Wow, it took me a long time to be able to answer that question. It wasn’t until I had been coaching a few years and could really see the effects coaching had on my clients that I could say without hesitation what coaching is.

A coach sees the best qualities in a client and reflects them back so they are able to see and understand how to leverage those strengths for their success. It amazed me how often my clients would be surprised when I would reflect back to them the value and growth I saw….It wasn’t about just seeing it, but walking with them to do something with it. Often, it was that one encouragement I had reflected back which got them unstuck and moving forward toward their goals.

So without further ado I’m going to share the three ways I use to define what a coach is.

1. Walking alongside people…

Everyone is more willing to try something new when they have someone to walk with them. It is like hiking up one of Colorado’s famous fourteeners (14,000 foot peaks). It is never a good idea to do that alone, especially for the first time. A coach is like a Sherpa that is there to help you successfully overcome the challenges to accomplish goals. Said by a Sherpa: “The mountains are where we come from, so we know the area. We know how to live and survive and adapt.” A “Coach” is more than a job title, it is “who” we are and we have made a lifetime commitment to knowing how to survive, adapt and not only live, but thrive through challenging circumstances. Having an experienced coach to walk alongside you to weigh out the risks involved in your decisions will give you confidence to charge the hill and accomplish the summit.

2. Staying the course…

When the going gets tough, don’t go shopping, get a coach. The most successful people have coaches to help them stay the course when things get tough. This is true for all genre’s of coaching, whether, life, business, leadership, or executive coaching. Coaching involves goal setting and the best goals while remaining realistic, must have a stretch aspect to them. Like climbing the mountain, the obstacles can often challenge you to stop and go back to base camp. It is often in the “stretch” of a goal where it can be tempting to quit. With a series of properly delivered questions, a few well placed words of encouragement, and suggestions for consideration “staying the course” becomes a valuable description of what a coach does.

3. Staying focused…

Veering off course slows down the progress toward the original goal, however sometimes it is necessary to be successful. A coach will redirect you back to the original goal while helping you see what was learned in the detour. It is always a coach’s responsibility to allow the client to make his or her own decisions. Even when the coach disagrees, because often there are important lessons to be learned which actually contribute to reaching the goal.

A goal is simply a target that often requires adjustments along the way. Like the summit of a mountain is the target for a climber and the Sherpa, often they must traverse the mountain to ensure reaching the summit safely.

Wrapping up…

Coaching is more than a job, or even a calling, it is a way of life to be able to help people define and realize their goals for life. Walking alongside, encouraging to stay the course, and staying focused on the target are the all things a coach does. But a Coach is on the journey to reach the summit with you…to walk alongside you and say: “LOOK WHAT YOU DID!”

Before reading this article what was your view of a coach and how has that changed?