How To Get The Most Out Of Your Coaching Relationship
Having a coach is a huge investment. Either you personally make the decision to have a coach, or your school leadership chooses to provide you with one. Either way, coaching requires an investment of your time and energy.
As your coach, I can help you achieve your goals and reach the next level. That “next level” varies from person to person. It may be:
- planning for changes that you’d like to make to your teaching practice
- developing your leadership skills
- exploring how to succeed in a new role
- figuring out how to enhance your own wellbeing
- inspiring those you work with, etc.
Everyone is unique, and the possibilities are endless.
No matter what the area of focus is in coaching, it is crucial that you, as the coachee, know how to make the most out of your coaching experience.
Here are a couple of ways that you can make the most out of a coaching session:
1. Identify your goal(s) and/or area of focus
It helps to come into each coaching session with an area or idea that you would like to focus on. One of my favorite quotes is by business management writer Patrick Lencioni: “If everything is important, then nothing is." You really can do anything, but you can’t do everything.
The more specific you can be about the area that you want to work on, the better your results will be over time. (Don’t worry if you come to your first few coaching conversations having no idea what you want to talk about. You’ll get better at this over time, I promise).
2. Keep a journal
During your coaching conversations it's a great idea to have some sort of notebook to record things that we chat about. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy, but I highly recommend that you consider keeping some sort of record of what jumped out at you during the conversation as well as notes about what is happening between coaching sessions. This will not only help you self-reflect but bring real-life situations into the session. Sharing specific situations takes the discussion to deeper levels. Review your notes before the coaching session to help you focus. When you have specific details to share, it helps us to really get to the root of your ideas.
2 - 3 days after each coaching conversation that we have I will flick through any resources that I have which may support you along your journey.
3. Be open
In a coaching relationship, it is critical for the coachee to be open and honest. Connection and trust between the coach and coachee are crucial and I treat your confidentiality with the utmost importance. I will ask you thought-provoking, inspiring, challenging, supportive and powerful questions to help you identify the root of the problem, other possibilities and/or what is next. When you provide honest and transparent answers, you will have more meaningful results.
4. Be prepared to be challenged
I will ask you questions to help challenge your thinking and help you see other possibilities. You will be taking an inward look and thinking critically. As you work on achieving your goals, you will be challenged to get out of your comfort zone. Remember that I am there to support, encourage, challenge you, and ultimately, create a space of accountability for what you have identified as your goals.
5. Expect change
You may have heard the quote, “what got you here won’t get you there.” To accomplish your goals, there is going to be a change in your behavior, mindset or beliefs. This takes intentional effort over a period of time. There’s absolutely no need to rush this - creating change is a long game. I’ll be right there to support you through this process.
Everything discussed during your coaching conversation is 100% confidential, even if your school is picking up the tab.
Coaching conversations are your opportunity to set and achieve goals, create self-awareness, critically think, gain new perspectives, be supported, challenged, inspired, encouraged and ready to change and reach new levels. It's thrilling to be on this exciting journey with people and I love celebrating your achievements with you along the way.
Head to my Remote Coaching page for more info.
