
Coaches are more effective when they have standardised routines and plans to help guide their conversations with clients. A well known and popular model used for coaching is the GROW model.
GROW is a well known performance model that has come from the world of coaching, it is used to structure a coaching conversation where the coachee generates the answers. The skill required by the coach is to be able to answer questions that get the coachee to think around the subject of the conversation to arrive at a plan.
Some would say that the coach does not need to know about the subject to successfully coach someone, although this statement is not always true. Driver training is a good example as, in order to manage risk, the coach needs to ensure things are kept within safe parameters. Also, in any field, if the coach has a lot of knowledge it helps with forming questions and the coachee will have respect for the coach as it is clear the coach is an expert in their field.
Below is an example where a client’s goal for that lesson is being set at the beginning of the session.
Stage | Questions | Response |
Goal | What topics haven’t yet been covered? | I haven’t done all of the manoeuvres yet |
Reality | Can you remember how you performed on your last manoeuvres? | I had trouble getting the steering done in time when doing the three point turn |
Options | How would you achieve that? | By using more clutch control |
Way forward | What do we need to do to introduce the parallel park exercise today? | To go over the method while practicing using more clutch control |
A critical aspect of using a coaching model is that it provides structure for the conversation. A coaching model needs to address four things in a conversation:
- What is going to be achieved
- Where the participant is at the moment in relation to what they want to achieve
- How the goal (or goals) will be achieved and
- How the coach can help the coachee achieve their goal
Or in other words:
- Where do we want to get to?
- Where are we now?
- What ways can we bridge the gap and get to the goal?
- How are we going to do this/doing it?
Below is a video of the GROW coaching model being applied.