How can you use critical reflection to develop a holistic perspective in coaching?

The word "critical " is kind of jarring for me :-) . Refection is an essential and key process that needs to be in our mind space on a daily basis ..... in all our committed relationships in personal and professional ones . We are social beings though we need to be aware of impact of communications' verbal or otherwise. I find that I learn more about myself too. Meditation has helped me reflect better

Ask the following questions for a holistic reflection. - What is your mind thinking? - What is your heart feeling? - What is your body doing? - What is your spirit sensing?

This is the problem with coaching and training and the ability to actually help people understand a process to becoming better at what they do. We use titles like critical reflection, we nominalize, label, and make things way more complicated than they need to be. It sounds important, consultants can tote it and when it comes down to it, it is more about understanding how the brain works, and how to build skills that allow people to do things. It is the difference between communication and communicating skills. We understand that difference in NLP and the Coaching we do. Nominalizing the process does not really effect how people can actually do things. My humble opinion and pet peeve. Time to get back to the basics.

Critical reflection is one of the most powerfoul tool not just during coaching process, but in everyday communication. It gives us opportunity to put ourselves in other people shoes as well, and help us to understand motives and inner triggers. That way it help us to make more objective decisions and develope better understanding of environment. It is also one of the great way how to grow through better understanding of our motives as well as of inner trigers of other people.

Critical Reflection is critical to self-improvement and enhancement of any key competencies and skills like coaching. In executive coaching it helps us deliver coaching excellence. There are 3 ways we can build our critical reflection. After each coaching session: 1 Review the session recorded vs the core coaching competences ( assuming you have recording permission or in your mind if not recorded) within 48 hrs so it’s top of mind 2 How do you as coach feel about the session, the interaction, the outcome and highlight specific coaching competences you know you could enhance. Recommit to the improvement. 3 Acknowledge yourself for specific competences well managed Reflection, Redirection, Change.

We all hear many new ideas and thoughts everyday. But we don’t really own them, we don’t really internalize them. We forget nearly 90% of what we hear within a week! So when we just listen we are really skimming the surface of what lies beneath the words. It is only through critical reflection that we uncover the deeper truth within what we have heard or read. Critical reflection is the beginning of finding meaning and insights and it can enable a powerful self-discovery process. Self discovery is at the heart of Coaching, and critical reflection serves like a gateway to Self-Discovery. 🎈

Learning doesn't solely come from experiences; true learning emerges from reflecting on those experiences. As a coach, I strive to provide a secure space for coachees to reflect, fostering self-awareness and self-regulation crucial for emotional intelligence and effective leadership. This process identifies and transforms limiting mindsets, promoting personal and professional growth. Critical reflection also boosts creativity, innovation, and sharpens critical thinking, ultimately enhancing decision-making. Embracing this approach establishes a learning culture, promoting feedback and experimentation for continuous improvement and development.

Reflection builds 'knowing' Therefore, the benefit of reflecting upon experiences is to build more ways of knowing within a coaching session– essentially giving a coach more experience or tools to draw upon when coaching The principles and aims of critical reflection is uncovering assumptions and power dynamics , gaining perspective on context, gaining a sense of control and balance, helping support informed action; and creating conditions where people feel respected, valued, and heard . Clients feel empowered they start thinking outside the box where the true power lies

Coaching by its very nature, induces one to think critically at every step of the process and is woven into the very fabric of coaching: whether this be exploring the impact and driving forces of past behaviours; examining contexts and the dynamics of the systems in which one operates and the motivations, beliefs, values and options in moving forward. Creating a safe space elicits powerful and critical thinking when simple, yet powerful questions are asked.

Reflecting on the results, outcomes achieved during the day and on those where one failed, helps to identify where exactly one could have changed the behaviour or made a better choice. One couldn't because one was not aware or didn't know how to spot. That awareness can help coaching become more effective..

Research indicates that though many people have a high appreciation for the process of reflection, yet there is a need for methods and criteria that makes reflective practice really a powerful and effective tool making it a key cognitive skill for clients (Nash et al., 2022). Although reflection is considered to have an allure for deeper learning, yet for those to be implemented into the world of practice, reflection must happen in an objective way, as if looked from others’ eyes, offering the space to question and challenge the taken-for-granted assumptions and beliefs (Loughran, 2002). Hence, the choice of model for reflection carries quite a bit of weight for learning from that space to be carried over to practice.

Critical reflection is key to coachability. In an ego-centric era where the average person is only welcoming of those truths, or lies, which serve to validate what they consider acceptable, the Executive Coach must be of unshakable integrity. Why? Only integrity allows us to like the person we see in the mirror while losing the financial opportunity of another client. This is to be embraced as a prospect who does not exemplify critical reflection during lead qualification or client onboarding is certain to be one of two clients: *your biggest fan as a result of the breakthrough(s) resulting from coaching, or *your latest adversary, hating you for poking at parts of their mind they've been ignoring for years. Coach wisely, Rich Laster

“É necessário sair da ilha para ver a ilha. Não nos vemos se não saímos de nós.” Essa frase do escritor José Saramago explica bem a importância da reflexão crítica em coaching. Na conversa transformadora, o coach oferece um espaço crítico de observação de como seu cliente está pensando, o que está sentindo e como está agindo em função de pensamento e emoção. O coach por meio de sua presença e escuta ativa, vai devolvendo percepções, apreciando e criticando as dimensões do pensar, sentir e agir de seu cliente e assim provoca insights. Ao fazer isso o coachee percebe o benefício, se empodera dessa reflexão e passa ele a criticar seu mundo interno visto de fora. O resultado é transformação de dentro pra fora e maior alcance de objetivos.

Introducing reflection with our clients can help to reinforce the progress they've made, help them to appreciate the effort they have put in and support (ideally) the positive benefit that coaching has and continues to have in their lives. Reflecting with myself as coach, enables me to explore what I could have done better, different ways I could have led or responded to the conversation and in this instance, reflection supports my own personal development and self learning.

A good tool to use for critical reflection is the What, So What, Now What framework. What? - what actually happened, what is the situation you are exploring. Who was involved, what happened, why, when and where> So What? - This is the oportunity to surface the general meaning and significance of what took place. Considering your position or view point, acrions and emotions. Consider what these were before during and after. Now What? This is where we consider what this means for the future. For example: what will you do differently in the future it this situation were repeated? What are the key points and lessons learned from this? How can you stop a negative situation repeating in the future?

"The whole is more than the sum of its parts." - Aristotle A holistic coaching perspective fosters numerous benefits for both coaches and clients. It elevates empathy and rapport by embracing the complexity of human experiences. Flexibility and adaptability flourish as coaches adjust approaches to diverse situations. Effectiveness and impact amplify when addressing root causes rather than surface issues. The expanded vision enables the discovery of overlooked possibilities. Aristotle's wisdom encapsulates the essence—acknowledging that a holistic understanding enriches coaching, unveiling the interconnected and transformative nature of addressing the entirety of a person's experiences and aspirations.

True holistic coaching goes beyond the surface and addresses the mind, body, and spirit. It is about nurturing and empowering the whole person to achieve balance, fulfillment, and lasting transformation. This approach encourages individuals to explore their beliefs, values, and motivations. Through self-reflection and introspection, individuals gain a deeper understanding of themselves and their patterns of behavior and mindsets. This increased self-awareness allows them to make conscious choices and align their actions with their values and goals.

Holistic to me means being aware and including every part of a human being. Mind - body -spirit I touch upon, address and dive deeper into all these aspects in my daily coaching practice. Critical reflection in one area will have more meaningful and sustainable results when all parts of a person are included. If the mind is moving but the body remains stagnant or the spirit is ignored, some progress might still happen. However this is not as effective, fast or long lasting as when all parts are being moved simultaneously. This has been and continues to be my daily experience with individuals as well as teams. And it’s fun.

En primer lugar, facilita una comprensión más completa de la persona, abarcando sus aspectos emocionales, cognitivos y comportamentales. Esto promueve una autoconciencia más profunda, permitiendo a los individuos identificar y trabajar en áreas de mejora. Además, una perspectiva holística mejora la toma de decisiones al considerar múltiples factores y contextos. Esto contribuye a un enfoque más equilibrado y adaptable frente a desafíos personales o profesionales. Asimismo, promueve la empatía y la comprensión hacia los demás, ya que se valora la interconexión de las experiencias y perspectivas.

Having the ability to see and understand the context or bigger picture increases your effectiveness as a leadership coach exponentially. Experiential knowledge (in other words theoretical knowledge that you have applied yourself and not only read about or heard of) gives you that depth and width needed to add value. You only gain valuable experiential knowledge and insight when you have mastered the required ability, honesty and skills needed to critically reflect on your own effectiveness, in order to adjust or readjust your own thinking, mindset, methods, assumptions, biases etc. in order to continue to learn yourself. The more you see and understand, the more you realise that there is still so much more to learn.

One of the biggest challenges in coaching holistically is to withhold personal judgement with the coachee. A coach is not there to impose their bias and influence on the client. A good coach holds the client in the palm of their hand and approaches each session without judgement, regardless of how close an experience or problem the client brings to the table represents something you’ve dealt with in your life. The environment may sound similar, but it is never the same as what you went through. To fight this challenge, a coach needs to upskill their active listening skills, practice holding the client in empathy and allowing pauses and emotions to happen.

I think one of the biggest challenges in developing a holistic perspective in coaching and critical reflection is that when we think, believe or feel something, we don't know that it's just one option of thinking/believing/feeling - it feels 100% real, accurate and the only way! People buy into their own stories and it would be a wonderful evolution of the human mind if we can all learn to not buy our own versions of "truths" - if we can learn to remain open to objective reflection of our own stories at all times. This is where learning to become a coach, something I teach my clients, is invaluable! As I precisely develop this skill in people.

No, I don't think it is challenging. If one comes with experience after having walked through the fire, facing storms and achieving in spite of obstacles during the journey of decades then why challenge would arise. For me biggest challenge would be lack of personal experience and learning. Like, there were times when I had very strong beliefs, and then journey helped me dismantle them all and become flexible with one simple understanding: Human behaviour is unpredictable and doesn't have one solution for all. As a coach you need to work intuitively ....

Coaching is supposed to be a non-invasive method. Does an holistic perspective include a deep investigation of the dark side? Sometimes, to improve the performance, the quest for consciousness is the key. The main challenge is to investigate maladaptive reactions to find the rooth-cause.

When I coach execs, I follow a holistic approach from the perspective of assessing and analyzing both inner core (clients personal assessments) and outer core (360 survey taken by stakeholders). This step is critical in establishing how the client is truly showing up (based on their objective results) versus how the world sees them (the subjective 360 survey). This paints a picture of any strengths & gaps that may be either indisputable or surprise. The challenge with this approach, that I always address up front, is making sure that the client is prepared for the answers they might get (feedback) based on the fact that we asked for the info. Once they understand the true intent, purpose and value of the holistic approach, they're all in.

La pratique de conseiller en insertion professionnelle, de formateur professionnel d’adultes ou de conseiller en évolution professionnelle s'enrichit considérablement de la maxime antique « connais-toi toi-même » attribuée à Socrate. Ces éléments contribuent à un coaching holistique : La connaissance de soi et l'analyse de la demande : permet d’aborder sans préjugés les besoins des individus pour une compréhension profonde de leurs motivations. La veille informationnelle : combinée à la connaissance de soi, assure une adaptabilité essentielle pour un accompagnement efficace. L'accompagnement personnalisé et l'auto-évaluation professionnelle : permettent un coaching sur mesure et une évaluation objective des interventions.

The simplest and yet very powerful concept I learnt is 3W - reflect on last 30/60/90 days and answer these three questions focusing on big Rocks. 1. What's working 2. Wlhere an I getting stuck 3. What do I need to do differently. I have experienced immense value by doing this on every last day of the month.

Critical reflection in coaching can help to question ingrained patterns and beliefs. In doing so, it can occasionally be the coach's task to take on the role of devil's advocate. By this I mean that the coach questions things critically in order to trigger reflection in the coachee. However, I also think that critical reflection triggered by the coach is a very powerful tool that needs to be used wisely. If the coach exaggerates in the use of critical reflection, this can have a negative impact on the coachee's confidence in his or her self-efficacy. It is therefore up to the coach's experience and intuition to trigger the right amount of critical reflection.

I find critical reflection to be the hardest part of my coaching journey. The hard thinking involved in critical reflection is about understanding the potential impact of your beliefs and biases on your coaching delivery. By regularly examining your personal experiences and those of your coachees, you gain deeper self-awareness. All of this contributes to creating that 'holistic' perspective, which is essential for keeping your coaching dynamic, empathetic, and client-centered

Reflection should be a fixed and daily ritual, preferably in written form. I recommend asking two questions: What is my part in the situation? How could I still think about it if I mistrusted my current thoughts?