An Illustration: One error in a teacher’s thinking is the idea that they are the teacher. Some of you might be thinking to yourself, “Strange sentence. If they are not the teacher, who are they? And, more importantly, who then is the teacher?” Fair questions all.
Good teachers think of themselves as both a teacher and also a student. Good thing too, because the role of a teacher, if not symbiotic, is ineffective at best. It is important that teachers continuously learn about their audience and learn from their audience because therein lies the fuel for effectiveness in any growth environment. Professional coaching is the same. As professional coaches it behooves us to think of ourselves as “The Coach” and it is important to balance that thought with the awareness that we are also students of our coachees.
As students of our coachees, we learn about their strengths and weaknesses, their internal currency, their barriers – everything that makes up the sum of their whole. We also have the privilege of learning new ideas for creating change. It is also important (and most likely inevitable) that we learn a lot about ourselves, and how we present in the company of different individuals or groups. This is great news because the more we learn about ourselves the better coaches we become. Learning what is behind concerns, what makes us feel fulfilled, what fosters in us the ability to be present in the moment with our coachees, and/or what might be a barrier to it – the list goes on. This awareness is as critical to a coach’s talent as a formal education because otherwise, the best formal training will stagnate. Coaches and their coachees benefit from a continual openness to learning.
