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The Value of a Coach
Coaching has been around from the beginning of time. We catch a semblance of it in the Genesis narrative where God inquires of Cain’s actions to help him see the pathway of his poor decision-making, his ultimate choice and ensuing consequences. From this point on, throughout the Scriptures, we see a pattern of relationships and interactions where one person seeks the counsel, wisdom, and life guidance of another person. For instance, at critical junctures in King David’s life he sought after Ahithophel’s wisdom (2Samuel 16:23 & 1 Chronicles 27:33). As leaders we need to take note of David’s humility to seek out trusted advisors who possess greater insights for personal and corporate breakthroughs. In the New Testament Apollos was a charismatic and powerful speaker but he lacked critical content from his message. After Aquila and Priscilla heard him speak they took him aside to talk to him about an important yet missing ingredient to his message. Since Apollos only knew “the baptism of John”, antiquated teaching by this time, only revealed his inability to access critical knowledge of the gospel message. When Aquila and Priscilla finished their coaching conversation with him the narrative ends with a dramatic change in Apollos’ ministry: “On arriving [to Corinth], [Apollos] was a great help to those who by grace had believed. For he vigorously refuted the Jews in public debate, proving from the Scriptures that Jesus was the Christ.” (Acts 18:27 & 28)
Apollos became an enlightened preacher after a brief encounter with two seasoned believers. His understanding of the story of Christ’s entire life, from John’s baptism to Pentecost, was now brought up to date. Coaching clarified and filled in the missing gap, which made a tremendous difference in his life and ministry.
If coaching had value in the first century, surely it’s needed much more today from the entry-level staff member, to the mid-level manager as well as at the top-level executive. Most people, however, don’t see the value of a coaching relationship. Kim Fulcher, CEO of Compass Coaching notes the value of coaching, “Coaching looks at where you are at the moment and what you want for the future, and helps you build a path.” Most people are effective in some areas of their life and leadership but lack the necessary skills to fill in the gap of “where they are at the moment” and “where they want to be in the future”. In some cases, leaders with great potential would rather move along in mediocrity than evolve into the station they were destined for; exuding personal excellence, being influential and leading effectively.
The value of coaching is crucial in today’s world more so because of the rapid speed of the information and technology age. In the age of acceleration, if you don’t “keep up with the Joneses” you may just fade away for lacking essential knowledge to advance the organization’s mission.
A coach is, therefore, instrumental in the following three areas where you and I basically think, process and produce results: The Intangible World – The way you would like to see the world.
This phase is the intangible world of ideas, concepts, and pictures of the future that come to mind. It’s amusing to conceive a picture of what the future can be like. Each of us is full of great ideas but how many of them ever get activated? At this stage we ask and ponder the following question: “What is possible”? Anything is possible according to Pablo Picasso who once quipped, “Everything you can imagine is real.” As a leader, if you’re having difficulty with the “intangible world”, coaching can help you process those intangibles scrambling around in your head, and help you assemble them into a meaningful life plan.
Your Choices and Actions – The ability to see how your choices and actions help you create your “ideal” world.
At this stage coaching helps you take a concept, an idea or the picture in your mind and frame it into meaningful symbols and stories for your team members to grasp. In this stage you begin to put legs to your ideas by first communicating your message to others, and then recruiting the assistance of others to aid you in turning your intangibles into something meaningful for yourself and others. The ability to process is key at this phase; it’s about the journey in between the conceptual world and its reality. The most important aspect of this “process” is thinking through the ramifications of your decisions before you begin to implement your plans for action. Another key factor is the ability to work with others to accomplish your vision. You see, a leader may have great vision, but if no one follows, it won't come to pass. Coaching becomes very valuable at this stage, whether you are personally implementing a plan or building and leading a team to accomplish great things. This stage is about gaining the clarity necessary to foresee and minimize problems, and maximizing group synergy for desired outcomes.
The Realm of Realities (Tangible World) – This is the world we’ve created by our choices and actions. Now, take a few moments to critically assess your current world; your present “realm of reality”. At this point you have to ask yourself - Do I like what’s been created? At this stage you are living with your creation. It’s either going to look great, reflect mediocrity or simply look like a disaster. The realm of realities is basically your final outcome or product; the results of your choices and actions. Do you like what you see? If not, is it worth changing? Can you change it alone? Did you listen attentively to your team for input? How do others on the team perceive the outcome? Do you value their feedback? After you’ve answered these and other probing questions it’s time to start back at phase #1, the Intangible World, to repeat the cycle all over again. Will you repeat the same mistakes or will you hire a coach? The answer to your question depends on the value you give to coaching. |
