gomastercoach

[gomastercoach]

5 tips to get your first successful coaching client. Check out Co-founder of GoMasterCoach talk about finding your first client. Check the website for more information on how to become a certified coach

https://www.gomastercoach.com/certification

[gomastercoach]

Our newest article on best coaching questions to ask.

[gomastercoach]

Cognitive-Behavioral Executive Coaching - Thoughts Influence Behavior

I recently spoke with the VP of Human Resources of a San Francisco Bay Area company regarding providing coaching for the company CEO. She asked some very insightful questions to determine fit. She specifically wanted to know how I worked with different personality styles, and my methods for initiating changes in thinking and behavior.

The VP of HR and I spoke about my approach to coaching, and my belief that possessing a psychological understanding of human behavior based on neuroscience and business acumen are important competencies for coaching executives. We also spoke of the need for her organization to create a culture where innovation flourishes.

The VP of HR is interested in partnering with me in helping the CEO to develop his executive presence, judgment and decision-making capability.We further discussed how company executives can benefit by working with a seasoned coach. Know more here ICF Life Coach Certification 

Cognitive Executive Coaching

The primary principle of the cognitive approach to coaching is that the client's thoughts influence their behavior. The executive coach helps the client increase their awareness of their "automatic" thinking. Coaching helps the client evaluate if their view of the situation is helpful, and then helps the client identify more accurate and useful ways of viewing the situation leading to more adaptive behavior. The client's more constructive and expanded thinking about his/her particular situation and goals will lead to desired outcomes.

Behavioral Coaching

A stricter, behavioral approach to coaching is less concerned about the reasons why a behavior developed and instead will focus on identifying the desired behavior by taking a step by step approach to identifying specific actions that will lead to more frequent demonstration of the valued behavior or competencies. Behaviors that are recognized and valued will in effect be rewarded and thereby reinforced.

Thoughts Influence Behavior

As a coach, I'm often asked by executives to be their trusted advisor and a collaborative thought partner. As a thought partner, I help my clients think with greater depth, more clarity, and less distortion - a cognitive process. Coaching is primarily a cognitive method. Cognitive coaching tools are often the essential foundations of many coaches' toolboxes.

However, there is more to coaching than a set of methods - cognitive methods or any other. Executive coaching without engaging the humanistic side of a compassionate and trustworthy coach won't likely get desired results. A coach who ignores the emotions of his clients will miss a crucial element for success.

Coaches who incorporate emotional intelligence and self-knowledge in their leadership development work know that feelings are to be attended to as potential sources of useful information. Emotional self-awareness producing self-knowledge is a foundation for success in life and work. Even the executive coach who uses largely cognitive approaches must incorporate emotional content. After all, emotions are linked to cognition.

Cognitive Coaching Theory

Cognitive coaches believe that your moods are strongly related to, and often triggered by, your cognitions, or thoughts. Cognitions refer to the way you asses a particular situation - your perceptions, mental attitudes, and beliefs. Cognitions include the way you interpret things - what you say about something to yourself.

Cognitive coaching is also informed by what it is not. Cognitive coaching does not attempt to help a client by focusing on the past, uncovering repressed ideas and wishes or aiding in the translation of conscious thoughts into their symbolic meanings.

The cognitive coach does not work changing behavior by rewards and punishments or gradual exposure to anxiety -provoking events. Rather the cognitive executive coach assists clients in identifying errors in their thinking and aiding them in adopting more accurate, useful cognitions. Moreover, the cognitive coach may identify whether there is an absence of accurate, useful realty-based cognitions, even if specific thinking errors are not identified.

[gomastercoach]

The only ICF-Accredited Institute Globally with a Digital Coaching Toolbox