Posted on November 20, 2008 by Christina

We’ve put together a helpful top 10 list of tips to help you be a great Pair Coach partner.

1. Ask! Ask! Ask!

Be curious about your partner’s dreams and goals.  Take the time to find out what really makes them tick. You may be surprised that even if you have known your partner for 10 years, you may discover something new about them.

2. Ask Open Ended Questions

While you are being curious, make sure to ask open ended questions that will give you and your partner insight into what they really want. An open ended question does not have a yes/no answer. For example ask your partner:
“Tell me about a time in your life when you felt really invigorated and alive?”
versus
“You were really invigorated and alive during your last basketball game, weren’t you?”

3. Practice your Active Listening Skills

Listen to what your partner is saying. Make sure that you are hearing their words and not what you want to hear them say.

4. Keep it Confidential

Over the course of coaching your partner may share personal information with you. Please respect their desire for privacy and keep the topics of your coaching session confidential.

5. Be Solution Oriented

If your partner is really challenging themselves by creating goals that stretch them as a person, they will inevitably run into road blocks. When they run into road blocks the best thing you can do as a coach is be solution oriented. Help your partner clearly identify the road block(s) and brainstorm solutions to overcome the road blocks.

6. Follow-up

Every week follow-up on your partner’s commitments. Your job as a coach is to keep them accountable by checking to see if they did what they said they were going to do. If your partner did not complete all their commitments, find out why. Then, with that knowledge help them create commitments for the week ahead.

7. Believe in your Partner

Believe that your partner can achieve everything they want in life. Help them act as if they have already achieved all of their goals.

8. Be a Cheerleader

Challenge and encourage your partner to greatness, to higher levels than they thought possible. Did your partner achieve their goal a month ahead of schedule? Congratulate them! Have they hit a road block that has slowed them down? Help them find solutions and keep cheering them on.

9. Celebrate Successes

What’s the best part about achieving a goal? Celebrating! Ensure that your partner celebrates all of their successes. Even better, help your partner decide on a celebratory event before they achieve their goal. For example “When I surpass my sales goal I will celebrate by spending the day at the spa”.

10. Just Keep Going

Remember, persistence is the key to success!

Happy Coaching!

Christina