What key challenges do coaches and mentors face in a business context?

It is important that both the coach AND the coachee are clear on what they want out of the relationship. "How to get the most out of coaching" by @karen davis and @Alex Mill is a must-read for both the coach and the coachee. It helped me to set even better processes in place to improve my coaching process. And it has helped many of coachees to come in better prepared for their sessions.

Some of the key challenges that coaches and mentors face in a business context are: - Establishing trust and rapport with the coachee or mentee, especially in a virtual or hybrid setting. - Balancing the roles of supporter, challenger, and facilitator, without imposing their own agenda or solutions. - Adapting to the diverse needs, goals, and preferences of different coachees or mentees, and providing personalized feedback and guidance. - Measuring and demonstrating the impact and value of coaching or mentoring on the coachee's or mentee's performance, development, and well-being. - Maintaining their own professional development and learning as coaches or mentors, and seeking feedback and supervision to enhance their practice.

Having had over 750 coaching sessions with coaches, I would say the following is the biggest challenge: - Articulate what they do in a compelling way and increase the perceived value of their offer with their content. Most make the mistake of presuming people know how good they are or underestimating what it takes to stand out. No bueno!

We often hear 'it's not personal, it's business.' But in coaching and self-awareness, understanding our own operating system is key to performance. Our beliefs, shaped by life experiences, hold us back. Uncovering insights about our 'operating system' has the greatest impact. Knowing our passions helps us understand ourselves and bring value to business. It's not just what we do, but how we do it that creates impact. The challenge is people's reluctance to engage in this deep work. It's uncomfortable, but the rewards are worth it.

In my view, it is crucial for clients to grasp the practical outcomes of the assignment. Making sure that clients possess realistic anticipations regarding the results of mentoring or coaching is fundamental. Impractical expectations can result in disillusionment and discontent.

In business context, coaches and mentors encounter several significant challenges. Firstly, balancing individualized guidance with broader organizational goals can be tricky. They must tailor their support to each employee while aligning it with company objectives. Second, managing resistance to change is common, as employees may resist feedback and coaching, hindering growth. Also, finding time for coaching and mentoring within busy work environments is a challenge. Finally, assessing the effectiveness of coaching and mentoring programs and ensuring they deliver tangible results can be complex. Overcoming these challenges require a combination of interpersonal skills, adaptability, and organizational support for coaches and mentors.

Setting SMART goal sounds easier then done in reality. Since many factors impact the business result and sometimes to be able to set/prioritize a goal or objective that makes impact the most to the business performance in a busy fast environment is like running on a spider web. A coach need to fully understand the context and situation where the coachee/mentee is but at the same time asking a question that getting the them out of the spider web so they can have a clear look at different angles with more perspective. So contextual questioning is very essential.

It's really easy to get "in the weeds" when working with a client. To help you and your client keep the big-picture in mind, set SMART goals: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Time-bound. Specific: If your goals are too broad, it will be difficult to determine when you've reached them. Measurable: You might measure in dollars, followers, time, energy, or something else. Attainable: Set achievable goals that you'll be able to check off the list. Relevant: Are your goals related and aligned with your mission, vision, and values? Time-bound: Rather than nebulous goal, set goals within a set timeframe.

A vital aspect in coaching and mentoring is assisting individuals in establishing not just any goals, but goals deeply intertwined with their personal values and mission. It's not solely about setting realistic goals based on skills, but also about setting goals that resonate with one's inner purpose. This necessitates a balanced approach of challenge and support, a profound understanding of the context, and adept questioning. Coaches and mentors must guide individuals in recognizing their strengths and areas for growth, fostering the creation of SMART action plans that detail steps, resources, and success metrics.

Considering the fact that for the last 14 years I’ve been dealing with setting and defining specific goals together with employees (either clients’ employees or those for whom I was responsible for), I do not consider that part of coaching and mentoring to be challenging. A challenge for me is not how to create clear goals, but to resist the need to define goals for them (and I am very well aware that if I interfere, they will not achieve them). In my experience the following questions often help in the goal setting process: What does the ideal result look like, after you have achieved that goal? Who has an influence on the achievement of this goal? How realistic is it for you that you can achieve this goal?

One of the processes that I've incorporated into client partnerships is check-ins at key points to zoom out and designate time to reflect on what people have to celebrate, where they're still facing challenges or hurdles in reaching their goals, and having a conversation around how the partnership is going and what adjustments either of us might desire moving forward. It's also really common for clients' goals to change as we work together, so checking in to ensure we're on the same page is really important. I also love using the Energy Leadership Index Assessment (shout out to iPEC!) to set a foundation at the beginning and assess growth at the end to see how the client's perspective and orientation towards work and life has changed.

The most critical aspect in the monitoring and accountability process is the coach's or mentor's ability to offer alternative paths and the right degree of flexibility when clients face challenges in achieving their set goals. Effective monitoring and accountability demand consistent follow-up and adaptability.

I always use SMLD (Stop, More, Less, Different) questioning to help managing the progress through reflecting at the beginning of the session and visualizing the next session at the end session. I have observed that the D question (What could you do differently) really triggers the coachee/mentee's thinking and help them to think out of the box.

Coaches & Mentors face challenge of resistance, both before a client start coaching and after they join as well. The common reason is lack of clarity, lack of clear purpose & vision, lack of self-belief and self-sabotaging doubts that keeps people from taking coaching support and then take action. When Coaches & mentors believe in the person 100%, help them feel better about themselves. They can help them to overcome their fears, doubts and self-critical patterns. So they start to trust themselves fully, and take consistent actions to bring desired results.

In a business context, coaches and mentors encounter significant challenges when addressing resistance among their clients or mentees. This resistance may manifest as a reluctance to fully commit to the coaching or mentoring process, apprehension toward embracing change, or the manifestation of defense mechanisms aimed at deflecting introspection. Successfully managing these challenges necessitates the establishment of a trusting and non-judgmental environment, an emphasis on empowering the client, and a thoughtful exploration of the underlying motivations behind their resistance.

An effective tool for tackling resistance or reluctance in coaching and mentoring is the "Motivational Interviewing" (MI) technique. MI is a client-centered approach aimed at assisting individuals in examining and resolving their ambivalence and resistance to change. It employs active listening, empathetic communication, and open-ended questions to gain insight into the coachee or mentee's views, motivations, and obstacles. Through MI, coaches and mentors can skillfully handle resistance, fostering a more productive and cooperative coaching relationship.

Resistance is good because it shows that coaching is opening up the client’s mind to new ideas and new perspectives. How should a coach manage this? Let the client guide the next step because they need to work through some of the issues that have come up. Reframing is a great way to help them look at the problem and flip it to make the process work work them.

The fear of the unknown or uncertainty is the hidden reason that influence how people try to hold on to the current situation/thing even though they know that are not necessary good for them. To help coachee/mentee to look deeper into the reason that hold them back is the breakthrough that help them to overcome resistance to change.

Coaches and mentors must respect the confidentiality of the coachee or mentee. Sharing examples with another coachee or mentee even to boost their morale is not ethical practice. Trust is not build by motivating people it is build when ethics are governed by integrity.

To navigate the ethical challenges in coaching and mentoring, a valuable approach is to establish a robust framework for supervision and consultation. Coaches and mentors should engage in regular sessions with experienced professionals in the field. These sessions offer a confidential space to address ethical dilemmas, ensuring that the profession's and organization's principles and standards are upheld. They provide guidance and support to safeguard the coachee's or mentee's autonomy, dignity, and confidentiality while avoiding conflicts of interest, bias, or the misuse of power. By integrating supervision and consultation, coaches and mentors can uphold their ethical standards and make informed decisions in complex situations.

If the employer has hired us to coach their employees, the issue of ethics is twofold. That is why it is very important to set clear boundaries at the beginning and to explain to both, the employer and the employee to which extent confidentiality goes. Personally, I always mention that I have to share with the employer all the information related to the possibility of the employee's desire to leave the company, because it is a "critical" situation about which the employer should be informed. The rest should be completely confidential, otherwise the coaching will not be completely honest.

It's so crucial that as coaches and mentors we continue to grow and learn ourselves. One of the best support structures that I've had is a community of fellow coaches and entrepreneurs to lean on, problem-solve with, brainstorm and collaborate with, and learn from. It's also been essential for me to consistently have my own coach as I grow my business and support my fabulous clients. Part of the development is also evolving our business according to the feedback that we're receiving and the needs of the clients that we love to support. I think this is one of the most fun parts of being a coach!

To better support our clients, we need to make sure that we continue to grow, learn new skills, hear different perspectives. Being a part of a coaching community, even having a coach friend that we discuss issues with is valuable. If we want to support our clients we must continue to challenge ourselves.

I use the sports analogy all the time… the best players do not necessarily make the best coaches, and the best coaches are not necessarily the best players. Coaching and execution are completely different skills. I’m far better at coaching sales than I am at selling. I can coach marketing principles, but that doesn’t mean I’m an excellent marketer. Obviously, it’s important to have an understanding of the mechanics of whatever we are coaching. However, our responsibility as coaches is to draw talent out of and build skills in those we are coaching. Often that means we are not necessarily good at execution in some of these areas. For me, I struggle with client acquisition, especially early sales funnel stages. Coaches need coaching too.

The major and the most common challenges I have seen coaches and mentors facing; 1- Getting new clients - Make your website work for you. Social media is a tool. Use it as a medium for your advantage. Don't build your business on it. 2- Existing coaching renewals - Make sure to help the coaching clients see significant and a few tangible goals. 3- Creating multiple sources of leads Try small digital courses. Start a blog. Associate with speaking agencies. 4- Dealing with non-performing coaching clients - Follow through with powerful questions. See what's making them not act and execute. After 3 best attempts, have a clear conversation and discontinue the coaching association. Your coaching client might not be ready.

In the dynamic realm of business coaching and mentoring, fostering trust amid diverse personalities poses a challenge. Tailoring guidance to individual needs while aligning with organizational goals requires a delicate balance. Adapting to ever-evolving industry landscapes demands constant upskilling. Effective communication is pivotal, demanding a nuanced approach to cater to varied learning styles. The challenge lies in not just imparting knowledge but inspiring sustainable change. Embracing technology for virtual coaching adds another layer of complexity. Successful mentors navigate these challenges by staying agile, honing emotional intelligence, and embracing a continuous learning mindset for an impactful coaching journey.

The key challenges are discussed in detail in this article and esteemed professionals across the globe added a great deal. I want to share what are the best practices to avoid these challenges. - If the coaches and mentors are someone who are ''been there done that'' it helps build a connection with the business. For example, a great all-rounder who played for 15 to 20 years is better qualified as a coach for a cricket club than a great athlete who might have won lots of Olympic medals. - Aligning business goals to individual goals - Try to be the bridge rather than a wall between business and coachee. Being a coach or mentor we always wanted shall be the goal of a Coach and Mentor.

Learn how to run a business! Biggest challenge I’ve had by far and one now I’ve recognised I’m seeking learning and help with