Mistake #21
NOT LISTEN TO WHAT THE CUSTOMER SAYS
There comes a point during the conversation that most people stop listening because they already guess what the other person is going to say.
The trick is to listen to each client as if everything were new, even if you have "heard it before". In fact, you've never heard this before because it's always different.
Respect your client; pay attention. Ask questions even if you are sure you understand. Seek to learn not assume.
Mistake #22
ALLOW THE CUSTOMER TO DISTURB YOU
Clients will say things about you and your Coaching that may upset or upset you.
Find out what is behind their dismay, and in turn, widen your barriers to protect yourself.
Do not ignore incisive or out of place comments.
Full, clear and honest communication is part of the agreement between Coach and client, and you must ensure that your client honors this attitude.
Customers are human and they have bad days. Understand it and be patient but do not let it go unnoticed.
Mistake #23
TRANSFER YOUR OPERATING MODE TO THE CLIENT
In other words, transfer your own path of experience to it.
What works for you may not necessarily work, or even be appropriate, for some of your clients.
The challenge for the Coach is to feel comfortable, and effective, with clients who think, operate and live with rules, priorities and assumptions different from yours.
Mistake #24
GET DIVERTED WITH DISTRACTIONS
When a client doesn't want to accomplish something, solve a problem, or deal with a situation, they will create distractions (consciously or unconsciously).
Typical distractions:
• A personal or professional crisis.
• A new “much more interesting” goal.
• Sudden interest in you and your life.
• Sudden interest in abstract and conceptual conversations.
• Talk the hell out of yourself about irrelevant topics.
Solution? Pressuring the client to maintain and complete what they set out to accomplish or resolve.
Mistake #25
FORCING THE CLIENT THROUGH THEIR BLOCKS
All clients get stuck; how you (and your client) handle the situation is important.
I'd rather remove the block than push and convince the client to go through it.
In any case, the blocks are there for a reason, therefore help the client to fully understand the nature and dynamics of the block rather than stressing and pressuring the client to go through it forcefully.
With true understanding and full acceptance, most blocks will go away on their own.
Mistake #26
AVOID DIFFICULTIES / ROUGH BUSINESS
Clients hire you for specific tasks, but it's hard to do great coaching if you can't include all relevant aspects of the client's life and work.
Instead of avoiding sticky topics, simply ask the client how much room you have to talk about things they haven't mentioned themselves.
Or, directly ask: “Can we talk about X?”
If X is important to you, it is probably also important to your client.
Mistake #27
DO NOT START CONVERSATION TOPICS
You do not have to limit yourself strictly to the topic of conversation that the client has initiated during the session.
In my case, the 25-50% of the topics touched on have been initiated by me at the beginning, end or during the conversation of the session.
Obviously, move smoothly from topic to topic and let the customer decline if they're not interested, but don't stop introducing new topics if you think they're relevant to the customer. It is another way to add value and stay one step ahead of the customer.
Mistake #28
TALK TOO MUCH ABOUT YOURSELF
I think it is valuable to share things about yourself (relevant experiences, condolence stories, illustrative anecdotes, personal challenges on that topic, etc.)
The trick is to keep it short. Any personal story that exceeds 60 seconds is suspect.
Mistake #29
DO NOT SHARE PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Coaching is not a therapy; You can, and we encourage you to share about yourself and relevant life experiences when this can help your client better understand themselves and the situation.
If you set a 30-60 second limit on sharing, you probably won't go overboard.
Mistake #30
BRAKE THE CUSTOMER
In an effort to protect the client from failure, stress or pain, the Coach sometimes slows down their Coaching or suggests the client lower the level of their goals.
This is hard, but I prefer to fully inform my clients of the potential risks of their big goals and ask permission to be as forceful as necessary and then see how far the client can go.
The mistake that some Coaches often make is to play God or keep the client stopped in what the Coach could do.