FAQs

There are lots of definitions of coaching, but I like the one created in the 1980s by The Alexander Corporation - ‘Coaching is the art of facilitating the performance, learning and development of another’.

It’s about supporting you to take action towards achieving your goals, unlocking your potential and helping you to learn, rather than teaching you.

I offer non-directive coaching which means I won’t tell you how to do something, my job is to help you to get to solutions so that you can really thrive and perform at your best. It’s not the right approach for everyone, but when it works, it’s great.

I will help you identify your goals and then we’ll work together to figure out how you’re going to get there, when and what success looks like.

The first step is to book in a chemistry chat so we can both see whether we want to work together. If we do, then I usually recommend six sessions over a 6 to 9 month period, but it’s really up to us to agree what’s going to work best for you.

Coaches focus on supporting you to achieve your goals, helping you to learn rather than teaching you. Coaches usually work with you for a set period of time.

Mentors provide guidance and advice to you based on their own experience. You would also usually have a mentor for a longer period of time.

All my coaching sessions are held online

Everything that’s discussed in our sessions is confidential between us with these exceptions:

• I will discuss aspects of our work with my coach mentor and those discussions are also confidential.

• If I become concerned about your safety or am concerned that you might harm others. If this happens (which is very rare) I will discuss my approach with you first.

At the moment, as I’m a coach in training on an apprenticeship scheme, my sessions are free. Once I complete my training I will start charging for sessions.

I’m a Higher Apprenticeship student on the Professional Coaching (Level 5) Apprenticeship Standard at BPP University. As part of this programme, I have to complete 50 hours of coaching practice with a range of clients, in order to develop my practice-based competencies.

BPP can confirm that I’m operating in accordance with the Global Code of Ethics for Coaching and Mentoring (GCOE) and as part of this course I get support from a professional qualified Coach. As part of my development, I may also have to discuss my coaching practice in a supervisory and confidential setting.

I comply with General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) by:

• Keeping personal data up to date.

• Anonymising information and using password protection wherever possible

• Storing and destroying information securely

• Not retaining or collecting data that is unnecessary.

• Protecting data from loss, misuse or unauthorised access.

All personal data I hold securely will not be kept for longer than is necessary.

To make the best of coaching, you need to think about what areas are currently stopping you from performing at your best. It might be that you take criticism too personally, you don’t feel confident speaking up in meetings, or you find it difficult saying no to things. We will then use those challenges to agree your goals when we start our coaching relationship.

You need to be serious about wanting to change, open to challenge and willing to try new ways of working. Coaching can feel a bit like therapy for work, I’m not a therapist, but I can help you to understand why you behave in certain ways and how to change that when it’s affecting your performance.

Our coaching relationship is led by you and sometimes relationships don’t work out for a variety of reasons. You may find you don’t have the time to commit to your goals, or there’s too much going on to focus on your goals or you might decide we’re just not right for each other. All you need to do is tell me and we’ll chat through what’s best for you.

Whether a coach is something you want is really up to you. The best thing to do is to arrange a chemistry chat so we can talk through what you need.