The 7 C’s Of Coaching
By Eric Garner
If you want to turn your training and coaching events into memorable, life-changing moments for your trainees, then you need to practise the 7 C’s of Coaching.

1. Climate. Studies show that as many as four-fifths of people lack confidence in their chances of being successful learners. The proportions are even higher for women. If the training climate is additionally hostile, stressful and emphasises passing and failing, then these levels of self-esteem will plummet even further.
A successful training climate needs to be:
relaxed; alert; stress-free; supportive; and safe
taken at a pace just ahead of where the trainees are now
positive in terms of expectations of success
owned by trainees so that they say where they want to go and don't want to go
based on drawing out learning as if it were already there.

2. Communications. Communicating with your trainees is not about lecturing them. It is about making points of contact with them. Here are a few you must master:
Appearance: look the part; dress the part; be immaculately groomed; dress like the best of your trainees.
Body language: your body language is the way you consistently communicate your interest in your trainees. Send them signals that you're at ease.
Words: use words that are short, direct, active and concrete.
Contact: learn their names quickly and use them.
Assertiveness: being assertive means showing you like being who you are and where you are.
Response-ability: take responsibility when trainees make points: listen, understand, respond.
Risks: be prepared to show them that you're a learner too by taking a few risks.
Sense of humour: this is always a point of contact.

3. Care. Jack Canfield carried out a study of "a day in the life" of 100 schoolchildren. He found that for every positive and caring word spoken to the children, 76, there were more than six times as many negative and discouraging ones, 470. Learning is not a comfortable process for any of us: it takes courage by the learners and caring by the learning providers. You will make a huge difference if you replace every critical and judgmental expression with a positive and caring one. "Your trainees won't care how much you know, unless they

Our articles continue...