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Coaching Questioning MistakesWe all ask questions - hundreds a day. Sometimes the answers can be frustrating. Could this be due to the way they’re asked?Highlighted here are ‘The Top 10 Questioning Mistakes in Coaching’.

Powerful questions result inpowerfulanswers.

1Closed QuestionsThe number one offender. Open questions allow the coach to direct a conversation (because they can be answered in many ways), and they make coachees think and give longer answers.

3Seeking the ‘One True Question’One of the biggest stumbling blocks new for coaches is the quest for the Holy Grail: the question that unlocks secrets for the client. Try using, “tell me more”, “say more about that”, “expand on that” or “what’s going on there?”.

5Interpretive QuestionsSometimes questions are asked that put a spin on what the coachee says. For example, a coachee says: “I’m finding it difficult to get up in the morning” or “I’m not getting the support I need”. A response like, “How long have you hated your job?”, is likely to get a negative reaction from the client (“I never said that”).

9InterruptingThe other side of the interruption coin is that for some of us, interrupting is a habit we aren’t aware of. Try a two second gap when you want to interrupt and see how that works for you.

7Leading QuestionsLeading questions are ones that subtly point the coachee to a certain answer; the one you want! While rhetorical questions are blatantly biased, with leading questions you may not even realise you are propelling conversation in a certain direction.

2Solution-oriented Questions (SOQs)

A special kind of closed question is the solution oriented question. SOQs are pieces of advice with a question mark pasted on.

4Rambling Questions

A variant of the ‘one true question’ problem is the rambling question. By the time the coach has finally articulated the question, the client is confused about what to answer and any conversational flow is lost.

6Rhetorical Questions

Although posed in question form, rhetorical questions are actually statements (often emotional or judgmental - an opinion of the situation). Since the coachees opinion isn’t being asked, these questions

evoke either no response or a defensive one.

8Neglecting to Interrupt

No, that’s not a misprint. Being too timid to interrupt and refocus the conversation is more of a problem than interrupting too much. Too much irrelevant detail slows progress and blurs your focus.

10‘Why’ Questions

‘Why’ questions tend to make people clam up because they challenge motives. When you pose a question like, “why did you do that?”, you are asking the person to defend and justify his or her actions – so don’t be surprised if people get defensive.