I noticed this a while ago. I was an expert on China, working for the British Council since 2005. I started using what I know now as coaching skills with British companies seeking to enter the China market - my 'clients'.

What do you want to achieve?

What does success looks like?

Why is it important, to you, your organisation and your team?

I was surprised when they actually answer those questions truthfully, because everyone's answer is different.

Of course, coaching is much more than simply asking the obvious questions.

Origin and Development of Coaching

Coaching is a relatively new profession yet arguably as old as human communication itself (Wilson 2007/2014 p.1). East and West philosophers used approaches comparable to today’s coaching principle over two thousand years ago.

In China, Confucius used questions and answers to teach:

“The Master said: ‘I’d love to just say nothing.’ ‘But if you say nothing,’ said Adept Kung, ‘how would we disciples hand down your teachings?’ ‘What has Heaven ever said?’ replied the Master.” (Hinton 2010 p.137).

According to Confucius wisdom can be gained: “First, by reflection, which is noblest; second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest”. (Terrell and Hughes 2010 p.106). Socrates echoed a similar view, “I cannot teach anybody anything; I can only make them think”.

It is widely recognised that development made in the psychology provided the theory basis for the development of coaching, as we know today. Maslow’s ‘hierarchy of needs’ changed the perspective from fixing problems in a person to what was right about human beings. (Maslow 2012, Wilson 2007/2014, Whitmore 1992/2017).

Gallwey, through the experience of teaching tennis, began paying attention to the process of learning itself (1974, p.167/170). He described the three-self: self one, the ‘teller’, self two, the ‘doer’ and self three the ‘direct experience’. From ‘teaching’ to help the player removing inner obstacles and be ‘free’, he redefined the job for a coach.

In 1992, Whitmore put Gallwey’s notion down as ‘The Essence of Coaching’ in his influential book Coaching for Performance (2002 p.1). Later Whitmore worked together with Gallway, and extended the coaching training to the business world.

Coach in Today’s Society

There was a boom of coaching in the 1990s. Leonard started the International Coach Federation in 1995. In 1998 ICF merges with the Professional and Personal Coaches Association (History of ICF, n.d.)

There is no denying that we are living in an era of change (WEF 2016). The ability to adapt to the changing global, local, organisational, individual context, becomes ever more critical. Coaching is widely used by professionals as well as used by managers and leader.

Common topics for Coaching

Gallway said, “it is not the problem, the task, or even the fulfillment of a dream that is the coach’s primary focus. Coaching is about changes that take place within the person being coached” (Passmore 2010/2015 p. xxi). Following this notion, coaching can be applied to any situation when ‘change’ is desired in professional and private life. It can be applied to individuals, pairs, teams as well as groups through face-to-face, phone or Internet sessions.

Role of the professional coach

The coach’s role is to ask the questions which uncover the client’s agenda and makes it explicit, turning this agenda into the goals which the client can work on and safeguarding it as the only agenda for coaching (Rogers, 2004/2012 p.69). ICF has specific requirement against eleven core competencies, here are three key points for the coach to manage:

First, the Coach-Coachee Relations ‘constitutes a prerequisite for coaching effectiveness’ (Baron and Morin 2009 p.99). A survey completed by 140 executive coaches shows most coaches contributed the success of coaching to the ‘chemistry’ between coach and executive (Kauffman and Coutu 2009 p.4). Other coaches tribute trust, belief, honest and respect as key elements of a successful coach-coachee relationship:‘trust, belief and non-judgment’ (Whitmore 1992/2017 Section 64/276); ‘trust, honest, and respect’(Newsom and Dent 2010 p.1);‘rapport and trust’ (Thomson 2014 p.10)

Second, the coaching process requires two primary inputs from the coach: active listening (Wilson 2007/2014 p.131) and powerful questions (Whitmore 1992/2017 88/276). Active listening comes with techniques of clarifying, reflecting and summaries, as well as the ability to unpack logic and emotion in words, tone and non-verbal signals. Whitmore put powerful questions as “the heart of coaching” (Whitmore 1992/2017 89/276). Open and nonjudgmental questions provide a safe exploring and learning space for the coachees to gain new awareness and perspective.

Third, coach facilitates coachee to take ownership and commitment(Whitmore 1992/2017 section 183/276). Coach drives the process, and coachee is responsible for the content. The coach should not stay over the line into content, because without asking permission or having permission granted, it is no longer coaching (Wilson 2007/2014 p.22).

The main benefits for an individual coachee

Gallway’s Inner Game of Work provided a helpful equation to understand the benefits of coaching: P = p-I or Performance = potential – interference (Gallway 1999, p.23) How do we unlock people's potential? Moreover, how can we remove barriers or interference? There are three ways coaching bring benefits to a coachee:

Awareness: awareness of self and others. Coaching provides the framework facilitating coachee to gain better self-awareness and understand others better. This makes it possible to gain inner strength and to foster better collaboration.

Accountability: Coach facilitates the coachee to identify solutions, rather than providing advice or solutions to the coachee. The coaching process builds the coachee's self-esteem and self-belief and can have a sustainable impact on one's development.

Solution and Action focused: coaching is focused on the change and is forward-looking. Better learning and development results in attitude and behaviour change.

Here you go. I believe in human potential. Because we are living in such a fascinating time/world, being a coach is great.

However, If what required is simple and straightforward, I can be an expert too.

Reference

Baron L, Morin L, (2009) The Coach–Coachee Relationship in Executive Coaching: A Field Study, Human Resource Development Quarterly, vol. 20, no.1, Wiley Periodicals.

Confucius (Trans. David Hinton )(2014) Analects. accessed September 2018

Gallwey W. T., (1999) The Inner Game of Work, New York: Random House,

Gallway W. Timothy, (2008) The Inner Game of Tennis, New York: Random House,

ICF History of ICF

Kauffman C., Coutu D. (2009), HBR Research Report: The Realities of Executive Coaching

Newsom G., Dent E. B.,(2011) A Work Behaviour Analysis of Executive Coaches,International Journal of Evidence Based Coaching and Mentoring, Vol. 9, No. 2

Rogers, J. (2004/2012) Coaching Skills: A Handbook, Berkshire, England: Open University Press

Rogers, J. (2006). Developing a coaching business. Berkshire, England: Open University Press

Schwab K. (14 Jan 2016) The Fourth Industrial Revolution: what it means, how to respond

Terrell, J. B., Hughes, M., (Contributions by Olalla J., Luberger T., Salmon G. L.,) (2010) A Coach’s Guide to Emotional Intelligence: Strategies for Developing Emotional Intelligence: Strategies for Developing Successful Leaders San Francisco, USA: Wiley

Thomson, B. (2014) First Steps in Coaching, London, England: Sage Publications

Whitmore J. (1992/2017) Coaching for Performance, London, England: Nicholas Brealey.

Wilson C. (2007/2014) Performance Coaching: A complete guide to best practice coaching and training, London, England: Kogan Page