Coaching Handbook: An Action Kit for Trainers and Managers

Overview

This part of the book consists of a number of different activities and exercises that you may want to use in your coaching programmes. Feel free to adapt them and change them to fit your specific needs and situations. When you are using activities with your coachee , bear in mind the following guidelines:

• Only use activities that you feel comfortable with and which you can explain fully to your coachee. Read an activity fully to ensure that you understand it and try it out for yourself whenever you can.

• Use activities that relate to the purpose and objectives of the coaching programme or meeting. It may be tempting to try a new activity with the coachee because it sounds interesting to you “ remember that coaching is about the coachee.

• The activities used should relate to the learning style of the coachee not the coaching style of the coach.

• Consider the time that is available to you and ensure that the activities chosen can be completed within this time.

• Do not force the coachee to do any activity that he or she does not feel happy with, but do encourage the coachee to try new and different activities. Be challenging, but not domineering.

• Do not allow the activity to take over the coaching meeting. One activity may take up a good proportion of your time with the coachee and it will be important to plan your sessions so that you can include reflection on the activity and action planning to apply learning as part of the process.

• Ensure that you always have the equipment you require available to you.

• Keep notes of when and how you have used these activities, what went well and what you would do differently next time.