Does the pandemic change how we coach?

The pandemic changes our life, not our coaching

Q. Do you have any advice on coaching calls during this pandemic? Do all of the same principles apply? Is the “wanting” question still something we should be asking?

A. Yes, all the same principles of the Intrinsic Coaching® methodology continue to apply. Our hierarchy of value, I>E>S, tells us that the most valuable thing we can do is to prioritize the intrinsic value in a person by prioritizing our intrinsic valuing of them in our coaching. In a pandemic, that doesn’t change. Meeting our clients where they are doesn’t change. Valuing what’s important to them doesn’t change. Coaching in the context of obstacles that make it difficult for our clients to accomplish what’s important to them doesn’t change.

Our hierarchy of value, I>E>S, tells us that the most valuable thing we can do is to prioritize the intrinsic value in a person by prioritizing our intrinsic valuing of them in our coaching. – Christina Marshall

What could change is what our clients talk about and it could happen that you might find your client to be “off topic.” When that happens, it’s important to remember that a sense that the client is “off topic” comes from the thinking of the coach, not from the new variable that has affected the client’s life. I>E>S tells us that even during a pandemic, we are with our clients, right where they are, and our coaching is, too. – Christina Marshall & Merilyn Brooks