Connecting Your Clients to Their Genius

(Read time: 3 min.)

We love being coaches and we bet you do too. We often feel as though we could coach all day long and never get tired of it. You too?

So why do people seek out coaches and what makes coaching so fulfilling for us?

People hire coaches for a multitude of reasons. Perhaps they want to find more meaning in their lives, to discover their purpose, deal with a difficult issue, or they just need help getting unstuck. Sometimes, it’s because they know what they need to do, they just don’t have the discipline to stick to it and get it done, whatever “it” may be. Often, clients look to a coach for answers, which is ironic because as coaches we know that clients almost always have their own answers. Answers that may be languishing just below the surface or buried deep in the clients’ subconscious.

Finding the key to those answers and unlocking the client’s genius is part of the thrill for us as coaches. Have you ever found yourself listening to a client’s story and all of a sudden, the picture becomes crystal clear? You know why the issue has become an issue for the client and what they could do or say to resolve the issue and move forward. But for us to blurt out the answer is fruitless.

Deep inside, the client knows it too, but they aren’t consciously aware that they have the answer. There are too many emotions and negative beliefs clouding their view. We have to skillfully lead them to it. So, we begin the dance of asking questions, leading so the client can follow, matching their rhythm, moving neither too fast nor too slow. Question after question, you fall into sync with one another and suddenly, the client sees what you saw. The answer is there. They may not verbalize it, but you see it in their face. Everything is falling into place. It may be that the client has to do a bit of practice on their own before they finally “get it,” but it comes. And the client is changed. A shift has taken place.

Once the client starts finding the answers, they are able to see their path forward with greater clarity and confidence. Their motivation ignites and their enthusiasm grows. They begin to challenge themselves as well as the status quo and ultimately, they achieve a level of personal transformation based on what they’ve learned, but at the same time always knew about themselves.

It’s this carefully choreographed dance that we love and most importantly, the client’s realization when the answers surface. Here are some of the reasons why the coach is in the best position to lead this dance:

1. The coach can see the forest. The client sees only the trees. It is so easy to get lost in the weeds of life. It really can become murky when our focus is narrow, and we lose the confidence to make the next decision about where to go. Coaches maintain that wonderful whole life perspective that enables them to suggest other options, point the client in the right direction and help them make the best decision.
2. Coaches are experts at peeling back the onion without any tears. We can go where clients fear to tread, because, while we care deeply about our client, we don’t have the visceral connection to our client’s story that they have. It’s all part of peeling the onion, asking the questions and layer by layer, question by question, drawing out the client’s genius.
3. We understand how to use intuition. The coach knows that a client’s intuition is a window into their personal experiences and deeply held beliefs, and we are really good at cleaning windows. Helping the client to see the connections, making the way forward appear clear, keeping things in perspective and helping our clients achieve a broader perspective as well.
4. We polish our skills like fine silver, and we use the cutlery appropriately. Communication skills especially have a special significance for the transformational coach. The questions we ask, the feedback we give and the ways in which we use silence are carefully planned by the coach. They are part of a plan to uncover and connect the client to the answers that only they could possibly have. As the client tells their story you peel back the layers until the lesson in every story is just what the client needs to discover in order to move in the direction of their dream.

The transformational coach fills many roles and wears many hats. We have this client with all the answers (only they don’t know it) and we have to tease that genius out of them (without them realizing what we are doing). It’s the thrill of the dance and the dawning of the client’s realization that makes coaching so fulfilling. We are teacher and learner all at the same time. Perhaps there are not one but two geniuses in the room. Thanks for reading, see you next week.

Catch every issue of our Blog and Tools For Transformation

The Everyday Genius, Peter Kline Don’t let the subtitle fool you. Mary used this book to foster learning in her corporate classroom as part of an Accelerated Leaning initiative. A favorite for sure.  

Living A Purpose-FULL Life,  an eBook and Workbook written by Kris Gleason and Mary Mudge. As your client begins to see the power and genius in knowing who they are and what they want it is a natural progression to ask, “What is my purpose?” Be ready to help them answer that question with our e-book on finding the answer to that powerful question.