.

Reason for being there.

Reduce your plan to writing. The moment you complete this, you will have given concrete form to the intangible desire. – Napoleon Hill

I have experienced people calling to start a potential coaching relationship and at the first meeting it is evident that they don’t actually want to be there. They have either been told by their boss or by the significant other person in their life that they need coaching. It may even be a young person that has been told by a parent to have coaching. They had no intention of actually taking up the services of a coach as it never crossed their mind that they needed one. In their model of the world they were doing great.

Results coaching requires willing clients.

What is the potential problem with somebody being told to go for coaching? For one, if somebody does not want to be there or in a “coaching relationship”, they will make you suffer for it. They will not do their homework, be late for sessions or do something that is going to make it extremely hard work to coach them. They may even deliberately sabotage the coaching sessions.

In a coach- client relationship, the client needs to ask to be coached and they need to want to achieve results. They need to have a vested interest in making it work. Thus it is very important to understand the client’s motivation for actually meeting with you or being there.

Another potential problem may be that the client is actually looking for a therapist, mentor or somebody other than a coach. So it is very clear to understand why they are there to meet with you. Often people think that a coach is there to tell them what to do. I have experienced this on a number of times with business coaching clients. Some business owners think that it is the coach’s responsibility to come in and turn their business around. To show them how to manage their staff or set up contracts etc.

Some therapists use results coaching.

In the same vain, a coach is not a therapist and although a therapist may use coaching skills in their interaction with their client, the coach is not a therapist. There are more therapists that are starting to use coaching in their practice. Some coaches may have a therapy back ground and be in a position to help the client and in those instances it is important to explain what it is you are going to do for the client and what type of relationship you are entering into. As far as the ICF is concerned, in a true coaching relationship, the coach does not do any therapy, but rather refers the client to somebody else if the need arises. The water can become muddied if clear boundaries are not drawn up at the start of the coaching relationship.

In the coming weeks we will look at each letter of the Results coaching model and how it may be used to assist the client.

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Have a awesome day and remember you are in charge of your destiny.