Whatever the question - coaching is the answer

Posted on February 11, 2023 by Martin Krafft, One of Thousands of Business Coaches on Noomii.

Admittedly, the headline “Whatever the question – coaching is the answer“ may be a bit of a stretch … but at the same time, I don’t think an extreme one either. What I believe to be true about the statement is that coaching conversations offer a great entry point for deep, intimate conversation and reflection. At the same time, as coaching is based on the fundamental trust in peoples’ capacity and resourcefulness, it does not come with the stigma of “fixing someone”.

Of course the other disciplines within the support ecosystem also have their relevance, but I trust that there’s also fluid boundaries between them. Either coaching might lead to coachees realize that they are held back from moving forward by some beliefs or traumas, solidly anchored in the past, which may hold them back from wanting to move forward, and then these coachees need to be referred to counselling as a specialized discipline. But again, coaching may be the ice breaker to give coachees the confidence to even consider this step, instead of continue to live with their undigested past. On the other hand, coaching may be exactly what will work well with coachees after they have addressed past traumas in counselling and are now ready to move forward to build their best future.

For me, the relevance of coaching as an important discipline in the support ecosystem manifests itself in the many people across different cultures, roles, gender, seniority, who I experience seeking meaning and purpose.

I believe this quest for meaning is the consequence of the erosion of other stability affording systems in the lives of many people around the globe: religious practice is on a generally decreasing trajectory (a significant degree of radicalization of some groups represents to me more the exception that proves the rule, than a countermovement), family life as the nucleus of human relations and societies is also eroding in many societies.

The void left behind by these institutions leaves many of us seeking to satisfy our want to belong, confirmation of our competence, and worth to be loved in the organizations and professional context, where we spend most of our time. My hypothesis is, that companies have to a (too?) large part taken over that big place in our lives.

In my practice I come across many high achievers, who after putting much efforts into their careers, promotions, and making money, are now seeking for meaning and purpose. And I believe that this is really, where coaching is the answer to all the questions….

Why coaching works…
For the same reason we can’t tickle ourselves, our brain resists self-imposed testing of our thoughts and reactions. If others offer unsolicited feedback and question our choices and beliefs without asking permission, we quickly resort to defensiveness.

That’s why coaching works: only if we invite someone in as our thinking partner, coach and coachee can co-create a safe space to explore, test hypotheses and belief sets, and develop action plans that work.

How coaching works…
Clients bring their overarching goals and topics to the conversation. I often come across people, who are new to coaching, who despite clearly not living their best life struggle to think about what to bring to the conversation. Each one of us has unresolved topics and thoughts stored (buried?) somewhere in our minds, and it initially takes some getting comfortable and trying out to trust the process and identify what exactly it is, we would like bring to the table as the coaching session topic. My advice is to not overthink and get stressed about it. Typically, the “right” topic, which is alive in us on that day in that moment will bubble up to the top of our minds, as long as we afford this thought space and attention

The International Coaching Federation (ICF) defines coaching as partnering with clients in a thought-provoking and creative process that inspires them to maximize their personal and professional potential. The process of coaching often unlocks previously untapped sources of imagination, productivity and leadership.

Despite this initially difficult to read and digest, clunky definition, it does contain all which coaching is about today. First and foremost, there is the partnering aspect between coach and coachee. Both meet at eyes height. None is superior or dominating over the other. Two equals meet and find stimulating connection between their brains, hearts, and whole self. Then, there always has to be an outcome, not only a nice conversation, and I believe that is what makes the coaching conversation unique and different from any other conversations we have in different contexts, because the coaching conversation is goal centric and action based. After gaining clarity on topic and goal together, it always leads to explore what the coachees is going to do about what they would like to accomplish.

Feel free to get in touch with me to experience coaching first hand. Because it works.

I look forward to support you in achieving your goals!