The Coach as Guide: Working Values, Relationships and Coherence

Key Elements in the Coaching Dialogue

To effectively develop his role as a guide, the coach must focus his dialogues with the coachee on three interconnected elements of utmost importance: the client's values, the quality of his relationships and his level of internal and external coherence.

Addressing these aspects allows one to go beyond superficial goals and work at a deeper level of being, facilitating a more meaningful and sustainable transformation.

These are areas that reveal much about the coachee's motivations, interaction patterns and life alignment.

Exploring the Value Structure

A fundamental task of the coach is to probe into the coachee's value structure.

Values are the guiding principles, what the person considers intrinsically important and what guides (or should guide) his or her decisions and actions.

The coach does not impose values, but helps the client to see them, to become explicitly aware of what his or her core values are.

This process allows the coachee to analyze them, understand their hierarchy and eva luate the extent to which his or her current life is aligned with them.

Identifying and clarifying values provides an essential internal compass for making more authentic decisions and finding a greater sense of purpose.

Tapping into the Relational Sphere

It is equally important for the coach to tap into the coachee's relational realm. Interpersonal relationships are a crucial source of well-being or discomfort.

The goal is to seek greater harmony in the client's connections with others.

This involves not simply making use of empathy on the part of the coach, but also working to develop the coachee's own empathic capacity.

Improving the ability to understand and connect with others, communicate effectively and manage conflict constructively are key aspects that are addressed to enrich the client's relational world.

Fostering Coherence between Principles and Action

The third element, coherence, refers to the responsibility we have to assume when developing and enhancing a certain behavior, ensuring that the way we do it is faithful to our own principles and values. It is about aligning what we think, feel and say with what we do.

To facilitate this consistency, the coach must study and understand the environment and the specific circumstances of the coachee.

By understanding the context, it is possible to find harmony between that environment, the client's values and the new decisions made throughout the process.

The Coach's Need for Emotional Stability

However, in order to effectively guide the coachee in the exploration of his or her values, relationships and coherence, it is essential that you, in your professional role, show signs of emotional stability.

Guiding others in such personal terrain requires matu