Beyond the Boardroom: Embracing Care in Executive and Management Coaching

What does it mean to work with care in coaching?

As an Executive and Management coach, coaching centres on empathy and understanding in the relationship, while simultaneously stretching and challenging my coachees. Care is essential. So, what does it look and feel like when a coach prioritises care - encompassing thoughtfulness, attention, and tending - ?in the core of coaching?

Coachee perspective?

With care in coaching, a coachee may feel that the coach is very present for them. They may experience you, the coach, listening in an undistracted way. They may have a sense of acceptance of who they are.

I’ve been a coachee with various coaches for 30 years. From the coachee position,? a caring coach has expressed empathy and understanding? throughout the relationship. ?Not just when desicribing painful moments.? I’ve often felt I mattered to the coach. That my well-being and my need to find a? meaningful solution for my challenge matters to them.?I knew that the relationship had a caring foundation, so that it felt safe to be stretched and challenged.

Even in tricky conversations , where I have said to my coach , ‘ That? approach you used wasn’t quite right for me’, my Coach responded with thoughtfulness. They showed understanding and clear boundaries. This is care in action too.?

Coach perspective?

From the coach’s perspective,? Care -? means again and again -? putting humanity of each coachee in the centre of the coaching.? It is after all a service that is centred on quality relationships.

Care is ?a deep acknowledgement that a Coachee, as a human being,? goes through hope and joy, gain and loss, mistakes and difficult times. As we all do.

This perception leads to? empathetic attention. Care also arises from?a genuine and heartfelt? curiosity about our coachees. It’s leads to a?professional coaching value of a ‘connected? coach-coachee relationship’ that supports coachees on their life journey.

This supportive approach also means, the coachee success matters to you enough for you to stretch and challenge the Coachee, even if it’s uncomfortable at times for them. ?

As an Exec and Management? Coach - often working with busy professionals - Caring means giving myself and the coachee the gift of time. After all, space to think deeply and broadly is at the centre of coaching. To really help this to happen, I take a moment before a coaching session to ground myself - rather than rushing between meetings. Additionally, minimising distractions is a priority.

Do clients Care for themselves??

In my experience coaching Executives, managers and leaders is they are highly motivated and very busy. Most of the time caring for themselves seems to be low on their agenda. Sometimes this?leads to experiences of stress and burnout. Coaching that is grounded in caring can? hold a mirror up to coachees, about how a caring relationship feels. In additionaddition, it’s a really interesting area to explore with your coachee - 'what does caringcare? for yourself at work look like for example?? What are your needs that you are addressing? Which of your? needs are you ignoring??'

Caring for ourselves as coaches

Self-care is a part of our professional coaching responsibilities. ?It may be part of your membership bodies’ professional code of ethics. E.g.E.g., EMCC and ?AC . (I’m a member of both and accredited by the EMCC).

?Almost 2 decades ago, I spoke about Care in Coaching at Jackee Holder's Alternatives’ Coaching Circle. This was (it’s no longer running) a powerful support and learning space for coaches, hosted with care by Jackee. I spoke about the importance of self-care, coach wellbeing. Making that matter - ?on an ongingongoing basis. So that you can be at your best for your clients. 20 years later, I still feel that message is valid, especially in the journey that we've been through around Covid and lockdown over the last few years. Taking care of our well-being, is part of building our sustainable resilience.

Other voices on care in coaching?

Many people have spoken about care in coaching. E.G. Doctor Column Cromin (Reader in Sports Coaching and Physical Education, Liverpool Moores University. Check him out on the Sports Coaching Hub Podcast on Apple Podcasts*

I think Care?in coaching? is a version of being?a professional. It's a deep value that guides all our work. I’d love to hear your insights in your experience about working with care in coaching.

* https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-sports-coaching-hub-podcast/id1708631536

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