Coaching Model: PathFinder

A Coaching Model Created by Patricia Hudak
(ADHD Coach, United States)

Our Journey:

What had begun as a subject-specific tutoring business in 2005 now exists as a blended coaching and tutoring enterprise, offering coaching and tutoring services to youth, adults, and families. At its very core is a deep, trusting, highly-valued relationship between the coach/tutor (referred to as “coach” throughout the remainder of this document) and each of her clients. Just as my practice has evolved along a path of discovery, my clients will continue to find their own way with the collaborative support and guidance of a caring coach.

Where It All Begins:

In a safe space created by the coach, surrounded on all sides by “trust”, a client meets with a coach. It is in this place, both coach and client present-in-the-moment, where they explore the possibilities for change and growth ~ where the client begins to find his or her unique path to a more purposeful and fulfilling life.

The Relationship:

Coaching is a collaborative process built on a very special relationship between the client and the coach. This alliance is built on authenticity and mutual respect in a confidential environment. It is judgment-free, where truth carries no consequences other than learning, discovery, and new insight. The partners in this relationship have a shared understanding of what coaching is and what coaching is not, and they clearly recognize their individual roles.

COACH + CLIENT = COLLABORATIVE PATH FINDING

Role Of The Coach*:

The coach guides the client through the coaching process. She follows established ethical guidelines and professional standards, understands and communicates the parameters of the coaching relationship, and is able to create a safe, supportive environment that produces ongoing mutual respect and trust.

This includes:

Showing concern for the client’s welfare and future;
Demonstrating personal integrity, honesty, and sincerity;
Establishing clear agreements and keeping promises;
Providing ongoing support and championing new behaviors and actions, including those involving risk taking and fear of failure; and
Asking permission to coach the client in sensitive, new areas.

The coach is able to be fully conscious and create a spontaneous relationship with the client, employing a style that is open, flexible, and confident.

For a coach, effective communication is essential:

Active Listening – ability to focus completely on what the client is saying and is not saying, to understand the meaning of what is said in the context of the client’s desires, and to support client self-expression.
Powerful Questioning – ability to ask questions that reveal the information needed for the maximum benefit to the coaching relationship and the client.
Direct Communication – ability to communicate effectively during coaching sessions, and to use language that has the greatest positive impact on the client.

The role of a coach also includes facilitating the client’s learning and results.

The coach accomplishes this by:

Creating Awareness – ability to integrate and accurately evaluate multiple sources of information, and to make interpretations that help the client to gain awareness and thereby agreed-upon results;
Designing Actions – ability to create with the client opportunities for ongoing learning, during coaching and in work/school/life situations, and for taking new actions that will most effectively lead to agreed-upon coaching results.
Planning and Goal Setting – ability to develop and maintain an effective coaching plan with the client.
Managing Progress and Accountability – ability to hold attention on what is important for the client, and to leave responsibility with the client to take action.

Role Of The Client:

In the coaching process, it is truly all about the client and finding his or her unique path to a more purposeful and fulfilling life. The client, as the FINDER, has some distinct responsibilities:

The client brings the agenda – while the coach is in charge of the PROCESS, the client is responsible for the CONTENT of the coaching sessions.

Beginning with forging the coaching partnership, and through a journey of discovery, the client is inspired to set meaningful goals. The coaching sessions provide the client with guided structure to identify new strategies for implementing change. It is up to the client, with the support of the coach, to follow through and do the action items established by the client to meet the client-defined goals. All this is possible because the client has been open to reflection, expanding his or her self-knowledge, and worked hard to explore all possibilities. The client is never alone on the path and can always rely on the coach for support and accountability.

What Just Happened?

It all began with a client and a coach, with well-defined roles, establishing an open, trusting, and mutually respectful partnership. The client is searching for an answer and is committed to finding it; the client desires change. The coach guides the client down the path of self-discovery: new thoughts, beliefs, perceptions, etc. that strengthen the client’s ability to take action and achieve what is important to him or her. Together they celebrate the client’s successes and capabilities for future growth.