Personal goals and coaching motivations (2)

There is no achievement without lofty goals” (Robert J. McKaine).

Coaching is a dialogue or conversation that explores all or part of the track of the nuances of human thinking about personal achievement and success. Coaching in this regard is all about understanding and solving problems through innovation and strategic planning, without being judgmental or presumptuous. Performance coaching in particular is a dialogue facilitated by the coach to optimise skills, increase awareness and enhance performance. The focus remains how to compel desirable change.

In reality, what brings about desirable change is the changing of the meaning that we give to an experience, view or understanding. And, anytime we are able to effect a change in the meaning of any thing in our mind frame, we open up our mind to experience and understand something new. As a result, our mind frame becomes tuned to responding differently.

What this implies is that a new meaning always leads to a new and different mindset. This in turn triggers a new and different belief system, which results in a different thinking pattern, and ultimately different action. That is the reason why every real change is actually the result of a shift from a person just being someone, to a person really doing something worthwhile and necessary, for desirable change to occur.

To explain further, every human being has four great powers to bring about change, in order to close or bridge the gap between “human being” and “human doing”. The four powers are: the power to think; the power to feel; the power to speak; and the power to act. While the first two are internal powers, the other two are external powers. All four powers however determine the states of human responses to external or internal stimuli that require change.

What makes coaching so powerful in facilitating change is the freedom it gives to the client to personally desire and reach for something greater, better, higher and more satisfying. And, because coaching thrives on the index questioning of the ‘what’, ‘why’, ‘when’, ‘where’, and ‘how’ of a desirable goal, the client develops and owns the power to think, feel, speak and act by personal inspiration. All that the coach has to do is help the client to access the internal (mind) resources within him, in order to achieve the desired outcomes or goals.

It must be emphasised that in the process, the coach must encourage and facilitate the correct knowledge. In this regard, the coaching motivations are centred upon the client knowing and being sure about what he wants (or doesn’t want). In other words, there is a definite goal in view, which is formed solely from the personal knowledge, understanding, meaning and experience of the client. It is never from the coach, but always from the client.

Once the goals and outcomes have been established as mentioned, the coach drives the personal motivations through a set of questioning engagements. For example, an experienced coach could form the questions like the following:

• “Are you happy with your present situation?”

• “Can the situation be better than it currently is?”

• “What are current positives – what is working presently?”

• “What are the negatives – what is not working?”

• “What is the biggest pain, worry or issue?”

• “What would be the one thing that needs to change, in effecting the biggest difference?”

• “What will success or excellent results mean or be in terms of tangible results – what you can see, feel, hear, handle, or experience?”

• “What are you doing presently to compel the desired change – the know-act feeling?”

• “What more can be done to make you feel more resourced and resourceful in amplifying the desired change?”

• What or who would you need to feel more resourced and resourceful in effecting the desired change?”

The above are just examples of some of the kind of questions that the coach may introduce in the course of the coaching engagement, as a means of encouraging the client to find answers from within himself by accessing his internal (mind) resources. The successful coaching motivation is thus based on a model of well-formed outcomes (WFO), which are hinged upon evidence-based outcomes (EBO).

An experienced performance coach would often use such models as this, because they increase the chances of getting the desired outcomes for the client, by leading the client from the present to the desired state. These key elements thus enable the client to fully embrace the present state, while owning the power to internalise the desired state (owning it), even before having it. That is what compels the personal motivations and drive the client to make informed and inspired decisions in achieving desired goals.

Emmanuel Imevbere