Coaching Model: KITA: A Kick In The Ass

A Coaching Model Created by Emma Folkman
(Self(ish) Coach, UNITED STATES)

Introduction

Clients come to coaching to make changes in their lives, and, in order to do this, it is important to be extremely explicit with what it is they want, why they want it and when they want it by. Without having a clear picture of what they are working towards, they may never make any progress forward.

In a sense, the client has acknowledged that something in their life is not as they want it to be and they are ready to make improvements. With this in mind, I have created the KITA model.

KITA here has a double meaning – the first is taken from Fred Herzberg, a business psychologist. Herzberg’s acronym KITA stands for Kick In The Ass and refers to an employee’s ability to be motivated by both positive and negative incentives. Herzberg theorized that there was a difference between getting employees to do things because they had to vs because they wanted to (movement vs motivation).

Drawing from this idea, I have taken KITA into a coaching context. Here, instead of the individual in question being an employee they are a client, and their motivation, their WANT to accomplish, is what has brought them to coaching in the first place. Once the client has “KITA”d themselves, it is time for the coaching KITA to commence:

Model:

Knowledge

In this stage, the coach acts as a sounding board and poses thought-provoking questions to the client in order to ensure the client is fully clear on what they want, why it is important to them (how it aligns with their values) and the importance of reaching this goal. Why is this goal so important now? What is different this time? And most importantly, what will success look like to the client (without a clear understanding of what they are aiming for, their goal will continue to elude them. Once the client is clear on the above, they can craft SMART goals (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timebound).

Investigate

With clear concise goals defined, the coach and client can dive into blockages: what underlying beliefs are keeping the client from achieving their goals? What help do they need in order to achieve their dreams? What will keep them from succeeding? What resources are available to them and who can support them on this journey?

Take action

Once the client has a plan in place and is clear on what will support them on their journey and what will derail them, all that is left is to take action! During this stage, the coach supports the client, acknowledges successes and empowers, and encourages the client when there are setbacks. However, this stage is mainly reliant on the client who must commit in order to achieve success.

Assess

When the client has reached their goal, it is time to reflect and assess. The client should take the time to celebrate their success and reflect on their growth. An important take away for the client would be how they can leverage the learning and work they have utilized with this goal and apply it to future scenarios. At this stage, it is the coach’s role to help the client acknowledge their progress and to dig into their learnings through this process.

Concluding Thoughts

It is the job of the coach to shepherd the client through this process. Having a clear, detailed foundation to work from (comprised of understanding why they want this goal and exploring why they have not been able to achieve this on their own) helps the client to stay the course when it comes to taking action.

As the client is taking action towards their goal, the coach is there to support them on the journey by helping them create structures that will keep them accountable to themselves and unblocking any hurdles that pop up along the way. Additionally, the coach leads the client through reflection, which helps give the client greater clarity on how they operate and what they are gaining through the coaching process.