
The coaching playbook is effective’s A-Z of bite-sized tools, tips and techniques for coaches, managers – and even for your own personal development.
An anchor is a conscious or unconscious trigger or stimulus for a feeling or behaviour, which can be positive or negative. Classic anchors include music, photographs, places, tastes and smells.
Coach message: to know their own, and control for them. Then to notice if their client has any acting upon them – and don’t assume, check. Then perhaps work to replace any negative anchors with positive ones.
This is an activity I use to demonstrate the power of habit. Ask the client to fold their arms; then ask them to unfold and fold them the other way round. Watch them, and their degree of struggle (it’s a useful practice of calibration). Ask them how easy it was, and how it feels. Ask them to unfold, and fold again, as they wish. They will all fold using their normal way. This demonstrates the nature and power of habit. In this case, the arm fold that they use is neither good nor bad; but it is now embedded. Was it learned, or did it happen naturally? But if they had to, what would it take to unlearn it, to fold it the other way, and as naturally/automatically as they fold their normal way?
Coach message: use devices to demonstrate key learning – but let the client do the learning; ask questions, rather than tell them what to think. Specifically, the client will see and feel how difficult it is to change a habit, and perhaps reflect on what would be necessary to make the change.
I find this a really powerful technique to do with control and choice. Here’s how it works:
Now the discussion, which starts with two questions:
and see where the conversation takes you….
Coach message: typically the client will recognise that the answer to the first question depends on the definition (frame) of ‘winning’. If the ‘game’ is won by pushing the arm of the other person onto the table, then ‘they’ won. But that may not be the only definition of ‘winning’. The client may even get to:
each person had a different outcome in mind (ie a different view of ‘winning’)
each played by different rules
don’t play a game you can’t win
the coach had the most control, in terms of strategies and preferred outcomes
challenge the default – especially if it doesn’t work for you.
Acknowledge, Say no, Suggest a helpful alternative. Useful as a constructive way of saying no to someone, by positioning it within two positives – the recognition or acknowledgement of their request, and the offer of a constructive alternative (and there always is one)
Coach message: useful if the client is struggling with being assertive, particularly in saying no. It’s a clear but simple strategy or device that someone could learn, to help them with their difficulty.
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Simply start the booking process and select the service which you are interested in. This will show you a calendar with available dates.
You are not required to pay at the point of booking, so if you would like to reserve a workshop date, please feel free to book and pay by invoice later.
You can schedule multiple bookings of a single type (e.g. multiple coaching sessions), however to schedule a different type of booking, please repeat the scheduling process.
You have two payment options when booking. You can choose to pay by card at the point of booking, or to pay later by invoice (BACS).
(All prices shown during booking include VAT at 20%)
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