In this issue
Features
The ABCD of working with diversity:听a new model听(free article)
Katharine Collins
The languishing limbo:听coaching for wellbeing
Jolanta Burke
Coaching conversations:听setting effective boundaries
Sally Brown
Regulars
Opinion
Nature has a role to play in coaching
Margaret Walsh
Ask the Executive
鈥楬ow do I set my prices as a coach?鈥�
Meet the member
Sue Sutcliffe
A pdf of this issue is available in the Coaching Today archive.
Editorial
If you were at our Working with Coaching day in听London back in January (or if, like me, you weren鈥檛听able to attend, our Chair Eve Menezes Cunningham听includes an excellent conference report in her听regular message), you will have seen听our lead writer in this issue, Katharine Collins,听speak about her experiences of working with听difference in the coaching relationship.
When we encounter clients who we perceive听as somehow different from us, this can sometimes听(though not always) engender feelings of听inadequacy or guilt, or simply a sense of being听unable to provide what the client needs, or听feeling 鈥榦ut of our depth鈥�. These perceived听differences can range from the more obvious听markers such as race, religion, gender, sexuality,听ethnicity, age and class, but can also encompass听more subtle differences, such as lifestyle听choices. In my private practice, I tend to attract听people 鈥� mainly women 鈥� who work in the arts听and creative or helping professions, and who听lead a 鈥榤ultipotentialite鈥� or 鈥榮canner鈥� kind of听lifestyle, meaning that they don鈥檛 necessarily听have one dominant career path but tend to have听a variety of projects on the go at any one time.听In other words, women much like me. They may听work in a different medium to me 鈥� the landscape听gardener who makes music, the yoga instructor听who writes poetry, the actor who is undertaking听a part-time counselling degree 鈥� but already we听have a shared understanding of the field, and I听know they are drawn to me for that reason. It is听only in the past few years, since expanding my听practice into different areas, that I have been听pushed out of my comfort zone and challenged听to work with people who, at a superficial level at听least, appear to be very different from me. In such听cases, I have found myself looking for the common听ground, the area in which we meet and where听鈥� to paraphrase the former Labour MP Jo Cox,听who Katharine quotes in her article 鈥� 鈥榳e have听more in common than the things that divide us鈥�.
Using her work with lesbian, gay, bisexual,听transgender and queer (LGBTQ) communities as听a starting point, Katharine describes how she听was challenged when she found herself working听with a client who she experienced at first as very听different from her. In acknowledging that, for听her, working with diversity was not confined to听the LGBTQ community, she used this experience听to devise and develop a simple model for working听with diverse populations, and I am delighted that听she has chosen to share this with us 鈥� and her own听story of how she was inspired 鈥� here in this issue.
As coaches, we can often find ourselves听working with clients who may have previous听experience of being in therapy 鈥� or indeed who听may still be seeing a therapist in conjunction听with their coaching work with us. Even those听of us who work integratively may be operating听more at the coaching end of the scale with a听particular client, particularly if that client already听has a long-standing relationship with an existing听therapist. You may have also encountered clients听who are stuck in what Dr Jolanta Burke describes听as 鈥榯he languishing limbo鈥�: clients who are not 鈥� or听are no longer 鈥� deemed mentally unwell, but who听are far from flourishing either. In her special听feature in this issue, Jolanta examines a range听of wellbeing models and demonstrates how we听coaches, using our own therapeutic knowledge,听are uniquely placed to help clients out of the听languishing limbo and into a place where they听are able to thrive, rather than merely survive.
Establishing, maintaining and navigating听boundaries is a crucial part of the work we听do with our clients, perhaps even more so听for those of us working at the boundary of听coaching and counselling/psychotherapy. So听when 香港六合彩精准资料 Coaching鈥檚 Executive Specialist for听Communication, Sally Brown, suggested that听she compile a third Coaching Conversations听feature on this subject, I was so excited I offered听to add my voice to the mix. The result is an听article featuring the views of a range of coaches听(including yours truly), exploring how we听navigate and negotiate boundaries in our work听with clients, if these differ from our therapeutic听boundaries, and if so 鈥� how?
Finally, by the time you read this, spring will听have well and truly sprung (I hope), and in that听spirit, Margaret Walsh makes a compelling听case for bringing more of the natural world into听our coaching relationships. With all this talk of听fields, diversity, thriving, flourishing and听boundaries, it鈥檚 already there in the language听that we use. What do you think? Drop me a line听and let me know.
May we tend to our gardens and may the听seeds we sow flower.
Until next time鈥�
Diane Parker
Editor
editorial@bacpcoaching.co.uk