9 Coaching Skills of a Good Coach
When looking to work with a coach, it is important that you choose the right one for you. You need to feel comfortable and heard. Here are 9 coaching skills that make a good coach:
Goal Setting
A good coach supports you to make an exact plan for when you want to achieve your goal. They support you in dividing your goal into impactful action points and milestones, empowering you to make your goal realistic and holding you accountable to stick with it and see it through!
Active Listening
A good coach needs to use active listening in order to establish a positive relationship with you and allow you to feel truly listened to. When active listening, a good coach may say something like, “So, what I hear you saying is...”. A good coach uses active listening to draw out the core of your challenge by engaging at a deeper level to solve problems with more clarity and knowledge.
Observation
Good coaches don’t just listen. They feel. They engage all the senses, listen for tone, watch body language, sense emotions and frustrations. A good coach makes observations each session, holding these. They then thread them through their reflections and help you recognise themes and patterns, elevating your growth and development. When providing feedback, a good coach will ask permission to share helpful observations with you.
Confidence
A good coach wants you to feel motivated and empowered. Therefore confidence is key. A good coach will also have confidence in you overcoming your challenges, reaching your goals, and finding fulfillment. You will also want to feel confident that you are picking the right coach for you; try having a meeting before committing to a programme to make sure you align with your chosen coach.
Builds rapport
A good coach doesn’t need to actively work on building rapport; it comes naturally because they genuinely care about you. They will show this by spending time focused on you, your life, and what you have to say! A good coach will use simple yet powerful affirmations to help you focus on qualities or behaviours that you want to experience more of while gently holding you accountable to bring these into your life.
Empathy
It is so important for a good coach to be empathic, as it helps them truly understand you, your perceptions, experiences and concerns. Coaching with empathy is the ability not only to comprehend your point of view but also to experience your emotions vicariously. A good coach will use empathy to hone their communication skills, so they can sense what to ask you next for you to get the absolute most growth out of a session. Developing a supportive community is essential when seeking a fulfilled life, and a good coach will be at the heart of this with you.
Active curiosity
A good coach is a curious coach. Curiosity allows a good coach to naturally listen to you more intently, suspending their judgment and reflecting back to you on what they have heard. This helps you to build trust and rapport, allowing you to feel heard and affirm that your coach has a genuine interest in what you are sharing.
Structured
A good coach will structure your coaching programme for you to ensure you reach your agreed outcome. With a good coach, each coaching session will have an adaptable structure to allow for deep focus when an important discussion happens while staying on track. A good coach will make sure that you leave a coaching session feeling empowered with impactful action points to take away, so your progression and growth continue outside coaching.
Supportive
A good coach is supportive. They encourage you to develop a growth mindset and help you accept any mistakes you make on your journey. Good coaches will boost your self-confidence and push you to elevate your intentions for improvement. When a good coach helps you focus on learning, your passion and dedication drive your effort, meaning you are better at overcoming obstacles along the way. Overall a good coach is your biggest cheerleader. They are as invested in your success and fulfillment as you are!
