What are the Top Six Reasons Coaches are Hired?
Learn more about coaching and ICF-accredited coach training.
The demand for coaching continues to rapidly grow. Recent research shows that most organizations that use coaching are reporting that their investment in executive coaching increased from 2020 to 2021 (Chief Learning Officer Journal). Hiring a coach can be beneficial for individuals in various aspects of their personal and professional lives.
But what are the top six reasons that coaches are hired? Here is what we have identified.
Managing a Transition or Wanting a Transition
Over the last 30-plus years of my coaching career, the biggest reason that individuals begin working with a coach is they are entering a transition, or they desire a transition, and they want extra support to make that transition successful or to occur faster. Transitions can be overwhelming, and individuals may find themselves unsure about the best direction to take. A coach can help clarify business needs, goals, values, and aspirations during this transition phase. The coach can assist in identifying a clearer vision of the future. By listening carefully and asking insightful questions, a coach helps create more clarity and focus, setting the stage for a successful transition.
Download the Free Report
The Top 6 Factors to Consider When Choosing Your Executive or Life Coach Training
Privacy: we do not release contact information.
Goal Achievement, Personal Development, or Career Advancement
A coach helps an individual clarify goals, both short-term and long-term, and create a strategic plan to achieve them. The coach provides support and accountability throughout the process, helping one stay focused and motivated. Whether it's advancing in a career, improving a relationship, or enhancing well-being, coaches assist in maximizing potential and reaching desired outcomes faster than one can on their own.
Overcoming Obstacles and Challenges
It's inevitable that if one has a major goal that obstacles and challenges will usually manifest. A coach partners with their client to help identify challenges as well as limiting mindsets. Then the coach helps the coaching client access their inner resources to manage the challenge, as well as often exploring strategies and tools that can be helpful. Sometimes the coach acts to "hold up a mirror" so the client can see their assumptions and consider fresh perspectives and alternative approaches. A coach often serves as a thought partner or sounding board and is a source of encouragement during times of uncertainty.
Skill Development and Performance Improvement
Coaching can be particularly valuable in enhancing specific skills or competencies. Whether it's leadership, communication, time management, public speaking, or any other skill, a coach can help the client find the most relevant guidance or obtain useful multi-source feedback. Once the client identifies a particular area they want to refine, the coach supports the client in creating a development plan, and provides support in refining the necessary skills, or practice, to excel.
Building Self-confidence
Many individuals struggle with self-confidence and self-doubt, which can hinder their progress and success. Through active listening, a coach can help identify limiting beliefs and negative thought patterns, and help the client replace them with empowering beliefs and a positive mindset. (See Chapter 4 on Cognitive Coaching by Jeffrey Auerbach, in Evidence Based Coaching Handbook: Putting Best Practices to Work for Your Clients; edited by Stober and Grant.) This, along with engaging in "real-world" practice, can build self-confidence, help one embrace their strengths, and unlock greater potential.
Work-life Balance and Well-being
According to the National Institute of Stress, approximately 75% of the US adult population reports that stress is affecting them physically or emotionally. A large source of stress is the feeling of not having enough time. Achieving work-life balance and maintaining overall well-being is challenging and I call it a lifelong journey—we strive to have better work-life balance, but rarely feel we are getting it just right. A coach often helps on this path to greater well-being by helping their clients prioritize commitments, set boundaries, and create a healthy and fulfilling lifestyle. Common coaching goals include steps to take to manage stress, enhance resilience, and nurture physical, mental, and emotional well-being. Many coaches obtain special training in well-being coaching to help support their clients in making sustainable changes that promote balance, happiness, and overall life satisfaction.
The reasons that drive an individual to seek coaching are varied but having a feeling that something could be better with professional support, wanting to succeed in making a transition, or professional advancement, usually underpin the client's motivation.
