30 Seconds SummaryCoaching Success: Dilemmas and Considerations
- All coaches aim to help people, but not all clients will reach their goals despite quality coaching, which is a normal challenge in the field.
- Coaches should explain that they provide direction like a GPS but cannot 'drive the car' for the client, emphasizing client responsibility.
- It is important for coaches to self-assess and question if there are ways they could better support a client's progress when difficulties arise.
- Overemphasis on specific dietary macros can be less important than fostering behavioral changes to help clients adhere to caloric goals.
- Experienced coaches may fall into the trap of believing there is no scope for improvement in their method, attributing client failures externally.
- Coaches must navigate between fundamental attribution error and self-serving bias, continuously debating their own effectiveness versus uncontrollable external factors.
- Engaging with other coaches for feedback can help gain a more balanced perspective and overcome personal biases to better evaluate a coaching approach.
- Long-term success rates can be misleading, as they vary significantly based on a coach's reputation, the client's background, and the specific context of the coaching provided.
- Ultimately, no definitive benchmark exists for client success rates in coaching, making the coach's experience, the client's commitment, and proper goal-setting critical components.
- Continuous self-reflection, realistic responsibility assessment, and openness to feedback are key for coaches to maximize their effectiveness and mitigate undue guilt over client failures.
Renaissance Periodization
Tiago Vasconcelos, RP Research Editor
