Who owns learning in coaching?

The coach helps with learning and the coachee produces the content.

It’ important that the ownership of learning is on the one being coached. There are ways to coach and guide without robbing ownership of learning.

We can assume a curious mindset and ask WH-questions. This initiates effective thinking processes and directs the focus on the right place.

We can also focus on action in the future and envision a desired future or an outcome.

Listening and mirroring emotional responses is important, observing and offering new viewpoints expands thinking to new vistas.

We should avoid giving advice since it robs learning effectively. The learning should come from the coachee.

Language plays an important part in the coaching session. We want to use positive language and encourage positive expressions in the coachee as well, we see opportunities and sometimes we just listen in silence and wait for the content to emerge.

When we really want someone to own their learning, we need to let them come up with answers, suggestions, solutions and plans. For this to happen, we need guiding questions, listening and mirroring. Avoiding any kind of mentoring or advising is key because they rob the coachee of ownership. Their words, their learning, their commitment. Even vague action plans can be clarified and elaborated but they need to be their own.

In sum, when we really give ownership to the coachee, we use guiding questions to help them devise plans for the future. We offer new viewpoints with these questions and show empathy, we’re at their side but we don’t do the work for them.