Developing your questioning skills
We all respond to things in different ways and sometimes look back on a situation and wish we could change how we reacted. This type of self-awareness is something that can be explored within a coaching session by using your questioning skills to help your clients explore the triggers that cause certain behaviors.
By asking the right questions, you can help them unlock the awareness they need to help them see how they would normally respond to different types of situation and what their triggers are. Then by discussing what they would like to change, you can explore how they would like to respond if they had the opportunity and practice all of this in the safe space of the coaching session. They will then learn to develop a new approach, so they tackle the things that may be holding them back from achieving their full potential.
Suggested discussion points
Our community of international coaches have identified a range of recurring themes that may help you develop your questioning skills to use within your coaching sessions. These suggested discussion points will be of most help when you are supporting individuals during one-to-one coaching sessions.
Here are some of the things clients said they wanted to focus on during their coaching session:
- Talk openly about both their professional and personal life
- Find motivation or define a new life goal or project
- Feel liberated from emotional blocks or negative emotions
- Believe in themselves and eliminate inner voices or inner conflict
- Break free from limiting beliefs and recurring negative scripts
- Develop self-confidence or self-esteem
- Resolve conflicts and manage stress or stressful situations
- Develop communication and interpersonal skills
- Feel empowered to become the very best version of themselves
Example coaching process
We know every client will be different. However this example coaching process sets out the key steps and stages you will normally follow during your one-to-one coaching sessions.
Your Coaching Style
Whatever your coaching style or specialism, you will fully succeed if you are able to create an atmosphere of trust and collaboration within your coaching sessions. This is normally based on the fundamental belief that your clients can find their own solution. But with your help through simple techniques like using active questioning skills to help them identify and overcome the obstacles that could hinder their progress and any future success.
In your role as a coach, you will:
- Encourage – to get your clients out of their comfort zone and explore new behavior
- Empower – so they can find their own solution
- Support – to identify smart objectives and achieve goals
- Stimulate – their personal and professional development
Further reading:
Developing your questioning skills is key to growing your coaching business and promoting your role in helping to find solutions that capitalize on the resources your clients already have available. It will also help them build a positive and creative mindset so they can remove any brakes in life that slow them down or hold them back.
If this is something you would like to explore, we now have a full range of virtual card games that cover a range of different topics and life events so you can expand your questioning skills. They are all available in the online shop:
Virtual Games: View the full range of virtual games – These exclusive games are designed to help you develop your skills and succeed as a professional coach.
We have also published a range of ebooks and kits to help you within your coaching sessions:
- Ebook – The Coaching Manual
- Kit – Running a Co-Development session
- Kit – Coaching logbooks for your clients
We constantly add content to the site, so please check our on-line shop and look at the full range of games, ebooks and kits. Or read some of the other blog posts written by our team of international coaches.
Join our community
As a new online resource centre, we welcome members from all over the World. Therefore, we would love to connect with you on social media, via our pages on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn. So no matter what you want to chat to us about, please remember to engage, like, share and join our community.
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