Session 3

Tomorrow I will be leading the class: Advanced Coaching Techniques 1
I am looking forward to the experience and I feel comfortable being flexible and following the plan as an outline.

Below I have copied the beginning of the lesson plan, the competencies and our class questions.

On First:
* Create a safe learning environment through a calm voice, tone of speech, strong positive energy, listening carefully and respectfully to everyone, gently nudging participation and acknowledging those who share.
* Check in with myself at various times during the hour to make sure I am maintaining this environment.
* Acknowledge a competency when it comes up.

Opening:
Welcome warmly each person, repeat and write down name, ask a few personal questions.
Introduce myself and why I am leading the class., Introduce Prabha and that she will be present.

Warm-up exercise:
Today we will be discussing Advanced Coaching Techniques. The two words, Advanced and Techniques can mean different things to different people. They can also be scary words that are full of significance.

What I would like to focus on today is the underlying question: what distinguishes an advanced coach. So to start with the end in mind, I would like to begin this session by asking you to take out a pen and piece of paper and take a moment to answer this question.

“What do you think an advanced coach brings to the coaching process that provides added value to the client.” You can use a phrase, an image, a diagram, whatever works for you to best describe the sense of what advanced coaching means to the client.
• Leave a minute or two
• Ask each person individually to share what they wrote
• Summarize the answers. The competency developed in this exercise is the ability to identify the benefits to the client, shift perspectives from the coach to the client. (I will be using my listening and feedback skills to do this and will adjust the rest of the outline as a consequence of this feedback).

Competency:
1. Coaching presence to its highest expression -- by recognizing and leverage the uniqueness that you bring to your coaching: understanding of personal style, strengths, what you bring to the coaching process and in this way being a role model authenticity.
2. Creating awareness of possibilities – the creation process.


What parts of the lesson plan are especially important for you as a trainer?
Open questions for each person to create a picture for themselves based on their knowledge and experience.
Creating a safe and open environment where people freely participate.
Each person walking away with a new level of competence in the area.
Each personl walking away with something new to think about.

Do you deviate from the plan and if so how do you know when or how to do that?
Deviating is fine if the direction the discussion goes is just another route to achieving competence in the competency area. There are many ways to achieve an end training goal, and part of being an excellent trainer is being able to deviate from the plan, yet still achieve the goal for the class.
When to do it, is when there is a tension in the class that is taking it in another direction. Then you can decide whether that new direction is still in line with the end goal or not. If so, you can be flexible but very aware to keep the end in mind.
How to do it, is be flexible, alert, listen even more carefully to check in on the direction, call on personal experience and trust that the flow will go in a good direction that is working for this group in this moment.

What are some ways to add visual and kinesthetic elements to a teleclass?
Leave option to draw, diagram, write to express a thought. Use a mindmap. Make an action plan. Have everyone stretch together.