Outside the context of sports, the definition of “coach” can get a little blurry.
In business, we hear a lot of terms, coach, mentor, advisor, consultant and it can be confusing. To help our clients better understand them, Bright Helm uses these definitions
Advisor - one who gives recommendations on what to do
Consultant - one who tells someone what to do or is paid to do it for them (services)
Mentor - one who has experience in the same field and can be a trusted guide
Coach - one who partners with the client to raise self awareness and facilitate personal and professional growth
At Bright Helm, it is our sincere belief that coaching, more so than advising, consulting, or mentoring, can give our clients the tools to take on a broader range of challenges and be better prepared for what life throws at them.
What to Expect.
Consultation
The first step in any coach / client relationship is the consult. We seek to understand your needs and goals so we can tailor the best possible coach / client interaction methods and timeline.
Assessment and development
The next two steps actually interchange over the course of the coach / client engagement and involves our coach walking the client through a series of assessments to better understand personality, strengths, cognitive methods, biases, and concerns, and then identifying and focusing on areas of development to address in the session work.
Developmental areas we focus on
Depending on the client, a coach may delve into some or all of what we call the Areas of Development. These are relatively general areas of which highly successful people have some level of understanding and development. Our goal is to give the client a better understanding of how these Areas of Development can influence success and how to harness them.
Feedback models
Cognitive methods
Cognitive Biases
The “Big Five” personality traits
Emotional Intelligence
Goal Development
Prioritization
What does a coaching engagement look like?
A coaching engagement is the period of time that the client and coach work together to meet the client’s needs. These can last anywhere from 3 months up to 12 months and beyond. The typical engagement duration is 8 months. The engagement usually starts with various assessments to help the client better understand how they process information, make decisions, and how they show up in the world. Then, the client and coach start the “session work”. These are periodic meetings that last anywhere from 45 to 90 minutes with a focus on the client’s current needs. Finally, the engagement ends with refection, evaluation of progress, and a clear path forward.
The number of sessions and frequency is largely dependent on the clients schedule, workload, and needs. We work with each client to develop the optimal balance for client success.