Learning To Be A Better Coach By Asking The Right Coaching Questions
Asking the right coaching questions is key to becoming an exceptional coach.
People who seek help from a coach usually want to improve some aspect of their life or business. You became a coach because you want to help people to live happier, more fulfilled lives. And to achieve their goals. You want to be the best coach you can possibly be, help people by facilitating rapid change and you want to create a successful coaching business. One of the fundamental ways of ensuring your own and your clients’ success is by asking the right coaching questions.
Asking the right questions means the difference between a one-way interrogation and a transformative development session. Good coaching questions give the client the space in which to step back and examine themselves. The right question can make the client stop in their tracks and see their actions from a different perspective and begin to believe in the possibility of a new solution to an old problem.
The right questions can help the client learn to question themselves so that next time they catch themselves repeating unhelpful behaviours they can change their actions in the moment.
Be Genuinely Interested In The Answer
The most important thing to keep in mind when coaching and asking questions is that you need to be genuinely curious about the answers. Clients can tell if you’re asking questions from a script. To be able to nail the ‘ah ha’, that one moment of realisation you cannot just be going by rote.
You need to be genuinely invested in your client, their situation and their progress. Curiosity fosters your ability to ask questions of your clients that help them understand their feelings and how they impact their success
Listening Is As Important As Asking
Listening to clients is what mindset coaching is all about. Understanding subtle tells, language patterns and messages help in understanding your client’s issues. However, if when a client is talking you’re so busy trying to come up with a solution to their problems or respond with a killer comment whilst they’re still talking, then you’re not really a good listener. You may appear to be a great listener, but that’s not the same thing.
Conscious listening is a key skill that we help you develop in the Mindset Coach Academy. It takes curiosity, concentration, energy and focus.
Let The Silences Do The Heavy Lifting
In some cases what is not said is just as important as what is voiced. To be an excellent coach it is vital that you communicate well on many levels such as body language, vocabulary and more. Great coaches learn much by observing clients and sort out the subtlest signs of worry, uncertainty, in-congruence and inner conflict.
Be Prepared
While there are a lot of coaching questions you can’t directly prepare for ahead of time, some you’ll find you’ll use often.
Before each session we suggest reviewing your notes from the last coaching session with your client to reconnect to the conversation.
Once you are in the coaching session, you will need to respond to the answers your client gives you with further questions. These questions help move you along from what the client says to what else you want to learn. The intuitive process at the heart of the coaching relationship can’t be scripted. Your own genuine interest in the clients development and personal growth will trigger your next question.
The Mindset Coach Academy
At the Mindset Coach Academy we are with you every step of the way making sure you are fully proficient and confident when it comes to knowing the right questions to ask.
You’ll experience best in class training, coaching, mentoring and support from our qualified team to guarantee that you’ll not only learn each technique, you’ll be able to apply and integrate them into your coaching practice or workplace with ease.
Our experts are dedicated to helping you develop and hone your skills across a range of evidence based mindset coaching, diagnostic and therapeutic modalities as well as business-building strategies.