What are the building blocks of coaching?
What are the building blocks of coaching?
What are the building blocks of coaching?
This TIAH Guide gives an introduction to the core skills involved with coaching staff and what you can do to improve them.
The keys to this are active listening and thoughtful questioning. These techniques focus on helping the person be self-aware and develop skills in areas like solving problems and setting goals.
Active listening
Beyond simply hearing someone speak, listening actively means understanding what a person wants to communicate.
A good coach makes an effort to truly understand what’s being said, what’s not being said and, most importantly, demonstrate that understanding.
Various techniques can be used to understand the barriers that may prevent you from always listening actively and to help you improve your skills.
Questioning skills
Following on from active listening, effective questioning can help your employee become more aware of the possibilities, skills, talents, and knowledge they already possess or have access to.
A coach rarely refers to a list of pre-arranged questions when holding a coaching session with an employee. Instead, questions will arise as a result of what they hear.
When you listen and really hear what someone is saying, you will be in tune to ask the right questions at the right time and in the right way. This enables your employee to take the necessary action to achieve their full potential.
There are different types of questions you may ask an employee. ‘Open’ questions are effective in coaching. These are non-judgmental questions - often starting with words like what, why, how, or describe - which allows the employee to think for themselves and explore their ideas.
Don’t forget to check in
Understanding how to listen actively and which type of questioning to use during sessions are key aspects of employee coaching.
It's also important to hold regular progress reviews or 'check-ins' with your employee. This helps to ensure they stay on track to meet their goals and allow time for feedback.
Giles, an arable farmer from Northamptonshire, explains his approach to checking in with his team: “We do one-to-ones at least once a week, depending on the time of year and what jobs they are doing. These are good because it allows me to get genuine feedback. We also hold team meetings with everyone each morning. It’s not set in stone and varies depending on what we are doing.”
Jump into coaching with TIAH’s free, certified Essential Skills Coaching for Retention and Productivity learning modules.
You can complete them at your own pace and gain up to 20 CPD (Continuous Professional Development) points!
Get started on coaching for retention and productivity.
Develop your coaching skills
With the modules all available online, you can complete them at times that suit you and gain up to 20 CPD (Continuous Professional Development) points!