As a Personal Coach, how many times have I heard this question asked, and with what reason it is asked, since the word Coaching itself, and especially in our country, is not a term that helps us much in this regard.
Luckily it is becoming more and more known, a certain path has already been traveled in its dissemination and in its practice, especially in the business world, but we still have a long way to go.
Coaching is an art, a tool in itself, made up of many others.
Coaching drinks from many sources, it is like life itself, which is composed and nurtured, in turn, from sharing experiences with many other lives.
The sources from which Coaching draws are psychology, philosophy, sociology, HR, business management…, apart from the professional coaches' own experience, who are constantly contributing ideas and methods.
That is why the definitions that can be made of this discipline are multiple and varied.
A widely used definition is the one that says: “Coaching consists of unlocking a person's potential to maximize their performance. It consists in helping her learn instead of teaching her ”(J.Whitmore).
If we analyze it, in it we can find two very important points on which all Coaching process is based:
- All people have a potential to explore and develop, even if we are not aware of it. A very important pillar on which Coaching is based is learning. Without learning this process would not be effective.
Another important definition is the following: “Coaching bridges the gap between what you are now and what you want to be. It is a professional relationship with another person who will accept only the best of you and will advise, guide and stimulate you to go beyond the limitations you impose on yourself and realize your full potential ”(Talane Miedaner).
From it we can obtain the following conclusions:
- Coaching is a path of personal growth, of self-knowledge, and has as a consequence the obtaining of better results in our life and the achievement of goals.The professional relationship is established with the Coach, who is in charge of giving the help, encouragement, guidance, planning,… throughout the process. The Coach helps the person to focus towards the goal and to overcome the limitations and fears that arise throughout the journey.
As can be seen with only two definitions, the question that gave title to this article can be clarified: And what is this about Coaching?
These lines are intended to shed light on this concept, although it is much more extensive than any definition can provide.
The most satisfactory thing is to experience it in the first person, so that through that experience you can obtain your own conclusions, and incidentally, the multiple benefits that a Coaching process brings.
