Coaching honors the client as the expert in his/her life and
work and believes that every client is creative, resourceful,
and whole. Standing on this foundation, the coach’s responsibility
is to:
• Discover, clarify, and align with what the client wants
to achieve;
• Encourage client self-discovery;
• Elicit client-generated solutions and strategies; and
• Hold the client responsible and accountable. 6
Why Does Coaching Work?
Coaching works for many reasons:
• Coaches honor self-determination as a fundamental principle.
This increases clients’ abilities to explore their own instincts,
insights and wisdom, and is inspiring and motivating for
people who aim to make changes in their lives.
• Coaching requires a collaborative and purposeful relationship.
This in and of itself inspires clients to experience that their
journey is not a solitary one. Knowing that someone is
supporting them along the way is energizing and comforting
for clients.
• The synergy that develops between che coach and client as the
relationship gains trust and strength creates positive energy
and optimism, increasing clients’ creativity and motivation.
• As new and different realizations emerge, clients gain momentum.
These insights and learnings inspire even more expansive
chinking.
• Being accountable for their own progress stretches clients to
do the requisite work to reach their goals.
Although coaching is becoming increasingly well known, people
still often ask how it compares with ocher human services, such as
consulting, mentoring, psychotherapy and counseling. Readers who
want more information on how these services compare can refer to
Appendix I.
Further principles from the field of coaching that informed the
development of the CINERGY™ model include the following:
• Coaches focus on strengths rather than weaknesses-on the
positive and not the negative.
• Coaches are facilitative change agents who serve their clients’
posmve interests.
• Coaches remain aware of clients’ individual cultures, contexts
and environments, and work within these.
The Pillar of Alternative Dispute Resolution
The second pillar of the CINERGY™ model derives from Alternative
Dispute Resolution (ADR), specifically, the technique of mediation.
Mediation is a process in which an impartial facilitator (the mediator)
manages the discussions and negotiations between or among two or
more people. Depending on the type of mediation and the orientation
of the mediator, the practitioner’s role is to help disputants resolve
their issues, reconcile the breakdown of their relationship or reach
other outcomes chat the parties identify.
Over the past 30 years, mediation has steadily emerged as a common,
useful and conciliatory mechanism in a range of contexts. The
techniques in this field evolved from, among other things, a need to
find more expedient, less costly and more collaborative ways to help
people resolve their disputes other than through the courts (in ocher
words, an “alternative” to legal proceedings). The acronym ADR has
also been defined as “Appropriate” Dispute Resolution. That is, disputing
parties may choose, from among a range of possible methods,
the one or ones suitable for them and their conflict situation.
