Activity 6.8: Observation of key coaching skills

 Timing: Allow 45 minutes for this activity

Watch Video 6.11: Short coaching session, an example of a short coaching session in full (15 minutes). As you watch, notice how the coach manages the elements listed in the table. (You can make notes in the table or in your chosen format.)

Video 6.11: The complete coaching session

After you have watched the video, consider these questions:

a)   Who speaks the most? 

b)   How important is the choice of language for the coach? 

c)   Make a list of the qualities and characteristics that you feel a good coach will need. 

d)   How effective is this coaching session in your view? 

e)   How will you prepare for your coaching sessions in future? 

Feedback

a) The coachee speaks most. This is a common feature of a good coaching session, because it is the coachee’s issue they are discussing. The coach is there to prompt the coachee, not to direct them. 

b) The choice of language is very important, as you have seen in the earlier sections. It requires very good judgement on when to interrupt, question, challenge or just listen and reflect or summarise. It will be useful in the practice sessions to consider the choice of language and questions that the coach uses to elicit helpful responses. 

c) Whitmore (2009, pp. 41–42) lists the following key characteristics of a coach, and you may have added others: 

Patient / detached / supportive / interested /good listener /

Perceptive / aware / self-aware / attentive / retentive. 

d) This question requires a personal reaction but this was chosen as a good example of a coaching session. You might have noticed that the coachee seemed relatively comfortable with the non-directive nature of the process. In other words, he did not ask direct questions of the coach such as ‘what do you think I should do?’ This is usually the case when coachees are familiar with the coaching process and/or have been coached themselves. However, it is not uncommon for the coach to spend considerable time clarifying the non-directive nature of the process, particularly in the beginning of the relationship.

e) Your preparation will be personal but should involve consideration of everything that has been discussed in this unit and it might be useful if you write down the key points to consider in preparation for your future practice.