A Coaching Model Created by Katharine Britt
(Life Coach, UNITED STATES)
A coaching model is a structure or framework for a coaching conversation. A coaching conversation consists of the client setting the topic or goal and the coach staying curious and asking powerful, open-ended questions where the coachee can go deeper and clarify their goal, explore their current reality, investigate the gap between where they are now and where they want to go, what the client really wants and what it is going to take to get there and how will they know they have succeeded. The coachee sets the agenda. The coachee is the decision-maker. The coachee knows what is best for themselves. The coach is a partner in the exploration that helps the client to the transformation the client has chosen.
When I first discovered I needed to make a model that would help me coach in the style that works for me, I immediately got caught up in finding the best acronym that had never been used. Not the most successful journey.
I came up with the following acronyms:
POWER
The partnership between Coach and Client.
Objective – what does the client want.
What does the client really, really want (beliefs and values).
Explore – What is the benefit of the goal, what are obstacles, what makes this important and what else?
Results – What action has the client decided to take to get their chosen goal?
CEDA
Clarify Objective
Explore options
Decide firm choice
Act take actions to move to a shift a transformation
Throughout my search and the acronym of TOMS which one of my peer coaches told me about (Topic, Objective, Motivation, Success) I realized I was drawn to a simple yet powerful word in particular. That word is “WHAT”.
In the coaching sessions, I witnessed, “What” questions could motivate the client to choose a direction or take a look at a value or belief they may not have investigated prior. It kept the conversation flowing more than a long, drawn-out question where suddenly the client was asking “What?” though more in the vein of “What are you saying and what does that question have to do with anything?”.
Please see the model below called the WHAT model of coaching:
“What” Model description:
What does the client want from the coaching conversation and what have they shared is their topic or agenda for the session.
How is this topic important to the client. This is the exploration part where the coach asks open-ended and powerful questions and stays curious. The client goes deeper into what their beliefs and values are and what is driving them toward the outcome. What is the benefit of the goal, what are obstacles, what makes this important?
Action – when a clear decision has been made by the client, what are the first steps the client will take for success? What is the measure of success? These ideas for action come from the client, not the coach. These action steps have been chosen by the client and have resulted from the coaching process.
Transition – The client has decided on new behaviours, new habits and the coach assists the client to decide the best methods for accountability for themselves. The coach notices and reflects on the coachee’s progress.
To quote Brene Brown, “It takes courage to ask a question rather than offer up advice, provide an answer or unleash a solution.” Coaching School with ICA has already improved my performance as a General Manager of a Service and Sales organization where I drive sales and wear many hats in the operations side of the business as well. My business coaching style has improved tenfold and “what else?” is my favourite question to ask. I look forward to using the WHAT model in my coaching sessions.
