Essential Questions

The coaching process is guided by the questions that clients ask and

answer about themselves. While coaching clients are focused on

realizing the goals they set for themselves, they are simultaneously

exploring their own inner makeup and choosing who and what

they want to become. Four essential questions anchor the coaching

process from the clients’ point of view. Clients enter into the coaching

process asking “What do I need to do now?” This practical question

helps clients identify the gap between where they are right now

and where they want or need to be to realize their aspirations. As

coaching progresses, clients are challenged to discover and put into

action elements of themselves that are not part of their regular lineup

of responses. Through their expanding interactions with others, they

begin to explore the question “What am I made of?” Clients who

stick with coaching will eventually be faced with the question “Who

do I want to be?” as they choose to bring how they work into

alignment with their own values. The clients who continue their

personal development consider the question “What do I want to

create?” Answering this question enables the leaders to explore how

to leverage their considerable capabilities for value creation.

While the asking and answering of these essential questions may

not occur explicitly in all coaching engagements, the exploration of

these themes is a strong current that flows beneath the surface of

transformational coaching work.