Coaching, is not just for sports

I often meet someone at networking events who will pluck up the courage and be honest enough to ask a question such as … what is coaching?

And while I love the honesty and the fact they have taken a moment to ask and want to learn, it does raise a question as to what the understanding is in the marketplace for this vital service which ultimately can change lives both personally and for their business.

In the US and Australia it is a known industry which many benefit from, however in the UK there remains some confusion around what Coaching really is and how it can help someone be better, to do more and achieve more than they are currently.

Here’s the issue… much of this confusion stems from the different types of coaches, there are those who are a life coach, business coach, career coach, sports coach, performance coach and everything-in-between type of coach …

Then there are the vital differences from the advisory or consultant type roles which do things for you and again these both have their place, however are distinctly different from what a coaching engagement should be …

A coach essentially helps the client find their own answers by asking those critical questions that get them to think differently about the problems they are facing and conclude a solution and action plan that is best aligned to their way of thinking, within their own reality, coupled with the right supporting implementation strategy to help move them along.

No matter what coaching field one explores, the principles of coaching should be the same. A coach is often the expert who gives the motivationdrive and passion to support successful outcomes. Let’s use the parallel of sports coaching and business coaching, as sports is the most understood form of coaching …

In Sports Coaching, it is not that the person being coached is not good at their game, they indeed may be very good, but they want to be better. They want to push their limits to achieve more and be more than the results they are currently getting in their performance.

A sports coach will motivate the ‘coachee’ to perhaps run more laps, make them work harder than they normally would on their own and even if they don’t feel like it. A sports coach will tell it like it is, and they will also listen

Sport also mimics life and business in many ways…

While in sports there are those daily practices, the game plansadjustmentsnew methods and things to explore, testing and measuring to reach their peak performance 

In business coaching there are also those daily rituals, those business plans, those key adjustments along the way, new strategies to explore and of course regular reviews as well as testing and measuring towards better outcomes 

In addition, the business coaching process takes a vital role to act very much like a member on the board of directors of the business, sitting alongside the business owner to help them make better decisions and get better results …

To ask those out of the ordinary questions that prodreflect, generate insights, giving the client guides to think about the problems in different ways and gets them in a positive momentum towards defined goals.

The most important part of the coaching engagement in my view is the accountability – the accountability to keep that positive momentum going and getting the focused actions completed towards the longer-term goals they have defined.

This is how my clients get fantastic results in their business in key areas such as growth be it in sizeincome or market shareefficiencies of their key assets such as timework/life balance and the overall effectiveness of their team and business.

Here is an article I have written about business coaching which may help with understanding this further.

If you want to learn more or want to discuss this further please feel free to send me a message, click like or write a comment below. I love to talk to business owners who are ready for the next level and my initial advice never costs a business owner a penny. More than ever business ownersneed better support to continue to provide vital products and services that serve our local communities.

Donnie Dhillon is an Awarding Winning Business Coaching Partner with the worlds number one business coaching firm ActionCOACH and awarded Best Client Results for London, UK also also a certified Executive and Team Coach with Marshall Goldsmith Stakeholder Centred Coaching™, the most effective corporate leadership coaching method used with some of the worlds largest companies.

Donnie is also one of the Top 100 Coaches selected from over 16,000 global applications received following the most watched video in LinkedIn’s history by the worlds number one executive and leadership coach Dr Marshall GoldsmithThe group of 100 coaches known as #MG100 have a mission to make a lasting difference in the world through coaching and to continue the pay-it-forward legacy project pioneered by Marshall.

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