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The Coaching Fallacy: What it is and what it isn’t. |
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There is much confusion about what Coaching is- and isn’t. Many consulting firms have simply gone through their marketing materials and changed the word “consulting” to “coaching.” For many in the business world, that sums up what they perceive Coaching to be, a new word for consulting.
Nothing could be farther from the truth!
- Coaching IS NOT about giving advice or consulting. It is not about mentoring. It is not about “helping” others by providing solutions to problems.
- It IS about working intensely with people, utilizing provocative and powerful questions, to enable people to find answers themselves. At its essence, Coaching is about equipping people with the tools to discern the real issues at work and then to employ the right actions to best deal with the realities that they face.
- Coaching is not therapy. Coaching should not go anywhere near what is considered the domain of therapists and psychologists. If it does, it’s not coaching. Coaching is not about the past- it is about the present- and the future. Good Coaches know when they are getting near the areas where others need to be called in- and do so.
- While some Coaching can appear to be ethereal and too “out there” for companies, that is a much different type of Coaching (Life Coaching). There is a distinct form of Executive Coaching that is used in the corporate environment. It is directly tied to personal improvement and increased productivity that in turn pays off handsomely for the organization.
- Coaching does not “fix” people. It is rare that Coaching can be deployed to “fix” those that deem to be in need of a quick change by their manager.
- Coaching can have dramatic short term impact. But the reality is that it will take from 6-12 months of quality Coaching to make sustainable changes. Those that tell you that it can be done quicker are not well informed.
- Coaching is about individual planning, goal setting, and achievement. It’s also about personal discovery and enlightenment. It is about realizing one’s full potential.
With all that being said, Coaching is about so many things that would benefit every company. Coaching helps create stronger and more productive people that are more valuable to the organization!
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