When you think of making coaching a success, what does that mean to you?

Do you think about YOU, the coach? Or do you think about the vision for your program? Or the processes you follow?

What do we really mean when we say “successful coaching”?

This question has come up many times inside The Coach Certificate and Mentorship program, and on the #coachbetter podcast. Often coaches are left on their own to design and then evaluate their coaching program, and that can become stressful and confusing when you’re also the one executing the tasks.

So today, I’m sharing a highlight of my recent #coachbetter conversation with Laura Lipton, co-author of Mentoring Matters (with Bruce Wellman), one of the foundational references inside The Coach. In our conversation on the podcast, one of the key points Laura made very clearly was about the three elements that make coaching a success.

When we talk about coaching, we kind of have this generalized understanding of what we mean, but it’s important to be more specific, and identify each of these three pieces as you are either building or refining or developing your coaching program.

Here are the three elements of successful coaching, as defined by Laura:

1: The Art of Coaching

By this we mean the actions of a coach, things like:

• having coaching conversations,
• building relationships with people,
• better understanding their goals and
• helping them achieve those goals.

The actual work of coaching, the art of coaching, is actually just one piece of the coaching puzzle.

2: The Coaching Program

The Coaching Program is the frameworks and structures that you use to make coaching successful. This might be the:

• coaching cycle that you use,
• way that you hire coaches,
• expectations of coaches,
• scheduling of coaches, and
• vision for your coaching program.

Essentially, your “program” is all of that framework that surrounds the success of your program. Side note: I have another post, called the 8 Steps to a Successful Coaching Program, inspired by another recent episode of the #coachbetter podcast with Joellen Killian that digs deeper into this topic!

3: The Coach

The third piece is the coach, the human, the person themselves, the person who’s doing the job. A really important thing to consider about that human being is that the coach needs to be separated from the success or challenges in the act of coaching and the development of the coaching program.

A lot of times coaches are hired for their personality, the person that they are, and then the success or challenges within the program get wrapped up with the actual person. But it’s really important to separate those two things so that when you get feedback about the coaching program, it’s feedback about the program, not about the human being.

Separating the human being from the programmatic and the coaching aspects of your program is really important in evaluating the success of your program. The success of your program isn’t exclusively the human being, and being able to separate the success of even a coaching conversation or the structure of the program, from the human being allows the individual to reflect more objectively on what’s working and what’s not within the program.

Keeping in mind all three of those elements as you are working to build and refine your coaching program may help you be a little bit more objective in understanding what’s working and what might not be working in your individual context.

Watch the Video

Is it time to reflect on your coaching program?

As you read through the 3 elements for successful coaching, where do you think your program is thriving, and where might it be struggling? If now is the time for you to think how you can begin the process to ensure coaching is successful in your school environment, you might like our brand new free download: Coaching Program Evaluation!

You’ll walk through all of the steps in the THRIVE model to determine where your current program needs attention – and where you’re already strong. You’ll have a clear understanding of the gaps that you need to address in your program. You can even dig deeper into the evaluation process with our upcoming LIVE webinar: 3 Steps to Create a Thriving Coaching Culture All Coaches Need to Know!

Webinar Description: Are you struggling to build a coaching culture in your school setting? Are you frustrated by teacher reluctance or lack of leadership? Do you feel like something is missing to make coaching work? There are 3 key elements necessary to create a thriving coaching culture in all school settings. But, the reality is that most schools are missing one – and they don’t even realize it! In this workshop, you’ll learn exactly what’s needed to create a thriving coaching culture AND get the tools to identify the gaps in your coaching program so you can take action immediately! Are you ready to create a thriving coaching culture in your school this year?

And, if you’re ready to fill those gaps, that’s exactly what we do inside The Coach Certificate and Mentorship Program. Wherever you are in building a coaching culture in your school, The Coach will give you the strategies, skills and tools you need to make coaching a success and will empower you to confidently apply instructional coaching strategies in any situation – from building a coaching program, to having coaching conversations, to being a leader in your school community. We facilitate only one cohort each academic year so we can offer individualized support for each participant.

Registration for our next global cohort opens on the 21st February and closes on the 14th of March.

Find out more at: https://edurolearning.com/coach/