Inside the mind of a coach
Interview with Swedish life coach, Nina Jansdotter. Part 3.
How well will I get to know you during the coaching?
“I like to get personal, but I avoid getting intimate. For example, if you ask me straight-out about my difficult experiences in life, I will certainly share some with you, but not to the point where the discussion becomes primarily about me. I make sure that we quickly get back to the subject. If I offer to talk about some weakness of mine, the client may relax. At times a client will want to get my opinion and then I will say, ‘For my part, I would not want to work for an employer that applied that kind of management, but that’s me. You have to consider yourself and what is right for you.’ But that is more the exception than the rule.”
What are the most common misunderstandings about your job?
“A few clients, and indeed even coaches, get the idea that you yourself must be perfect within the realm to which the coaching is applied. You must know everything and have experienced everything. That’s not the case. If it were, it would be impossible for me to coach anybody to become more organised and structured since my own office is often messy. Thankfully, coaching is about having the client find his own solutions. My primary task is pose questions. On the other hand, it is to my advantage in my role as coach to be open to learning new things.”
What are your weaknesses as a coach?
“One weakness, which can also be a strength, is that I am too quick. I often see the potential in my clients long before they do themselves. As a coach, I’m supposed to wait until the client catches up in the learning process and recognises this potential himself. This process sometimes takes several months, especially when it is a matter of facing ones fears and other limitations. Out of sheer frustration, I sometimes bring up far too early a question that I should have waited to ask. I would most rather coach quick-minded people who are also quick to put their thoughts in to action.”