by GSCA Member, Cecily Sharp-Whitehill
What follows for your consideration are some (of many!) guidelines for coaches who support their clients not by leading but through dialogue and discovery. Coaches speak with care and caring.
Books related to World War II captivate me. My next favorite genres are mystery and detective stories. Canadian Louise Penny centers her stories around the quietly wise Montreal Chief Inspector Gamache. (I’m striving to be more quietly wise!) He suggests three questions to ask yourself before you speak: Is it true? Is it kind? Does it need to be said?
(Gamache also suggests this about civility: How can we expect it if we don’t give it?)
Another version of the three questions has a Quaker (Society of Friends) source: Does it need to be said? Does it need to be said now? Does it need to be said by me?
For coaches there’s a range of thoughts between self-effacement and self-aggrandizement. I’ve experienced that the self-questions above can help us coaches find the appropriate space for wisdom to appear.
