What Is Coaching And Is It For You?

Article by: Sheryl Lynn Baas

Last update: February 27, 2024

Now that we are already well into the new year, chances are that you’ve had moments to reflect on where you currently stand and moments to set goals for the future. It is our wish for you that you are well on your way to create the life you envision for yourself.

In this blogpost we share some tips on coaching, a powerful tool that can assist you in your personal and professional development. Both reflection and goal setting are recurring aspects of coaching. It’s about finding self-insight and awareness on your journey.

If you are a coach yourself, or perhaps manage a team, you may also find some valuable refreshers here. There are many different coaching models out there and it is helpful to get familiar with them, both as a coach and as a coachee.

What is coaching?

The International Coaching Federation (ICF) defines coaching as “partnering with clients through a creative process that inspires them to maximize their personal and professional potential”. Another definition is that coaching is a non-directive way of guidance in which the coach provides a safe and trusted environment for the client so that they feel heard and understood.

In the coaching process, several models can be chosen from, of which the GROW model is considered the most popular. Multiple coaching models are derived from the GROW model. We will discuss a selection of models and methods, to give you an idea of what to look for and what to potentially apply in coaching.

Famous Coaching models and theories

GROW is a four-step plan and stands for Goal, Reality, Options, and Will. Examples of accompanying coaching questions are:

Goal: What do you want to achieve? Where are you going?
Reality: What have you achieved so far? Where are you now?
Options: What options do you have? What else could you do?
Will: Which choices will you make? What action will you take?

Derived from this model, are the POSITIVE model and the OSCAR model, among others.

The POSITIVE model of coaching is, as the name suggest, concerned with the positive experiences of people. The model attempt to identify your positive experiences and find out if these experiences can be used to achieve current set goals.

The OSCAR model is a popular tool in workplace coaching. OSCAR stands for Outcome, Situation, Choices, Actions, and Review. The goal of the model is to help managers increase and improve their employees’ performance and professional efficiency.

Coaching in the business world

Coaching often brings about a fundamental shift in the way employees approach their work. The CLEAR coaching model (Contract, Listen, Explore, Action and Review) is a transformational coaching model used among leaders and managers in the business world. It is designed to help employees achieve fundamental changes based on new values, behaviour or convictions.

Organizations are increasingly dependent on teams that deliver results, so the need for effective team coaching is growing. Team coaching is the process of guiding a group of people towards achieving a goal. It includes working with the team to help them improve skills, improve their performance, and improve their relationships and communication.

Executive coaching is a tailored professional development process aimed at improving the skills, performance and overall effectiveness of (future) executives. It involves a partnership between an experienced coach and an executive, with the aim of unlocking the individual’s potential, clarifying goals, developing leadership skills and achieving desired results.

Coaching methods

There are three final coaching methods we would like to bring to your attention: transformational coaching, strengths-based coaching and appreciative coaching.

Transformational coaching is a method to restructure your inner person and put transformational changes into action with the intention to self-realise the changes. This type of coaching does not focus on achievements, but focuses on being rather than doing.

Strengths-based coaching mainly focuses on improving performance and developing the individual through a focus on qualities and skills. It is an approach to coaching that focuses on your strengths and positive qualities. This approach stems from positive psychology and has been gaining popularity in recent years.

Appreciative coaching is different from other forms of coaching and mentorship. It is deeply rooted in the basic principles of appreciative inquiry. It’s mostly aimed at the professional and personal life of the coachee and has been designed to get the most out of the skills of a person, organisation, or group.

Resources to dive deeper:

Now that you have an idea of some of the different coaching models and methods out there, you might want to dive deeper into one or two of them. You can learn more about any of these models on our platform, simply by clicking on the links above. Or you can follow one of the courses or masterclasses below that caught our attention:

Professional Life Coach Certification & Guide – Accredited course + Certification.
Coaching Managers & Leaders for Continuous Improvement – Course by Lawrence M. Miller (Best Selling Instructor, Author & Leadership Coach).
Spiritual Coach Certification – Accredited course + Certification.
Coaching Toolbox | 40+ Methods and Tools Business / Life Coach – Course, certification and practical tools.

How to cite this article:
Baas, S. L. (2024). What Is Coaching And Is It For You?. Retrieved [insert date] from Toolshero: https://www.toolshero.com/blog/coaching-tips-resources/

Original publication date: 01/20/2024 | Last update: 02/27/2024

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Article by:

Sheryl Lynn Baas

Sheryl Lynn Baas is our Communications Manager at Toolshero and you might recognize her from our learning videos. Sheryl’s academic background is in Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology and she is the founder of the Sheryl Lynn Foundation, a non-profit for children and education in the Philippines. She’s a jack-of-all-trades and furthermore shares her gifts as a spiritual coach, presenter and DJ. Fun fact: she is former Miss Netherlands 2006.