Coaching assumptions: choose them wisely

Hi – this is Chris speaking. I am SolutionsAcademy’s global training director and love working as a mentor, coach supervisor and coach trainer. I’ll be contributing off and on to the blog, nice to meet you!

Someone once said, when we ASSUME we make an ASS of U and ME.

Recently we have been talking about the coaching stance and it seems pretty clear  that the expected stance of the coach should be one of not knowing, of curiosity and always providing that space where the client can swim freely in the pools of their own possibilities. A stance of ‘don’t assume’.

However, we all assume, I assume:D

So what if we assumed a little differently?

What if we enter the coaching space with some new assumptions (or old ones if you are already practicing a Solutions Focused Approach or something similar)

When the client enters the coaching space and coach takes the assumptive position of:

• I assume that my client has a good reason for being here
• I assume that my client has all the knowledge and resources they might need to support and help them in their current situation
• I assume that at some point during this coaching session this client will wonderfully surprise me, because human beings are wonderfully inventive when given the time and space
• I assume that I might have as much to learn or realize or enjoy in this coaching dance as my client does.

I wonder which other useful assumptions might come out, so as you read this dear reader, please share some that help you in your coaching space, or, why don’t you join us in our weekly coaching meet up to share and explore a little further.