The Leading Edge: Coaching Is Not Just About Sports

This post originally appeared on the John Maxwell Team blog.

By Karen Aloy, certified John Maxwell Team coach, speaker & trainer

Historically, coaching was understood as a sports-oriented career. If you Google “great coaches”, names like Vince Lombardi, John Wooden, Phil Jackson, and Tom Landry appear. I’ve always believed that a coach knew more than any student they were training and they probably knew their sport inside and out. However, my perspective of coaching was not at all accurate, as sports is not the only place we find coaches.

Tom Landry is quoted as saying, “A coach is someone who tells you what you don’t want to hear, and has you see what you don’t want to see, so you can be who you have always known you can be.”

Have you ever had an “aha” moment when someone asks you a question? Perhaps it was a question that you never would have thought of on your own. The best questions cause you to dig deep inside of yourself to help you to to find an answer.

Growing up through corporate America, you do what is expected of you. In most cases, you do what you need to do and more in order to get ahead. When I started my own business, I took on a coach who asked me a question that changed my perspective. After I’d finished running through my to-do list and contemplating what had to be finished in the next week, she said, “If you could do anything you want, what would that be, and how would that make you feel?” It made me think about the choices I had. I can accept this client or not. I can accept this engagement or not. I can choose to work in my strength zone, to be efficient, effective, productive, AND happy, fulfilled, and successful. What a concept!

This was my first exposure to Executive Coaching and it was remarkable. Now, as a certified John Maxwell Team coach, it is a joy to help others discover their own enhanced perspectives.

My biggest joy in being the coach is in conscious and intentional listening. I listen for what the person says as much as what they don’t say. I listen to the change of speed, intensity, and volume in one topic versus another. I question the silence between topics while being cautious not to interrupt or trample on my clients’ thinking in those pauses. I’m always curious about what they are digging into when their words stop. I always notice word choice; certain words or phrases make me curious and I want to peel back behind the surface meaning and dig deeper.

The other invaluable aspect of coaching is that you do not need to know anything about the person or the topic. My first coach was in Singapore and I live in Florida. She knew nothing about me or my business. She asked innocent questions that allowed me to explain things in detail. In my explanations, it made me rethink things. Saying it out loud brought more discussion to the surface of my thinking and broadened my perspective. That experience with her allowed me to cull some things out of my life and my business that moved me forward.

Executive coaching can be a mirror visually and/or audibly that helps us to see things differently. As busy professionals we often work so hard on the list that we forget to work on ourselves. We forget to try to understand our inner wiring and where there might be a short, a break, or a more effective route. We forget to contemplate our feelings, our goals, and our priorities. Les Brown says, “You can’t see the picture when you’re in the frame.” Our learning expands when a coach holds up the mirror so we can see the whole picture for ourselves.

Coaching is an invaluable resource and each of us will unearth diamonds of knowledge and awareness when we fully embrace the coaching process. Try it, you won’t be disappointed! Ultimately, you will wonder why you waited so long to get started.

About Karen:

Karen Aloy is a CPA and the CEO of A Loyal Vision. As a certified speaker, trainer and coach with the John Maxwell Team, she delivers her true passion for leadership and personal development. She refers to the people on a team as an organization’s most valuable asset. As a Certified Public Accountant with more than 25 years of experience in executive and senior executive positions, including accounting and financial operations, she is also active in her community serving others with her expertise.

Karen is married to her high school sweetheart and best friend, and is the proud mother of two grown children.