The Four Seasons of Coaching
There are plenty of notable signs that a season is changing – sprouting buds, dropping temperatures, falling leaves and the location of the sun, of course. Every single second of every single day we’re moving towards the next season.
Coaching grows and changes within an organisation in a similar way. Even when no specific actions are being taken, little shifts and ripple effects are taking place. Even when you’re at the very beginning of your journey as a coach or as a school, seeds are being planted as you shape your vision.
The beauty of embedding a coaching culture in your organisation is that it’s a continual process; one that requires iteration and acceptance. Though you may have your eye on an ultimate end goal or “season”, in time, you will begin to realise that every season has its gifts and moving through them brings great joy.
Much like the dramatically different seasons experienced in many parts of our world, there are four dramatic seasons you may experience on your path of bringing coaching into your school.
VISION
Coaching is alive
You know you’re in the season of vision when you feel a tingle on your arms or butterflies in your tummy. You’re excited, hopeful and full of dreams. You think to yourself, I wonder what it could or would look like if…and if…and if. You have clarity. Coaching is alive. You may have just started or are getting started. You also might have been doing coaching for a while, coming off a plateau and restarting. Whatever the narrative, vision is a joyful season where it feels like anything is possible, mixed with a whole bunch of nerves that it might not work. You know you’re on to something, but that doesn’t mean there is absence of fear.
PLANNING
Coaching is progressing
You know you’re in the season of planning because you are actively engaged and working towards your vision. All those ideas you generated in the vision season are becoming part of a very clear roadmap. You’re testing and trying. Coaching is progressing. It’s slight, but it’s happening. You generate ideas, collaborate and strategise. You’re likely asking a lot of questions – of yourself, your organisation, your colleagues, your students and of coaching itself. You’re holding on to your vision tightly as you build your map and lay out the steps you know you can and will take.
MOMENTUM
Coaching is effortless
You know you’re in momentum because you are unquestionably flourishing. Your vision and plans have come together. You’re likely running courses and workshops consistently. Students, colleagues and parents know your agenda and are helping you move closer to it. Coaching is effortless. You are vibrating and so is everything about coaching. The fear mentioned in vision remains because at times because you worry that you might be thrown off course, but you keep your head up and push forward. Coaching is alive and you can feel it in your bones.
PLATEAU
Coaching is stagnant
You know you’re in the season of plateau because you feel demotivated or even defeated. You lack vision, or at least a strong connection to it. All the plans you thought you had are now hidden under a stack of papers. Coaching is stagnant. Coaching may even be close to non-existent or only living in the minds of very few people. It’s quite likely you started a few years ago and had to put coaching on the back burner for a host of reasons. You don’t know what to do and fear the very worst.
So, what season are you in? And, what season is therefore coming next?
Moving from season to season won’t always be linear. Just like you will see a balmy day in the middle of a usually frigid January, so can you see planning during a plateau or momentum in vision. Just remember, wherever you are, there is always point B waiting for you.