III. a. Philosophical Coaching
The philosophical coach encourages and assists her coaching client to probe deeply into his underlying assumptions and beliefs, and to reflect on how these underlying assumptions and beliefs relate to and impact on his perceptions and actions in all aspects of life. Much like the reflective coach, the Aspirational coach who takes a philosophical stance will inquire into the ways in which her client approaches, interprets and acts on the challenges she faces in an organizational setting. The philosophical coach, however, probes at a much deeply conceptual level than does the reflective coach—often asking him what specific words mean to him or what meaning resides behind a story that he often recounts to other people inside and outside his organization.
As employees express a growing thirst for meaning, story-telling has become one of the most recognized leadership tools. The client who has had a chance to reflect on the philosophical underpinnings of his beliefs and actions (even if the word philosophy is never used as such in the coaching conversation) will often move hearts and minds with greater ease and be able to point to a “bigger picture.”
III. b. Ethics-Oriented Coaching
The ethics-oriented coach is in the business of helping her client address fundamental challenges concerning the identification and application of a specific set of values to the decisions being made in and actions being taken by her client’s organization. This type of coaching is likely to become more prevalent as internationally-based and internationally-oriented organizations confront differing cultures, social norms and value systems, while trying to establish, monitor and reinforce consistent policies and procedures. Typically, the ethics oriented coach is involved not only in assisting leaders with the preparation of formal policies and procedures, but also in working with individual clients who must deal on a daily basis with ambiguous and complex situations where there does not appear to be a single “right” or “just” answer. When a certain deterioration of corporate ethics begins to take hold, coaches may be confronted with discussing the personal dilemmas of potential “whistleblowers.”
III. c. Career Coaching
This fourth model of Aspirational coaching overlaps with personal coaching and is probably the most common and diverse of the four. What distinguishes this form of coaching from the other three and from personal coaching? The key factor concerns the breadth of the life review process. At critical inflection points in a person’s trajectory, career coaching embraces the entire life-experience of the colleague. Broad and enduring life and career patterns are examined by the client, with the assistance of his coach. (Sheerer, 1999; Fortgang, 2005) Financial issues might interplay with issues concerned with friendships, the use of leisure time, the identification of alternative career paths, or establishing a legacy. (Whitworth, Kimse-House and Sandahl, 1998)
III. d. Spiritual Coaching
Building on of a long tradition in many cultures, spiritual coaching primarily concerns the reflective inquiry into and appreciation of the major transcendent forces that: (1) call on us to improve the quality of our lives, our community and our society, (2) provide meaning and context for our complex and often unfathomable life experiences, and (3) provide an institutional base or set of ceremonial activities that enable us to express our deepest purpose, longings and life-joys. A spiritual purpose that reaches beyond the self is often the most powerful motivator for people to make difficult and lasting changes. Such changes are a common coaching agenda, and progress is often facilitated by this type of coaching conversation.
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