In the age of information, there is a myriad of self-help materials out there teaching one to coach yourself. The latest release from the fabulous power duo, Helen Tupper and Sarah Ellis aka founders of #AmazingIf, “You Coach You: How to Overcome Challenges and Take Control of Your Career” is one great example. The democratisation of career coaching (as Helen and Sarah have put it in their book) has allowed for low cost options compared to hiring a Coach, especially as the working generations are more awakened to a purpose-driven, considered career path. This poses the question — why bother getting a coach?
So here’s the debate — what you need to consider when evaluating the options to self-coach vs. getting a Coach.
Consideration #1: Cost
It’s a no brainer to see that getting materials to coach yourself is usually much cheaper than hiring a coach. There are books, podcasts, articles, freebies from coaches or coaching companies like worksheets — you’ll just need to Google with the right search terms. What’s more is that the books are more practically written these days, so you will find it easier to apply learnings too.
Although the financial cost is usually lower to self-coach, you may find that you have invested quite a bit of time in finding the right materials for you, or to make it work for yourself. The time spent in self-coaching, or spent simply to try it, could amount up unintentionally. For some, having a personal Coach as your thinking partner could be a more efficient way of getting through a situation.
Consideration #2: Flexibility
As you coach yourself, there is no constraint on when and where to do this. Although professional coaches could normally be flexible around your timing, you’ll still need to invest time to find a suitable coach, and commit to a mutually agreed time to speak. As your own coach, you know how you work best.
Of course, having a coach does not mean that you will be beaten up if you haven’t reached a certain goal by a fixed time, nor does it limit the flexibility on when and how you could achieve one! However, once you have spoken to someone about how and when you are going to meet a certain goal by, chances are that you’re more likely to stick to it. It’s all part of you trying to uphold your integrity as a human being to another human being, and when this trait is used in the right way, it will produce positive effects.
Consideration #3: Accountability and Objectiveness
In both self-coaching and a coach hire, you are accountable for yourself. The goals you set, the topics you want to explore, the results you make are all driven by you. You are the person who knows what works for you — the Coach’s role (either as yourself or having a personal Coach) is to facilitate that thinking process.
That said, having an accountability partner may be something to consider for you. A lot of people I spoke to have had the experience that they are more committed to their goals once they have spoken to someone about it. Now even in the scenario of self-coaching, you could discuss self-coaching topics with a close friend, a colleague, or a mentor. If there is such a person in your life who you could speak to and hold you accountable, then many congratulations! Most of the time however, I found that most clients find it hard to speak up to someone they know already because the goals they want to work towards could impact or be influenced by them, and there may even be a conflict of interest. In these cases, hiring a coach may be a good option to consider given that the space held for you will be a non-judgemental and objective space for you to reflect and think.
Consideration #4: Breadth and Depth
As Sarah and Helen have put in their book “This book is not intended to be a substitute for discussing your career with other people… Other people can provide you with perspectives you hadn’t considered, support you to uncover new solutions and leave you feeling inspired to take action.”, neither self-coaching or being coached by someone equal a quick route to success without having effective conversations. You may find that you don’t need a hired Coach for this conversation — it could be with your manager, your colleague, or friend, as long as you feel that you have got a good relationship that could help improve your performance at work or reach your life goals.
That said, getting a Coach with the right training and qualifications would mean that the Coach can bring in the most effective tools and the right questions that help you think through an issue in a more systematic manner. Like layers of an onion, a coaching conversation may reveal something about your values, personality or belief system that may not be known to you before. Although Coaches are not here to give you advice, having an effective coaching conversation will allow you to think through not just your own perspective, and uncovers more about yourself than what you have expected at the start of the conversation. A effective coaching conversation will provide both breadth and depth to an issue that may surprise you, and allow you to commit to real change in your life.
Summary
This is another classic response of “it depends on what you want”!
Be it self-coaching or hiring a Coach, you know how you work best and what you’re willing to invest in financially or timewise to commit to a change in life. To change something, you need to want it. Without the will to change, neither self-coaching or hiring a Coach would work.
Personally, I have found a mixture of self-coaching and hiring a Coach working best. Having an objective, accountability partner who has the right tools was important to me. With a financial commitment, I also found myself more motivated to have intentional conversations with my Coach, and therefore being more aware that I need to commit to making changes day-to-day. Self-coaching sometimes helps in between sessions too, and I have found that the biggest changes in my clients were also facilitated by a mixture of both.
What do you think after reading this article? What has worked for you? Would love to hear about your thoughts and experiences!
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