It seems the SIG call last week stirred the pot for some people. (see previous Coaching Mastery posting) Just today, I had an email from a coaching student asking a question I’ve heard many times in many variations, including:
- Will I ever get there?
- Do I have what it takes to be a great coach?
- Can I really do this (coaching)?
The story behind all of this is often some version of:
You master coaches have been doing this so long, OR –
You, master coach, started out when coaching was relatively new, OR –
There’s so much to learn, I can’t see how I will ever learn it all.
So here’s my response to the questions and the story – and this is part of what you may not have heard from your coaching school:
Relax. Seriously, lighten up. As a coaching student today, you are probably worlds beyond where I was at the same point in my coaching path, because the profession of coaching has come so far and is so much more documented.
For one thing, we have a teachable body of knowledge today whereas it was kinda’ vague in the early days. We have Core Competencies (ICF) which give us a solid grounding in elements of effective coaching.
Having these elements more clearly defined, I gotta believe, helps shorten the learning curve. So what it means to “improve your coaching skills” is easier to get your hands around now that it was 15-20 years ago.
And speaking of improving coaching skills, you now have professional mentor coaches available to support that journey. So you have seasoned veterans who have grown up with the profession and who have been part of the evolution of coaching. You get to capitalize on their learning and experience, again, to shorten your learning curve. (Seriously, part of my job as a mentor coach and coach trainer IS to help you learn from my mistakes so you don’t have to repeat them!)
On top of it all, IMHO – we’re getting better at training coaches. Yup – I believe those of us in the business of helping you be the brilliant coach you want to be, are improving how we go about this. Coaching With Love certainly reflects my own growth, the evolution of coaching, and the integration of observing what works best to support coaches with being their best.
Believe me: You have a lot of resources and a very different culture and consciousness to tap into now than what existed 20 years ago in the coaching world.
Bottom line: Lighten up, take 2 resources and call your mentor coach in the morning.
Stay tuned for more on secrets you may not be hearing in coaching school. There are at least 2 more coming soon to a blog posting near you!
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