Courage is often seen in others but perhaps not celebrated in oneself. The superheroes on the screen and the extraordinary humans that make the headlines seem to monopolize a grandiose idea of courage. For a coach who works in the minutia of a client’s mind, courage will look different, but it is every bit as necessary to create big changes, even though those big changes may feel like superhuman tasks.
Wood and Lomas, in their article The role of courage in the development and practice of coaches (2021), explain their research which highlights the role courage plays in the developing coach and the success they create with clients. The powerful coach will recognize the significant factor of their own courage in facilitating transformation for the client and their own development.
Through an interview process, Wood and Lomas analyzed twelve different coaches’ experiences with courage in their coaching practice. They represented a wide range of experience and different niches of coaches. The interviews took place over Skype and lasted about 60 minutes.
After transcribing the interviews, the data that emerged from the analysis helped identify six theoretical categories that encapsulated the areas where courage was required in a coach’s development (2021).
These categories are:
- Becoming a coach
- Developing self-awareness
- Developing Skills
- Standing at the Crossroads
- Taking the Jump, and
- Turning Back
In each category, courage is defined as a virtue that facilitates the accomplishment of goals through exercising will in the face of internal and external opposition (Wood and Lomas, 2021).
Lean into Intuition
Developing skills as a coach starts with best practices and instruction from an expert, but the advanced coach will recognize the need to lean into their own intuition and trust the process (Whitmore, 2017).
As Wood and Lomas explain, as a coach learns the skills to build a relationship with a client, hold the space for the client’s exploration, and name and challenge what comes up in the session, courage will be required.
Additionally, a well-attuned coach will notice when a client sidesteps a question or when their body language gives away clues as to their thinking, and speaking up about this will also require courage (2021).
When something comes to mind that ought to be brought to a client’s attention, it is the ‘ping’ deep inside that often signals this need. It takes courage to illuminate such insights, especially when it may stray from the way one was trained.
The successful coach knows to follow the intuition that springs up and recognizes it is more important than obeying a rule (Whitmore, 2017). The courageous and successful coach pays attention to things beyond what they just hear and see, but they notice and give credence to what is sensed and felt (Wood and Lomas, 2021).
Let Silence Teach
One participant in Wood and Lomas’ research indicated that sometimes it takes courage to not say anything at all in a coaching session in order to allow the client’s thoughts to play out (2021).
Whitmore (2017) agrees, as he admonishes to let the silence do the heavy lifting. Developing the ability to allow silence, especially when you have advice or skills to teach, that you know would help, is much harder than it seems. The tendency is strong to insert opinions and what may have worked for yourself.
This is not the point of coaching. The greater perspective, as Wood and Lomas (2021) point out, is brought about by courageous coaching. This means the client is given the chance to become conscious of their new awareness and then be empowered by it.
Allowing silence may be a great act of courage and it is necessary in order to allow the coach to follow the agenda of the client. The client’s awareness is what needs to be raised in order for them to reach their goals (Whitmore, 2017) and sometimes this can only happen when you let silence do the teaching.
Leverage Self-Awareness
At the heart of courage is often the awareness of some risk. Several coaches who participated in the research with Wood and Lomas (2021) expressed the feeling of ‘jumping’ when they felt the need to move out of their comfort zone and move into a new realm, which was usually beyond the tools and techniques or even evidence-based practice they were taught.
Others also described it as a sense of challenging the boundaries of coaching by acting spontaneously and creating new interventions. This kind of courage in coaching is not possible without self-awareness on the coach’s part. An attuned coach will notice the physical sensations they are experiencing such as a tight jaw, tension in the shoulders, or a clenched abdomen.
As a coach develops and increases their bodily and internal awareness, they will communicate more powerfully and be more present for what the client needs and desires (Whitmore, 2017). Each coach is also a human, just like their clients.
This means, as Whitmore (2017) goes on to explain, their judgments, opinions, and attitudes ought not to taint the relationship with the client. These tendencies need to be acknowledged and recognized as a possible source of getting stuck with the client.
While coaching is certainly a practice that is founded on valuable and trusted skills, it also requires courage to move beyond the training. The study conducted by Wood and Lomas, and their subsequent analysis, was the first to examine how coaches perceive the role of courage in their development and practice. This is important to the novice and advanced coach because there will always be new depths of courage to develop.
To be effective and powerful, a coach must access their ability to display courage which will lead to success in their practice and transformations for their clients. Big transformations, which may feel like acquiring superhuman qualities, will happen when courageous coaches lean into their intuition, let silence teach, and leverage their self-awareness.
Do Some Journaling / Questions to Ponder to Build Courage
*great for a post-coaching session*
- When you follow your intuition, what do you notice?
- How do you know something is coming from your intuition?
- If silence is uncomfortable, why?
- What makes you want to rush when silence happens?
- When you are 100% present, what does that feel like?
- What will help you be more attuned to your client and less concerned with yourself?
References
- Whitmore, Sir John (2017), Coaching for performance: The principles and practice of coaching and leadership (5th ed.). Nicholas Brealey Publishing.
- Wood, C. and Loman, T. (2021), The role of courage in the development and practice of coaches. International Journal of Evidence Based Coaching and Mentoring, Vol. 19(1), pp. 28-43
Mariah Wickham
Mariah Wickham is a certified coach and holds a Master’s degree in Adult Learning and Leadership. Founder of Leaders for Authenticity, she coaches and trains leaders to build trust and collaboration through a value-driven initiative rooted in self-awareness, compassion, and transparency.
