The International Coach Federation recently announced a change to their list of core competencies. The list and descriptions for each competency help coaches know what’s expected of a coach. The new list has eight competencies while the previous list had eleven. The only somewhat surprising change? The new list drops “Powerful Questioning”. Hmmm. Brian

  A major mistake a coach can make is agreeing on the topic too soon. At the beginning of a general coaching conversation, the client isn’t completely sure exactly what the topic is. A coach needs to spend time helping the client clarify exactly what the issue is. My analogy for this is the topic

  You are probably more cynical than you think. Cynicism is the belief that people only act out of their own self-interest. Of course, this is always true to some extent, but the cynic changes their behavior because they don’t believe people will show up at their best. Cynicism is a nasty virus in North

  Perhaps the most difficult coaching conversation a coach can ever have is the one that lacks focus.  Focus-less conversations go in circles, they skip across the surface of issues, and they bounce around without ever creating any helpful awareness. In other words, they are a waste of time.  They can also be frustrating –

  I recently started working with a large employer in my area to help them develop leaders throughout the organization.  They do not have a culture of strong commitment, accountability, or results.  Instead, their culture is one that over-does-it when it comes to personal autonomy: nobody can tell anyone else what to do. A major

  The esteemed 20th-century Baptist preacher John Claypool once preached a sermon titled “God is an Amateur.” He used the word “amateur” in the original sense of the word: not as a novice or inexperienced person, but one who does something for the love of it. God’s only motivation is love. My vision – indeed