The coach and coachee relationship is a dynamic one. As trust is established, outcomes are considered, actions are taken and challenges arise, the coach takes on various roles to support the client. The adoption of multiple roles can even take place in a single coaching session.
Being a flexible coach able to shift among the roles fairly seamlessly will serve you well. Of course, you’ll first need to understand them all and know how they work in a coaching context to support your client.
The list below captures the most common roles a coach might find themselves needing to play in supporting the client through a session or engagement:
- Thinking Partner
- Provocateur
- Cheerleader
- Nudger
- Accountability Partner
- Flashlight
- Appreciator
- Space Holder
- Reflector
- Role Player
Let’s take a look at each one independently to have clarity around our perspective on these roles.
Thinking Partner: Coaches bring much of their value to their clients in this role. An executive is often on the run throughout each day with hardly a moment to just sit and think. It’s a shame when that time comes at the end of the workday when the leader is already exhausted. A coaching session on the other hand presents this opportunity with regularity during the workday. In the coaching session, the client and coach work on one topic at a time – no multitasking here – and slow the world down to really think on it.
The coach will stay with the client in the present and also peer into the future to ask the client what they might do to act on possible solutions they’ve come up with. Asking questions, considering ways forward, think, think, think.
As you know, thinking for many minutes on a single topic in a quiet, uncluttered space is a luxury for many leaders. And yet it is proven to be so constructive and productive. The best ideas and considerations of alternate paths forward usually come after deep thought. This is one way executives get plenty of ROI out of coaching sessions.
Provocateur: There are times when a coach feels it would be valuable to provoke the client to consider seeing things differently. For example, if a client feels that only they can do a job the right way, the coach might ask, “What would need to be in place for so and so to do this job to a satisfactory level?” The coach isn’t confronting the client’s belief that only they can do a job correctly head on as much as shift the perspective to thinking abut what would need to be in place for the job to be done without their active involvement.
Coaches rarely succeed when directly confronting limiting beliefs, but they may when provoking a different line of thinking on the topic.
Playing the role of the reflector can also be provocative. For example, if the client says, “My boss is never open to my ideas!” The coach might reflect that statement back and provoke the client to have to consider if that statement is really true. This can be challenging.
This role takes some boldness on the coach’s part and that’s good. Clients generally like bold coaches who will provoke them in ways others won’t or can’t. Be prepared to be the provocateur with all clients. Your inner voice will usually tell you when it’s a good time to take on this role.
Cheerleader: Coaches usually take to this role naturally by inherently being positive and optimistic people. Ambitious clients often take on big goals, which aren’t achieved overnight. Nor are they achieved without facing numerous obstacles along the way.
Clients may sometimes get discouraged by sudden challenges that pop up or especially by the pervasive ones that won’t seem to back down. The encouragement they get from their coach can go a long way towards staying positive and continuing to engage in the coaching conversation to discover new ideas and resources to support the trek towards the goal.
Keep in mind this role can also be played through mailed notes of encouragement, a short buy meaningful voicemail, a positive well-timed email and, of course, in person. Sometimes the handwritten note is the best vehicle when being the cheerleader since clients will often hold onto it as something of a touchstone.
We’ve now looked at the first three roles you might play as a coach. The more you understand them and are able to embody them, the more confident and successful you’ll be in your coaching sessions. In part two of this series we’ll examine the next set of roles.
There’s more! Read part 2 and part 3!
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