When developing Go MAD thinking as a practical and successful coaching tool I became increasingly aware that as a coach I don't need to have technical knowledge or expertise in a specific topic to be a good coach. What I need is a structured process, which the Go MAD Framework provides, and above all the ability to ask good questions. When talking about 'coaching' I am referring to any situation in which you engage with someone to help them move forward in making a difference. This may be in an informal exchange or as part of a more formal coaching relationship. These 7 tips highlight key issues in using high quality questioning when coaching:
1. Helping others to connect with the answers on the inside
Coaching is not about telling people what to do. Helping people to understand through the skilful use of questioning, instead of attempting to make them understand through telling, creates deeper levels of understanding and self-awareness. It allows the individual to choose their thoughts and take responsibility for their choices. Telling them, however well meaning, denies them that choice. Through good questioning you allow the individual to resolve issues for themselves and challenge habitual ways of thinking. You will help people to generate their own answers and have ownership of the way forward.
2. Recognising a high quality question
A high quality question in simple terms is one that generates a high quality answer or thought. Therefore it must stimulate more than a yes or no answer and require the person to think more deeply. When coaching I find that to achieve this deeper thought the majority of my questions begin with a 'what' or a 'how' encouraging the person to produce an open response. High quality questions will predominately be future and solution focused to keep the person concentrating on the difference they say they want to make. To be a good coach you will be supportive yet challenging when asking questions to keep the individual focused on the answers that will help them.
3. Identifying two types of high quality questions
There are two types of high quality questions; questions that engage the imagination and questions that focus the mind. To focus the mind you will ask questions that help the person assess motivation and self-belief, define goals, take personal responsibility, make choices and plan priorities and actions. Engaging the imagination requires questions that will help the individual to visualise future success, generate possible ideas for actions and create breakthroughs in thinking. Check that the questions you ask will move the person toward answers in these areas.
4. Control the process
Your responsibility as a coach is to be aware of the coaching process and to continually confirm (to yourself) that you are helping the individual through the questions you are asking. This requires you to remain detached from the content of the coaching topic – however interesting it may be! This leaves the individual responsible for their thoughts and development actions.
5. Use silence
People need time to think and arrive at their own conclusions. It is possible to ruin the impact of a great high quality question by not giving the person enough time to think and then jump in with another question. To judge how long to leave the silence observe the other person: specifically be aware of their facial expression – do you get the impression that they are searching for an answer within themself or are they are stuck and need further help? Occasionally it can be useful to break a long silence with a question like “What are you thinking?” This will help them to move on.
6. Be creative
You can be as creative as you wish in formulating a high quality question. This is particularly appropriate for the types of questions you might ask to engage the imagination. Occasionally it can be useful to ask an individual to generate their own questions for example “What is the real question you need to answer before you move forward?” or “What is the one question if answered would help you the most?”. Remember to make use of silence and allow them some thinking time with these types of questions.
7. Ensure every question has a purpose
As a coach you must ensure every question has a purpose. This means the question must be relevant to the person and the difference they wish to make. Also the questions must be relevant to the person in helping them to think through their issues and arrive at their own solutions. It can be useful to ask yourself regularly when coaching “What would be the most useful question to ask at this point?”
A question to ask yourself:
What action might I need to take to develop my questioning technique?
|
