If you want to be a successful coach having a coaching mindset is essential and it's a great mindset to build and nurture if you're considering developing coaching skills or training as a coach.
A coaching mindset is one where you’re willing to remain open and curious. It means you engage in a reflective practice and are committed to developing your abilities, equally it's about ensuring your own needs are met and you put on your own oxygen mask first (something we all know yet don't always do!)
What are some ways you can begin to develop your coaching mindset? Here are a few things you begin doing this week.
Self Reflection
This is one of the most powerful ways of learning and means that you're tuning into what your brain, your body and emotions are telling you so you are more self aware. This allows you to better understand whether your mental, emotional and physical needs are being met in your own life and means you can more effectively support others. When we're present with ourselves we can more readily be present with clients and therefore we can be more effective as caoches.
Emotional Self Regulation
This is not only a key skill for coaches it's something which we can translate to all areas of our lives. Being able to manage your own emotions and behaviour, as well as regulating your own reactions and responses is key for you to remain open, inquisitive and client focused. By controlling your own feelings, it puts you in a much stronger position to support your coachee and be completely present for them when they need you.
Help others focus on what’s possible right now
Coaches focus on the positives, which means spending less time fixated on the problem and more time focused on what’s possible. Coaches see the potential and help those they are coaching see those possibilities too. What is possible for you right now? where you can focus?
Tune into your empathetic nature
When we step into empathy it can help improve our relationships. Effective coaches have empathy for their clients rather than sympathy or feeling they need to "save them". Empathy allows you to recognise what is going on for your client without getting caught in the narrative and helps to create trust and safety meaning coaching is more impactful.
Ask for Help
Great coaches know that they don't operate in a vacuum, so make sure you begin to build your support network. Reach out to other coaches you know and make a habit of holding conversations around coaching. Getting access to different perspectives can help you strengthen your own coaching skills.
In this episode, we delve into the importance of a coaching mindset and what that really means.
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