Coaching
Introduction
Coaching has many forms and outcomes and, because of this, people need to be very clear about what they mean by coaching. Many people have a coach and that’s fine, but in some cases what they really have is a manager - someone who tells them what to do and the follow.
Coaching is not “telling.”
Coaching, however, is quite simple: a good coach will help you do it for yourself with rarely any significant input from the coach. Coaches help people see what they can do for themselves. In the end, the client should ‘fire’ the coach.
How I Coach: Objective-Based Coaching (OBC)
In the simplest of terms, I enable people to see what they want to achieve and then work back from there - always keeping the end goal firmly in sight.
I am dispassionate and objective. You may not always like what you hear. But, based on your goals there may be something you need to do, need to change about how you are operating in order to grow. It is my role to hold tat up to you and allow you time to wrestle with the issue.
OBC enables the you to remain in charge of the relationship. It will always be your goal, your way, in your time frame. My role as a coach is to enable you to find the right goal, achieve it the right way, in the best possible time for you. And all I mean about the ‘right’ way is that it is right for you and it is simply, by the common understanding of the terms: legal, moral and ethical.
How I Work With You
There are three primary ways I can work with you, and a fourth blended version.
1. By Phone: you make contact with me by phone and discuss what you are wanting to achieve. The initial contact can be up to an hour. The coaching sessions are all 45 minutes duration.
2. By Email: less preferable but good to use to clarify points, send material and comments on specific things that don’t lend themselves to a phone call. Sometimes ouy just need to write it down.
3. In Person: the best way to coach but international clients tend to baulk at the airfares to come to Australia! Seriously, I coach people in my local area in person for obvious reasons.
4. Blended Coaching: this is generally what will happen. Key coaching events are held by phone and followed up by email from the client for clarification and action points. If I am in the general area (sometimes I travel to other location) I will invite the client to meet if that suits them.
Setting clear objectives is obviously an essential part of the process. This will allow you to really define what you want to achieve over a general desire to “be better at …”. Being specific about your goals is half the battle.
A client once said to me at the commencement of a coaching session: “So, what are we discussing today?” I knew then we wouldn’t be working together long.
What Areas do I Coach?
With a long background in Human Resources development I am well placed to coach in a variety of areas, however, to enable me to remain at the top of my area of expertise I have narrowed it down to two primary coaching arenas:
1. General Management: which includes performance management, leadership, coaching, change management, communication
2. Sales Management: which includes how to develop staff, recruitment, coaching, managing performance, communication and disciplinary issues.
How Do I Start?
The first thing we need to establish is: can we work together?
This is crucial for you as it is about your progress and success. It’s not about my coaching expertise.
If you would like to become a better manager or better sales manager, please send an email to bill@billwallaceonline.com with a brief outline of what you are wanting to achieve. I will respond to your email within 24 hours with some questions for you and some ideas about what we might be able to achieve. I will also include my fees and rates in that email.
If you are happy to commence all you need to do is contact me (phone or email is fine) to set up a time for the first call. The essential thing is to clarify your objectives and then begin the discussion on how to achieve it.