Coaching Isn't Just For "Sessions"
I Fell In Love With Coaching Again This Week - TWICE!
Good Coaching can be used anywhere.
This week I had two different incidents where I benefited from coaching myself.
Scenario #1 - In my work at Worship Center occasionally I have to deal with difficult situations. Times when I have to deal with tricky situations where I don't want to hurt someone's feelings, but where I may need to speak some truth. I always want to do that in kindness, with care, and in hopes of offering growth. So, in this situation, I knew I wanted to talk to our Exec Pastor, Don Neff, to be sure I was moving forward in the right way.
Don is a sage leader and true to form he heard me out without interrupting or telling me what to do. As I was explaining the situation I found myself using the language I look for, and long for, as a coach. I said,
"You know what I probably ought to do?..." (I even told him I wish I had recorded what I had said so I could remember it and write some bullet points for the upcoming conversation.)
Other versions could include,
"I should probably just..."
"I don't know..., I'm thinking maybe it would just be best if I..."
If the coachee is in a healthy place, and not just grasping for a quick fix, those statements are usually a sign of the Holy Spirit prompting the person toward what they should do next.
I know that was true for me. I even felt a little sheepish for using his time, but I would not have come to the clarity I needed to move forward without talking it out, out loud, to him.
Thanks, Don!
Scenario #2 - I was dealing with a certain situation and sharing it with my husband, another sage leader. At first, he was being husbandly - caring in kindness, offering support - and then I asked him if he would coach me.
We shifted gears.
He put on his thinking partner, coach's, hat and started asking me empowering questions. Not just questions about what action steps I should take, but curious questions about what was at the core of my wondering. Who I wanted to show up as in the situation. What I wanted to look back at this situation and say about how I handled myself and honored the other person.
It wasn't long and I had two "Aha" moments! I knew who I wanted to be and how I wanted to show up in this particular situation moving forward.
Coaching isn't just for sessions!
Both Don and Eric used coaching principles to help me move forward. They pulled from within me what God was already prompting me toward!
Do you need to be coached? You can find a good match in our Bridges Coaching Associate Coaches!
Or maybe you want to be more of a sage leader like Don and Eric? You can use the coaching paradigm in almost all your relationships! The BEST way is our certification course, but the videos have great info as well.