How do we find the courage to act in team coaching? In the latest column curated by Team Coaching Studio (TCS), TCS co-founder Georgina Woudstra reports
In a world where the status quo often goes unchallenged, the role of a team coach is to be the catalyst for courageous conversations and transformative actions.
Courage is not just a noble quality, it’s a skill to be honed. It’s the cornerstone that transforms good coaches into great ones. However, finding the courage to act is not always straightforward. Often, something holds us back from the brink – a fear of the unknown, the discomfort of potential conflict, or the risk of being vulnerable. Yet it’s precisely this courage that empowers us to navigate the complexities of team dynamics and organisational culture, enabling us to make a meaningful impact.
I’ve never met a coach not passionate about developing their craft. As team coaches, many of us invest hundreds of hours studying theories related to teams, team effectiveness and human change. These theories provide valuable grounding and help us to think more deeply about our clients, supporting us in designing our team coaching programmes and informing our mindset, which in turn shapes the questions we ask.
Alongside this, we dedicate time and resources to learning a dazzling array of techniques and tools for working with teams. These tools can generate insights, increase energy and engagement during learning experiences, and add an element of drama and fun, all of which contribute to the team’s enjoyment of their time together.
However, being the most knowledgeable academic or entertaining trainer won’t necessarily make you the most effective or impactful intervener. Learning theory and skills can equip us well, but the real growth comes through our capacity to use ourselves as an instrument. The quality of our coaching depends on the quality of our relationships – and on our relationship with ourselves.
Our ability to create rapport and safety so we can do meaningful and deeper work with teams is vital.
Who we are – our presence – has an impact: it’s a BEING intervention
Otto Scharmer, developer of Theory U and author of Leading from the Emerging Future, quoted Bill O’Brien, the late CEO of Hanover Insurance: “The success of an intervention depends on the interior condition of the intervener” (Scharmer, 2009). This powerful quote challenges those of us who work with teams to focus our development where it really counts – on mastery of our interior conditions (thoughts, feelings, assumptions, beliefs, triggers). It’s our inner landscape that prevents us from being our best and holds us back from having the courage to act.
TCS Diploma graduate and coach Teresa Wilson notes that, “Who you are is how you coach.” We bring ourselves into the coaching space. Human first, coach second. She emphasises that our shadow can interfere with our interior conditions and affect our presence and impact. Our shadow informs our interior conditions and our capacity to intervene effectively. Here are a few examples of how your shadow might get in the way of effective team coaching:
- A client gets under your skin and irritates you
- You get bored
- You find yourself over-talking or psycho-explaining
- You feel pressure to perform or entertain
- You worry that the team is bored or doesn’t like you
- You start judging a team member, the leader, the team as a whole… or yourself
If you’re triggered by something internally, then it’s often a sign that something from your shadow is activated, disrupting safety between you and the team. So, to significantly dial up your impact as a team coach, you need to get back to full and grounded presence. Work with your shadow to make this shift, and your presence will expand.
To begin this work, think: ‘Who are you?’ In our conscious awareness, we know ourselves, but how can we know what we’re unconscious of? Learning about your shadow involves identifying, and communicating differently with, the internal dialogue that creates ‘shadow pressure’ and blocks your presence.
Deepening your understanding of presence as a team coach involves listening internally as well as to the signals and messages we receive. What is being communicated from your unconscious? What takes you out of presence? What does it mean for you to be in presence? How do you know when you’re in and out of presence? How do you get back into presence?
Awareness is about understanding more of who you are, rather than just learning a bunch of shadow techniques to use on a team. It’s about enriching who you are and therefore how you coach.
Finding the courage to act as a team coach requires a deep understanding of ourselves and our inner landscapes. By working with our shadow and cultivating our presence, we can enhance our ability to create meaningful connections and foster transformative change in teams. Courageously addressing our inner conditions not only improves our coaching impact but also empowers us to be true catalysts for positive change.
About the author
- Georgina Woudstra, MCC, ACTC is the founder and principal of the Team Coaching Studio, an organisation founded to provide a pathway to mastery for team coaches.
- TCS is an organisation founded to provide a pathway to mastery for team coaches. For accredited training in
team coaching, please visit: www.teamcoachingstudio.com
Reference and further info
- Scharmer, C. O. (2009). Theory U: Leading from the future as it emerges. Berrett-Koehler Publishers
- Teresa Wilson is a TCS Diploma graduate: www.teresawilsoncoaching.com