These commonly held myths often obscure the benefits of executive coaching. In COACHED TO LEAD Dr. Susan Battley debunks and dispels these beliefs:
- The Myth of the Individual.
Successful people don't need coaches.
Reality: Professionals have coaches; amateurs do not. In short, coaching helps the best get better.
- The Jaded Myth.
I get all the feedback I can possibly use now.
Reality: Coaching can help maximize the benefits of feedback and identify other helpful information.
- The "Shrink" Myth.
Coaching is the same as psychotherapy or counseling.
Reality: A therapist's role is frequently that of a healer. A coach's role is that of a supercharger, whose primary goal is to maximize business results.
- The Dependency Myth.
Coaching fosters an unhealthy dependency on others.
Reality: At heart, coaching is a tool for individual growth and empowerment, not dependency.
- The Crutch Myth.
Coaching should only be short-term.
Reality: a long-term partnership with the right coach may make sense in supporting ongoing success.
- The Emergency Room Myth.
Coaching is only used as a last-ditch problem solver.
Reality: Executive coaching may be less - not more - successful when a person's needs and issues have reached critical condition.
- The Mentor Myth.
An executive coach is the same as a mentor.
Reality: Mentoring can be informal and open-ended, where executive coaching has clearly-defined goals, activities, time limits, and mutual accountabilities.
- The Walk-In-My-Shoes Myth.
A coach should have a background and experience similar to mine.
Reality: To coach an Olympic athlete to victory, a coach does not need to have personally competed in the Olympics.
- The Universality Myth.
Everyone is coachable.
Reality: Most people are coachable some of the time, but all people are not coachable all of the time.
- The Fuzzy Results Myth.
There's no way to measure outcomes from executive coaching.
Reality: Research shows that executive coaching can deliver an impressively high return on investment.
