One of the first questions I usually get from a prospective client or somebody interested in coaching but not quite ready to take the leap yet is, “What would I even talk about?” While the question is a legitimate one, it is typically rooted in that familiar hesitant reaction we have when confronted with the anticipated opportunity to be vulnerable. And thus the simple answer addressing what to talk about during a coaching session turns out to be a little more involved than just content.
The short answer to what to talk about during a coaching session is: anything and everything. Coaching serves a variety of purposes, including (but not limited to) brainstorming, processing, problem solving, self-examination, personal development, gap analysis, skills assessment, and leadership development. Coaching can also help leaders work through and identify where their team is performing well and where they could be doing better.
Examples of good topics to prepare and bring up during a coaching session are:
An area in which you want to grow
A strategic initiative that feels incomplete for reasons you can’t quite pinpoint
A team member that you may be struggling with
A big win that you’d like to celebrate and process
A problem you want to think through
An event or situation that hasn’t been sitting well with you
A direct report who is not performing to the level you’d hoped
An idea you’d like to explore
A relationship you would like to improve
A circumstance or environment you are unsure about navigating
A pattern you’ve noticed and would like to examine
Ways your team is doing well
Areas in which you’d like your team to develop
The promotion you’re hoping to get
The promotion you’re upset you didn’t get
Question(s) you want addressed from a previous session or assessment result
The more important thing to consider when it comes to a coaching session is not the content itself, but the way you talk about the content. Your general attitude and openness during a session will predict how successful the outcome is, even if the outcomes ends up being one that takes you by surprise. Our personal ability to either recognize how we are feeling and reacting in the moment coupled with our willingness to accept observations made by a coach (whether positive or critical) will be the key to capitalizing on our personal and professional growth.
Your coach will hear things and find meaning and ask questions, and while a good coach will skillfully ask good questions to get you thinking more broadly, it is equally important that you be open to receiving not only these questions but the challenging thinking that may come with them. We gain significant insights that can lead to breakthrough developments when we are willing to challenge ourselves and our own thinking to entertain the idea that there might be a bigger world out there.
Chew on this:
What did you talk about the last time you had a breakthrough?
What attitude do you generally have when approached with challenging thinking?
In what areas can a coach help you grow?