Coaching Skills for Occupational Therapists: developing your

professional practice and enabling personal change

Jen GashOccupational Therapist, Coachjen@otcoach.com

“We already do this anyway”What’s this fuss all about?

• Important questions for today’s session?• What is your perception and understanding of

coaching? • What sort of conversations do you currently

have with your clients/patients?

• Conversations and enquiries that help your clients, you, your team and your business…..

Brief history of coaching….

• Kinship groups• Shaman’s and healers• The confessional• Talking therapies – the new confessional• Personal development/new age movement• The modern confessional…Freud…Oprah• “Administering the celebrated self”… coaching!• Health coaching, Executive coaching, Corporate coaching,

Business coaching etc

Simon Western (2012) Coaching and Mentoring: a Critical Text

Definitions of Coaching

• “partnering with clients in a specific conversation-based, thought- provoking and creative process that inspires them to move from their current state to a more desired future state “ Stober & Grant, 2006; International Coach Federation, 2011

• “coaching is unlocking a person’s potential to maximize their performance” he continues “ building awareness, responsibility and self belief is the goal of a coach”. John Whitmore 2002

• “coaching addresses the whole person – with an emphasis on producing action and uncovering learning that can lead to more fulfilment, more balance and a more effective process for living Whitworth et al 2005

Soul Guide“Mirror to the Soul”

Inner-self & Experience

Managerial“Role Coach”

Role-self and productivity

Psy Expert“Technician of the Psyche”

Outward-self & Performance

Network Coach“Emergent Strategist”Networked-self and

connectivity

Western (2012)

Coaching

Fundamental principles• The power balance is equal in the relationship• The coaching space is created jointly by both parties. “The

relationship is a designed alliance.”• The coach is responsible for creating the structure and

maintaining the focus of the session. “The agenda comes for the client”.

• The client is at the point in their lives where they are ready to commit to the process and move forward.

• The coach is self aware, works without judgement and does not “tell” or advise the other person what to do. The coach respects and honours the client’s journey and understands that “the client is naturally creative, resourceful and whole”.

(Adapted from Whitmore 2002 and Whitworth et al 2005)

Power, relationship, expectations

• How does a coaching or a coaching style fit with:• a patient : therapist relationship as opposed to • a client : coach relationship?

• In a coaching relationship, the client is the expert and the relationship is designed around what they want/need

What “works” in occupational/ health behaviour change?

• What do you think?• What does “research” tell us?• What doesn’t research tell us!• What works for you, personally?• What has worked for your patients/clients?• What do you intuitively know?

Listening

• Deep Listening; global, active, intuitive, attentive listening

“Attention, the act of listening with palatable respect and fascination, is the key to a Thinking Environment. Listening

of this calibre is enzymatic. When you are listening to someone, much of the quality of what you are hearing is

your effect on them. Giving good attention to people makes them more intelligent. Poor attention makes them stumble

over their words and seem stupid. Your attention, your listening is that important.”

(Kline 1999 p 37)

What sort of ears do you wear when you are with your patients?

• Are you already listening for certain answers from your client?

• Are you expecting the “usual story”• Are you generating solutions whilst you listen?• Are you thinking about the tea?• How easy is to listen at fully without judgment

or assumption?

Questions

• Generally open ended questions that invite greater possibility or expanded learning and fresh perspective (Whitworth 2005)

• Allowing time for client to think, really think, not jumping in too soon: Conscious use of silence

• “if one sits in a clearing long enough and quietly enough, soon all the animals come out the woods and present themselves” Thoreau

• Chasing answers/solutions doesn’t always work

• What are the benefits of not being well/not achieving this? (context – internal and external)

• How do I sabotage my plans?• What sense do I make of that?• What worked in the past when I did

something similar?• What might work now?• What’s one tiny thing you could do that might

start this off?

Types of planners…• Objective oriented planning: SMART, linear: goal,

steps, achieve (only 25% of people!!!!)• Domain/direction planning: have a vision and

direction, but move forwards without targets• Task planners: respond to short term

tasks/deadlines “en route”• Existential/non planners: “whatever will be, will

be”We need to know what works for our clients, at a tangible planning, action-oriented level

Small steps

• Making plans like: “I’m going to start swimming 3 times a week” rarely work

• Small steps. Small enough to keep the amygdala asleep

• “I will stand up and walk for 1 minute in front of the TV while the adverts are on” that’s small

Dr Bob Maurer “One small step can change your life”

Beliefs

• This always happens to me• I never get it right• I am not clever enough• I can’t make decisions• Don’t set your sights too high...you’ll only feel

let down• Real men provide for their family• Good mothers are….

Health related beliefs?

• If I work too hard, I will become ill• Working will worsen my depression• My father was like this, so I will be• Everyone else is healthy/happy• Doctors/the NHS can cure me• There must be a pill for this• I am not able to change, I am just like this

“What are you believing about this, which is not helpful?”

Models and Approaches

• Many, many models and acronyms in abundance…GROW, DREAM, STAR etc

• Many, many approaches: Behavioural Coaching, Cognitive-Behavioural Coaching, Motivational Interviewing Coaching, NLP, Co-active Coaching, Narrative coaching etc

• “coaching someone” or adopting a “coach approach” to your existing practice?

Integrating coaching into your work/practice

How does coaching fit into your model of practice/daily work? Permission to coach?

• Taking a coach approach to all OT interventions?• Formal v informal• Coaching sandwich: coaching…formal

assessment…coaching• Or Elicit – Provide – Elicit• On-going coaching as an enabling tool?

Conversations for the stuck client

• What are your assumptions?• What seems to be the main obstacle?• What are you choosing to ignore?• If you were at your best what would you do right now?• Where are you giving away your power?• What requests can be made to get you going?• How might this obstacle help you?• What if you do nothing?• What do you know now, that you will find out in a years

time?

Conversations to expand self-awareness

• What motivates you? What’s important for you?• When are you unable to laugh at yourself?• Is what you are doing right now fulfilling or

numbing?• Who are you at your best?• What are your strengths/gifts?• What are you grateful for ?• How do you get in your own way• What works well for you?

Conversations for broadening options

• Without censoring yourself, quickly write down 7 things you could do to move yourself forward.

• If you had free choice in this, what would you do?

• If you knew that you could not fail how would it be to do…?

• How could you turn this around and enjoy the process?

Discussions about moving forward

• How will you pull this all together?• What tiny step could you take that would

make sense this week?• What ever your first step is, what might stop

you from doing it?• When will you do it by? (pressure v accountability)

” A profound shift in culture has to take place… providing the kind of

orchestration that evokes our creativity and bring out the best of

each person’s talent is a very powerful metaphor” 

Margaret Wheatley

Leadership and the New Science

Thanks for listening.

Special conference offers:4 for 3 on individual coaching sessions25% discount for online courses!

Feel free to get in touch if you want some further information for yourself or staff – we can have a coffee over Skype or IRL!

jen@otcoach.com07772267004Twitter @otcoach @jenngashFind me on Linked In!