A question that I often get asked by people who have thought about working with a coach is ‘How effective is coaching?’. The simple answer is that its most successful it can be very effective and help you to transform areas of your life. However, there are different factors that impact on the effectiveness of coaching and some of these are explained below.

Understanding what coaching is and isn’t.

It’s really important if you’re thinking of employing a coach that you understand what coaching is all about. Any potential coach will go through this with you. It is not the same as mentoring or counseling.

The client coach relationship

Key to the success of coaching will be the relationship between the client and the coach. There needs to be a good rapport between you both and as the client you need to feel comfortable working with your chosen coach. If either of you have doubts about working with each other then these should be voiced. If nothing can be done it’s always better to terminate the coaching relationship.

Expectations

Just as it’s important you and your coach reach an understanding of what coaching is and isn’t, it’s equally important that you have a conversation about expectations. The coach is there to support you, but they can’t actually make you take any action or ensure you reach your goals. As the client you have to take ownership and be responsible for your own success.

Commitment

As already mentioned above it’s up to you to take action to reach the goals you’ve chosen and you’ll be wasting both time and money if you’re not really committed to making that happen. Adopting a half-hearted approach just won’t cut it. You want to ensure that you maximise the opportunities you have through coaching to change and/or develop and gain the success that you want.

Motivation

Anyone can have a dip in motivation but it’s important that you work hard to stay motivated throughout your coaching relationship. It won’t always be easy. You might find yourself working well outside your comfort zone and you may not always make the progress you want. However, if you’re struggling with motivation your coach will be able to provide you with strategies to help you keep moving forward.

Being in the right place

If you’re thinking of coaching you need to ensure that you’re in the right place and it’s the right time for you. It means that you need to know you want to change, that you’re prepared to take action, you’re prepared to keep going when things go wrong, and you’re prepared to push yourself. Sometimes there can be other factors that are affecting your life which mean that coaching wouldn’t currently be the right option for you.

Summary

These are just some of the factors that impact on the effectiveness of coaching. If you are going to work with a coach it’s important that you find the right one for you and you are committed to making your sessions a success.