A: Approaches in Group Coaching - The A-Z of Group Coaching

As we approach our 19^th anniversary business celebrations what better time to start our 26-blog post

series, “The A-Z of Group Coaching Essentials.” 

Having written the first book on Group Coaching, “Effective Group Coaching” in 2009, this series highlights the best practices Jennifer Britton (Founder and CEO of Potentials Realized) has both written and taught in Group CoachingEssentials (5-week course with 8.75 CCEs with ICF) for the last 19 years. 

Let’s jump in.

Regardless if you are a new or seasoned group coach, reviewing various approaches when working with groups brings fresh, new ways of engaging your groups to support participants in realizing their goals; and you fulfilling the program goals and promises. It’s finally spring (YAY!!!!), and what better time for you (regardless if you are a new or seasoned group coach) to revisit approaches and bring fresh, new ways of engaging your groups in support of participants realizing their goals; and you fulfilling on the program goals and promises.

In her book “From One to Many: Best Practices for Team andGroup Coaching” (celebrating ten years of publication this year), Jennifer shares that regardless of the type of group/team coaching you offer: teleclass, group coaching, webinar, or retreat- there are different approaches to facilitating a group conversation. 

Understanding that different groups will have different needs, it’s essential and valuable to be ready and adaptable to use various approaches to fulfill program and participant goals.

Some of the common approaches used in group coaching include:

1. Laser coaching
2. Fieldwork: pre-work/post-work
3. Individual reflection
4. Peer coaching
5. Body-centered coaching, somatic coaching, or using geography

 The following are questions for you to consider based on the group you are working with and trying to decide on the approach to incorporate: 

• What are the fundamental needs and focus areas of this group?
• What supports the group in setting better goals?
• What supports the group in deepening awareness around issues of importance to them (individually or collectively)
• What supports the group to take action towards their identified goals?
• What is the role of accountability and commitment within this group?
• What does the group value in terms of approaches? Is it individual reflection, Small group conversation? Laser coaching? Conversation with a partner? Other? 

For further resources on this topic, check out the books referenced in this blog post. In addition, consider joining us in an upcoming ICF-CCE approved Group Coaching training program where we explore this topic more deeply.

Enjoy!

Jennifer and Evana

 

Group Coaching Essentials

Our award-winning ICF-CCE approved training programs have been taken by thousands of coaches since 2006. Join us for coursework leading you to the new ACTC (Advanced Credential in Team Coaching) or complete our 70 or 125 hour Certificates in Team or Group Coaching.

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What is your unique style as a coach? Take 2-minutes to complete the  Group and Team Coaching Superpower Quiz. You can find it at https://bit.ly/gtcoachingsuperpower. Share your style using the comments below and/or follow along on Instagram at our CoachingBizBuilder site.

Join us for an upcoming program including: 

Coaching Diverse Teams and Groups using the Work Styles - Tuesdays 645 - 8 am ET starting March 21 (14 CCEs) - Widen your toolkit for working with diverse styles in teams and groups in this 6 week program based on the Hybrid Work Styles. WE also explore Coaching for Creativity and Innovation. This is course 5 in the 70 hour Certificate in Team Coaching Program.

Group Coaching Essentials - Fridays 1015 - 1130 am ET starting March 31 running to late April- 8.75 CCEs

Advanced Group and Team Coaching Practicum - 10 CCEs - Fridays 1230 - 145 pm ET: March 24 (6 weeks) with Jennifer or later in January Mondays 12 - 130pm ET with Evana starting January 30th

Team Coaching Essentials (14 CCEs)  - Being asked to coach teams? Equip yourself with the foundations of this quickly evolving field. This program is grounded in our From One to Many methodology PLUS what works right now in today's evolving workspace. 6 week program on Mondays 12 - 130 pm ET  starting early May with Kathy

ACTIVATE your Group and Team Coaching Superpowers (14 CCEs) - Fridays 1015 - 1130 am ET starting March 24 with Jennifer (6 weeks)  - January 13, 20, 27, February 3, 10, 17  - Course 4 in the pathway (catch up on call #1 with the recording)

Coaching Supervision Group (Small group format) - Thursdays 12 - 130 pm ET  first week of the month each month (to June 2023) OR book a call to explore individual coaching supervision.

 

 

10 Program Design Tools for Coaches - Day 5 of the Countdown to 2020

Welcome back to Day 5 of the 2020 Countdown. For many years now I have provided a year-end

series and I hope that you are enjoying this year's!

This year we are taking a deeper dive into tools, resources and approaches for group coaching processes.

Today's post zooms into 10 Program Design Tools you'll want to consider as you pull together pre-work, session materials and follow up. Keep in mind, depending on the type of group or team conversation you are having, you may not need to bring anything more than questions! The more we get into more on-demand programming (i.e. video-based courses, the more we will find ourselves in the realm of needing these tools). In a pure coaching process, they may be more supplementary than anything else.

Here are 10 you may want to explore to see how they can support your programming in this upcoming year:

#1 - Canva - Creating a brand around your program is a key part of program design. What are the colors you want to use? What are the adjectives which describe your program? For those more graphic design inclined, you may choose to turn to canva for some of your branding work, and also social media posts.  We'll be exploring BRAND in greater depth in the 60 Day Coaching Business Builder Accelerator which starts on January 1st! I hope you'll join us!

#2 - Unsplash - Visuals are powerful. Whether you are creating your own visual deck (like our newest member of the Conversation Sparker family - the Journaling Conversation Sparker), or you are incorporating images into your slides, you'll want to make sure you have a set of photographs that are commercially allowable, and impactful. Unsplash is a wonderful portal where photographers share some of their best work. Check it out.

#3 - MindMaps - Since before I started my business in 2004 I have been using MindMaps as a design tool. I believe I first encountered them years ago in 2000 at an  ASTD TechKnowledge Conference in the early days of e-learning. MindMaps help us capture all our ideas in one space. Be sure to date them and don't overwrite! Create a new version with a new date rather than delete. You never know what magic you'll uncover when you look at it again. MindMapping can be as simple as a handwritten version, or as sophisticated as one using COGGLE - one of the apps I've started using this fall for my own program design.

#4 - Trello - For all stages of design Trello is a great tool. From laying things out to compartmentalizing content, explore what is has to offer to you and your clients.

#5 - Designers - Fiverr, Upwork, 99 Designs - We likely will need to turn to a professional designer at some stage. Whether we want a customized Slide Deck, someone to make our work look nicer, or simply someone who can help us check certain items off the list, check out these websites for freelancers who can help you.

#6 - Loom - Want a personalized video to welcome people? Want to do a walkthrough of your site. Just as I've done with this short video talking about the Coaching Biz Growth Lab (an annual group focused on business development which I offer for coaches)  Loom provides a quick and fast way to create a specialized video message.

#7 - Zoom - Most coaches are probably well versed with the basics of zoom if you are working in the virtual space. I love taking a deeper dive in the Virtual Facilitation Essentials program around creating engaging and interactive virtual conversations. That program starts again in January and is being renewed for 8.5CCES, based on my 2017 book, Effective Virtual Conversations.  As a business, we have used zoom as our platform now for 5-6 years. I couldn't run my business without it!

#8 - An online learning platform - Whether you use Kujabi, Teachable or Thinkific, having your own private online learning platform can systematize materials for people to access. For years I've had many programs over at Teachable, including the Learning Lab and Design Studio, an annual group I host around group and team program issues. The nice thing about it is how it grows with time.

#9 - Mighty Networks - Early this year I shifted our online community over to Mighty Networks and started the Conversation Sparker Zone. It includes a public community space for people who are interested in connecting around coaching, business development, virtual conversations AND I also am able to use it as a private discussion channel for many of the groups I work with throughout the year (you won't see these). I hope you'll join us there for discussion and dialogue!

#10 - Dropbox - From file sharing with collaborators to housing call recordings, dropbox can be an important extension of your business.

What are the elements you would like to add to your toolkit for the new year? What action could you take today to add on ONE thing to your toolkit to set your work, and groups, up for success next year?

Enjoy the exploration! We'll be taking a deeper look at many of these design tools in the 60 Day Coaching Business Builder Accelerator as we spend several weeks on helping you design out, or tweak, your offerings. We kick off on January 1st for 60 days of action. Early bird rate in effect until Monday December 23rd. Click on over now and reserve your spot (1, 2 and 3 installment payments available).

Thanks for joining us for this Countdown to 2020 tip! Share with us one of your favorite resources over at the Conversation Sparker Zone.

Best wishes,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton - GroupCoachingEssentials | Potentials Realized
Author of Effective Group Coaching (2010), Coaching Business Builder (2018), Effective Virtual Conversations (2017) and From One to Many: Best Practices for Team and Group Coaching (2013). Check out my author page on Amazon for all publications.
Email: info@potentialsrealized.com

If you are looking for  coaching skills development through CCE approved programs - I’ll be kicking off the first Group CoachingEssentials CCE approved program on Friday January 10^th at 1015 am ET. This 8.75 CCE program also includes weekly 1-1 time with me (15 min each week). Is 2020 your year to get your groups going or expand the number of groups you are doing? Whether you are new to group coaching or stepping into your next year, there’s always something to learn – I hope you’ll join us. Reserve your spot here.
Also starting in January are two groups of the Virtual Facilitation Essentials - a Friday group and a Monday group. If you want to see many of these tools in practice, and get experience in using them. Consider joining us for this virtual train-the-trainer OR reserve your spot for the 60Day Accelerator.

Building Your Group and Team Coaching Toolkit - Strategic Issues (20)

Many teams and group members will want to build in a focus around strategic issues into their

coaching process. Strategic issues are important as they usually take us to the 30,000 foot view, or macro view of our work, context and landscape.

While strategic years ago meant 10 – 20 years, in today’s super-charged world of work, strategic now may mean 3-5 years down the road.

There are a variety of excellent strategic planning tools we may incorporate into our work as coaches, as we help individual group members and teams identify what is important to them. 

Three tools you may want to explore are the:

SWOT – one of the more traditional strategic planning tools which explore strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats

PESTE – an environmental scan which explores the political, economic, social, technological and environmental layers

Strategic Issues Mapping

I often will incorporate one or more of these into a team coaching conversation, or as pre-work for a group coaching conversation. The insights gleaned around our context (the SWOT and PESTE), or what we see in our landscape (Strategic Issues Mapping) can be a great spark for a conversation.

For a description of what Strategic Issues Mapping is all about, take a look at my 2014 Teams365 blog post here: https://www.potentialsrealized.com/teams-365-blog/teams-365-85-strategic-planning-tool-2-strategic-issues-mapping

 

You can read more about the SWOT here: https://www.potentialsrealized.com/teams-365-blog/teams-365-84-strategic-planning-tool-swot

As previously mentioned, I will often have teams or group members create their own SWOT prior to a coaching conversation. You could also get group members to work in breakouts (Virtual or in-person) to explore one or more of the SWOT categories, presenting it back and then sparking a deeper conversation with the team.

Six questions you might explore as you coach around strategic issues:

1.       What are the strengths and weaknesses?

2.       Looking to our external environment, what threats and opportunities exist?

3.       As we move to the 30,000 view, what’s important to notice?

4.       Keeping in mind our strategic priorities, what do we need to say YES to? What do we need to say NO to?

5.       3-5 years from now, how will we know we have been successful? (Ask this on an individual level if group coaching, or team level if team coaching)

6.       If _____ ($/resources/ etc) were not a priority, what would we do?

Enjoy your conversations,

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, CPCC, PCC – Potentials Realized 
Leadership | Teamwork | Business Success
Author of Effective Virtual Conversations (2017), Coaching Business Builder Workbook and Planner (2018) and From One to Many: Best Practices for Team and Group Coaching (2013)
Follow along with the #90DaysPlanDoTrack series over at Instagram @CoachingBizBuilder 
Join the conversation at the Conversation Sparker Zone - our online community where you can explore virtual and team issues, coaching, productivity and business development)

Join us for an upcoming ICF CCE approved program - Group Coaching Essentials (8.75 CCEs, starts Monday October 21 at 9 am ET), Advanced Group and Team Coaching Practicum ( 10 CCEs starts Monday October 28 at 3 pm ET) or the PlanDoTrack Certified Facilitator Program (24 CCEs) starting November 15th.