There is a clear trend of moving towards coaching as a learning and development method among entrepreneurs, executives or professionals alike. More and more companies are looking to internalize a “coaching culture”, or to adopt a “coaching methodology”. A closer inspection to this customized, focused, one on one method reveals many considerable advantages.

Coaching provides a safe learning space

One of the primary reasons why employees don’t seek guidance is the fear of being judged or being seen as incompetent. However, the very concept of coaching is built on the importance of continuous learning: regardless of your career and expertise level, there is always room for improvement, acquiring alternative methods, seeking a deeper understanding, and gaining new skills. Within the context of coaching, the employee gets the chance to seek clarification and hone his/her skills in a safe, non-judgmental environment, with the help of a coach who encourages inquisitive thinking.

Coaching teaches you how to think

“Spoon feeding in the long run teaches us nothing but the shape of the spoon” (E.M. Forster)

One of the notable differences between coaching and the traditional classroom approach is that the former allows the coachee to identify problems and think about them critically. The coach often answers the coachee’s question with other questions that will guide his/her thinking towards formulating the right solution. Instead of being limited to answering individual questions with specific answers, coaching enhances analytical thinking skills and encourages “thinking about thinking”.

Coaching enhances self confidence

Low confidence stems from lack of knowledge, past failures, destructive criticism, in addition to feeling unprepared to perform the required task. Gaining knowledge, though necessary, will not remove the feeling of anxiety. It needs to be coupled with hands-on application under the guidance of an expert who can give directions and clarifications along the way. The coach usually plays this facilitating role. Coaching also relies heavily on positive feedback and encouragement rather than punitive measures or pressure: this reinforces the desired behaviors for the coachee and increases future successes.

Coaching creates accountability 

The follow-up performed during the coaching process creates a sense of accountability which is necessary for continuous and effective learning. By performing frequent check-ins and follow-ups, the coach makes sure that the coachee is on the right track, persevering in spite of the temptation to give up after failed attempts. The coach will follow up on the assignments that are given in between sessions, the obstacles that were faced, the progress that was made, in addition to ensuring the overall advancement towards the set objectives. The coach therefore inspires the coachee to keep going by reminding them of the importance of their efforts and the contribution to other goals.

Coaching enhances performance…fast.

Working closely and consistently with an expert allows the identification of areas needing improvement in an accurate way. More so, it allows directing efforts efficiently towards bridging those gaps. This specific, customized and targeted approach which is implemented in the coaching process leads to significant improvements in a short period of time because it is tailored to the exact needs and capabilities of the employee. The result is a palpable improvement in the bottom line performance of the coachee who doesn’t have to waste time tackling the wrong problem or going through unhelpful resources.

You know all the answers, right?

Have you ever felt like you were being ignored after giving someone good advice? Have you experienced another person, or group, disagree with you when it’s clear that you know the best or most obvious way to go about something? Well you wouldn’t be alone. Many people experience this every day. It seems a part of life that people will not change their behaviour, stance or viewpoint no matter what advice they get. But why?

The majority of people find it hard to change, especially when given advice. It’s not because they refuse to, or that they’re awkward or stubborn, which is a natural conclusion to arrive at. People resist change simply because they don’t know how. You may have all the answers for them, but still they don’t change.

But they could learn how, couldn’t they? Well some people do, but they tend to be the minority; those who have worked out that their future success and happiness will require some personal change along life’s amazing journey. You may have heard the Buddhist take on this ‘change comes from within’, or you might say ‘you have to work out your own way through personal change.

People who resist personal change are held back by self-limiting beliefs that take the form “I couldn’t do x” or similar. So you challenge the limiting belief by replying “but of course you could, if you only …” and state your condition or reasoning why.

But what’s often missing from these limiting belief statements is the word ‘because’, such as: it’s because I’m too old, too young, I don’t have qualifications, I’m not bright enough, not confident, they won’t let me, I would fail etc. This language pattern is prevalent in people who seem to get stuck at some stage in their lives. The pattern may not always be outwardly expressed, but their self-talk is likely to consist of frequent negative belief statements. They are unable to move on because ….. Well you can make the rest up. Call them excuses if you like that act to validate “I couldn’t do x”.

So how do you get someone to change their unhelpful behaviour, their viewpoint or negative beliefs? First of all you have to accept that your suggestions or answers are unlikely to work. In fact they may well work against you as the other person could strengthen their resolve to stay just as they are. So show an interest in the person, listen to them, be respectful and build rapport. Keep an open mind and avoid making a judgment. Use some powerful questions that (when done well) can result in the other person creating their own change. With the right questions you can really open up a person’s closed mind.

This type of questioning requires certain knowledge about how language works, an ability to detect the various language patterns that make up any conversation, and an understanding of the psychological impact specific patterns have on motivation and well-being. With a little practice you will be able to ask the perfect question to open up possibilities for change in the mind of the other person.

NLP Practitioners become expert linguists. They learn how to use language, and their voice for a desired effect, in any context. Not only do they have this amazing set of tools to create change in others, they use them to clean up their own negative self-talk and create new language structures that makes personal change easy, and a highly pleasurable experience.

We have place just for you on our next NLP Business Practitioner program – Learn in a highly supportive, stimulating, safe and fun environment where your personal expectation is our key focus.