The Impact of a New Coaching Approach
Sarah Chicquen is a Foundations of Coaching Alumni
I work in Human Resources as a Training & Development Specialist, working closely with new hires to help them find confidence and success in their roles. To do this, I have always tried to embody a coaching approach.
The beauty of a coaching approach is that it is on a continuum you can choose what works for you in that moment, day, or experience. The Foundations of Coaching course has done a great job of providing the groundwork for coaching and melding the tools with experiential learning. Regardless of how familiar I am with coaching, I can learn and grow with the group and am challenged to push myself to try things that are outside my comfort zone in a safe space. Nic and Janelle’s skills as coaches are evident at how quickly they can establish rapport with the group and establish trust among the participants.
One of the profound paradigm shifts for me has been shifting from my focus on problem solving to deeper exploration in order to arrive at more substantial changes. You might think a problem solving approach is helpful, but these takeaways supported me in shifting:
1. Phases of Coaching. Coach Social Change has a 4C’s of coaching model, which explores phases that we can move through when coaching. It was through my own personal reflection during these activities that I was able to dig deeper into issues that I was struggling with. By staying in the phases Engage with Compassion (C2) and Explore with Curiosity (C3) I was able to discover that the issues that I thought were bothering me were just surface symptoms and the root was way deeper than I had consciously known. I had realized that it's so easy to go from Establish the Context (C1) to End with Commitment (C4) and I was completely missing the actual problem and had been too focused on the solution. This has helped me immensely when working with others because sometimes what we think the challenge is, isn’t really the problem we need to solve.
2. The Stages of Learning was a great refresher for me because it reminded me that we can’t just read a book and be a master, it takes practice and experience to go from Unconscious Incompetence to Unconscious Competence.
3. The Sandbox and Dyad Practice was a great experience because there are a lot of tools that I am uncomfortable with as an introvert, I don’t like to be exaggerated or outgoing. The facilitators were able to create a space that felt safe enough for me to be vulnerable and try things such as mirroring and dialing up/down energy, emotions, and embodiment. It was during this activity that I had an “aha” moment and realized how visual my thoughts are. My brain associates my thoughts with images and pictures as I work through my feelings and emotions. I also realized how powerful modeling someone’s body language can be and the self-realization that comes when someone highlights movements and gestures that I don’t realize I make.
The Foundations of Coaching course is great for anyone who wants to gain confidence in their leadership, communication skills, or want to expand their coaching skills. Coach Social Change's learn and practice sessions were a great start. They are well organized and have clear takeaways that you can practice during the session to ensure you can implement them in your day-to-day life. I quickly realized that the more I put into the sessions with Coach Social Change, the more I learn and take from them. I would recommend that if you’re interested in coaching, attending the learn and practices are a great way to start!