From early forms of transportation, i.e. stage coach, or rail coach, the word “coaching” literally means to transport someone from one place to another. One thing that all forms of coaching have in common is that people use it to help them move forward in a certain direction.

Coaching is a form of one-to-one development. Through questioning, feedback and exercises, a coach facilitates a conversation rich in reflective thinking, insights and learning. By becoming more aware of what is going on, the client can make informed choices and plan to implement effective actions. The goal is to create new learning and behaviours that in turn, will generate improved performance and personal satisfaction.

What coaching is NOT? 

Coaching is not any of the following:

• Structured training, e.g. classroom learning – Coaching follows a more flexible format, according to the client’s context, style and objectives. Both the coachee and the coach influence the direction and content of sessions. Coaching also places real responsibility for learning on the individual and encourages learning to continue after the session.

• Therapy, psychoanalysis, psychotherapy – Whilst coaching is not therapy, and should not be viewed as therapy, it does provide a viable alternative to people who may have previously considered some form of counselling to resolve a situation. For example, coaching promotes a greater self-awareness, and full appreciation of our situations and circumstances. Sometimes, change can be promoted by a simple change in perspectives. Barriers of self-belief such as “I cannot” or “I do not” can be challenged in order to encourage fresh approaches and ideas.

• A way of someone else solving your problems for you – Coaching is based in the principle that an individual is ultimately responsible for their lives and the results they are getting. If we acknowledge that we are responsible for something, it follows that we have power and influence over it. For example, if you are not getting the results at work that you want, a coach may encourage you to: Understand the situation more clearly; Develop new ideas or approaches for such situations; Take constructive action that gets you the results you want

What a coach will not do is instruct you to go and do something specific or go and do it for you. If they did, the coach would be taking responsibility and so power away from you.

Click here to know more about ” What you can expect from your coach and what will your coach expect from you/”

(Source: The Coaching Manual by Julie Starr)