I'll go over the two most crucial questions you and your clients should ask one another during the first coaching session and show you how to gain understanding, not just answers, to each of them.
The very first session, or "initial consult," I have with a new client is comparable to a first date, in my experience. It affects whether the relationship develops, and it feels optimistic, thrilling, and occasionally embarrassing.
One aspect of a first coaching session that I like over a first date is that inquiries like, "Where do you see this going?" are completely fine. And "How can I help you be a good partner?"
The new coach-client relationship depends on this form of communication. What the coach and client anticipate from one another must be made clear to both parties. Future instances of dissatisfaction and misunderstanding are less likely as a result.
Normally, you'll have a conversation with your new client face-to-face or online and ask them a number of questions. You might even decide to have them complete an evaluation form, or you could think about these issues beforehand.
But regardless of how you approach the situation and essentially regardless of the type of coaching you provide, there are two crucial questions that you must always have answered, as simply and efficiently as possible.
What is the objective? What destination is expected of you by your client?
What your client's objectives are and what they want to gain from working with you are the first things you should discuss with them.
Is it feasible?
Too unclear?
Goals such as "lose weight" or "save more money" might cause problems.
You don't want to assist your client in saving $10,000 just to learn that they actually intended to spend $100,000. If you had known this, you might have suggested to them that they divide their goal into smaller victories or guided them in the direction of an alternative objective.
If you had wanted both of you to succeed, you would have pushed them to make a goal.
They are now unhappy about the other $490,0000 rather than enjoying the $10,000. This is the pitfall of an ambiguous objective.
Your customer might not always be certain of what they want the aim to be. They can declare, "I want to advance in my profession," but they aren't sure what that actually entails.
Encourage them to be more detailed, since remaining vague might make you seem bad as their coach if you discover afterwards that you were not on the same page.
There's a good reason that the acronym for the most popular goal-setting method on the internet, SMART goals, begins with the letter S, for Specific.
S - Specific (or Significant)
M = Measurable (or Meaningful)
A - Achievable (or Action-Oriented)
R - Relevant (or Rewarding)
T - Time-limited (or Trackable)
How to be sufficiently precise during the first coaching sessions
However, if your client's objective is naturally less detailed or if they are having trouble doing so, urge them to at the very least be as precise as they can be about their actionable steps during your first coaching session.
Motivate your client to be more explicit about other aspects of their goal, for instance, if their stated objective is to "work less and play more," but they are unsure of the precise ratio of work hours to play hours.
What exactly does "play" mean?
Do they have any specific activities in mind?
What must they do to make the game happen?
They may sense momentum building while working toward the bigger objective of "more fun and much less work" by beginning with the action step of "perform five backflips on the grass each day."
An excellent opportunity to listen more and provide less advice is during the first coaching sessions.
It's only natural to want to bombard our clients with data and resources during or after the initial session. We want to aid this individual and establish our new friendship while also showcasing our abilities.
We may obtain a deeper grasp of the client's objectives, personalities, obstacles, stories, and motivators by avoiding the tendency to jump to conclusions and instead trying to connect with them via a better understanding.
Additionally, we are able to prevent overloading them with a big list of suggestions at the session's conclusion. Clients who feel overwhelmed after the first coaching session are more inclined to reconsider working with you entirely.
What is the timetable? When do you anticipate your client to get to their goal(s)?
Remember how the acronym for SMART objectives finishes with the letter T for time-bound?
That is correct! The following crucial question to ask your new customer is how long they anticipate it will take for them to achieve their objective (s).
Let's say you've helped your customer arrive at a clearly stated, doable goal. Let's consider a customer who wants to drop 10 pounds as an example. You two are in agreement about this aim. We've got a terrific start here!
After a week passes, they become unhappy since they actually planned to lose 10 pounds in five days.
Oops…
They aren't thinking about how they (and you as their coach) missed a deadline that you weren't even aware they had, so they don't experience the satisfaction of dropping a couple of pounds that week and being well on their way to their goal.
What may have been a cause for joy and a landmark became a source of conflict.
You may learn more about someone's degree of dedication from their discussion of the chronology.
Do they plan to collaborate with you long-term or only for a little period of time?
How adaptable are they prepared to be?
Now, I can understand how a reservation could be starting to sneak in.
But won't mentioning deadlines serve as a promise that they'll see results in a specific amount of time?
No.
You are not offering any guarantees; you are only inquiring about their intentions. The simplest approach to do this is to just include the query on an intake form or during the initial consultation or coaching session.
Give them some alternatives after the objective has been established.
The choices you present in an intake query may resemble these, depending on the coaching style you use and the goal:
You are doing well if you asked either of these questions during your first coaching session. You may follow up with your client's responses as you engage with them to ensure that your goals, progress, and outcomes are constantly aligned.
This will enable you to challenge your customers without overwhelming or disappointing them in your coaching.