A coaching blueprint.

Coaching is the art and science of facilitating self-directed change. It requires helping a person think through a situation with greater depth and clarity than they could do on their own and assist them in discovering their own solutions. In previous columns we’ve presented multiple tools and techniques for achieving this objective. Employing these techniques in a real-time coaching encounter, however, can be very challenging without an overall framework— a blueprint—to serve as a guide. Let’s take a look at a blueprint to help you navigate the coaching process. Keep in mind, however, that it’s not a linear process; there will be times when you might have to loop back and re-cover ground that you’ve already been over. To draw a blueprint, you have to have a clear idea of what you’re trying to accomplish. Coaching carries a very different objective than mentoring or teaching. Mentoring is the sharing of your own knowledge or professional experience, while teaching involves providing a framework for understanding based on an objective body of knowledge. In both of these roles, you function as a knowledgeable and trusted advisor. This is not the role of a coach, however. Keep in mind that your objective as a coach is to facilitate self-discovery, not provide the answer. A coaching blueprint