I was looking for someone to help me, but didn’t have ‘the one’ person I was looking for who could lead me in the right direction until I sat down and defined what it was I needed. I narrowed it down to three options. Did I need a Teacher? A Mentor? Or a Coach?
Others have defined coaching as, “Closing the gap between thinking about doing and doing” – Curly Martin
I have often wondered what the difference was between these three. Without looking up the definitions in the dictionary, I would say they are similar.
I had to admit that I wasn’t exactly sure what they meant but understood the importance of having one. So I got busy and developed these definitions.
Teachers instruct using a textbook or reference materials to provide lessons. This is a very important role when you’re learning a subject or profession.
Mentors share in their wisdom and experience. They are willing to spend their time and expertise to guide the development of another person.
Coaches guide and/or train someone who is trying to excel in a specific area, i.e., an athlete, an actor, a business professional, etc. I’ve found that this term is often mixed up with mentoring, so I used one of the best-known examples I could find as an example for a Coach.
Coach John Wooden, UCLA’s brilliant basketball coach, was famous for his style of coaching and building brilliant athletes. John Wooden is frequently cited as an example of a values- based coach, one who’s positive and productive principles were intrinsically woven into his system. What he did on the court reflected who he was off the court.
I wanted someone like that and also knew I needed someone who would Coach me for my needs. To Coach is all about asking the right questions. It’s amazing to know the power of “question probing”. Coaches know ‘what to ask’, ‘when to ask’, ‘how to ask’ and ‘who to ask’ great questions to take you from where you are now to where you want to be. ”A good Coach asks great questions to help you remove the obstacles in your mind and to get you back on track in life and business” – Farshad Asl
According to the Harvard Business Review, a good coach can help you achieve life-changing results that yield success and significance.
The right coaching builds awareness and removes interference so you can perform at your natural best with NO EXCUSES! The formula is:
Your God-given Potential – Excuses = Performance for Success!
It was Benjamin Franklin who said, “He that is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else.” Coaching will help you replace those excuses and limited beliefs with empowering dreams and boost self-confidence. Coaching is all about moving forward. Changing your old habits and developing true self-awareness.
“Helping you do your best” – Harry Paul
Coaching can help you to identify your values, discover your “why”, set ‘GOALS’, increase your self-esteem, and finding the balance in Life and Business.
Noting what Coaching is, I wanted to be sure I defined what coaching is NOT. Coaching is not Therapy, Mentoring, Consulting, Counselling or Problem Solving. That probably best falls under ‘self-help’.
When I Coach others, I normally like to use the TGROW model in my sessions.
- Topic – clarification and exploration of the topic
- Goal – setting specific goals, whether they are long, medium or short term, and can be used in the coaching session
- Reality – clearly understanding where the ‘Coachee’ is now in relation to their goals
- Options – exploring options for the purpose to move forward
- Wrap- Up, -Will, -Way Forward – identifying and agreeing to a specific action plan
I strongly believe in the concept of coaching so much that I’ve chosen to be personally coached over the last several years and personally use the TGROW model. You might be surprised to find that fewer than one in 1,000 people have been or benefit from being coached. Are you ready to begin?
“Unlocking a person’s potential to maximize their own performance” – John Whitmore
Breakthrough all the barriers and start leading your life rather than just accepting your life.
“People are anxious to improve their circumstances but are unwilling to improve themselves, they therefore remain bound.” James Allen
http://www.linkedin.com/in/farshadasl