Australia Awards Cambodia
Postgraduate learning opportunities for
Cambodia’s current and emerging leaders
Accessibility Information

Got a problem to solve? How about coaching yourself?

 

Sometimes talking to someone else about what is going on for you is just not possible. Although we value our relationships and the people around us who are willing to be our ‘coach’ – to sit and talk with us, provide us with feedback or act as sounding boards for our ideas when we need it, sometimes those people are just not available.

So what can we do during those times when we really need to sort out our thinking but no one is there for us to talk to? We can coach ourselves! Being a coach to ourselves mean we are willing to invest the time and effort into improving our own capacity and performance. But “how is that possible?” I hear you ask!

Well, there are some fundamentals of coaching that we can do for ourselves anywhere and anytime. All we need is some space in our busy day to stop and spend time in quiet reflection, and somewhere to record our thoughts and work through a systematically process of analysis. The process is one of inquiry that uses questions very similar to the kind of questions you might ask if you are researching and problem solving as a scholar. So this process should sound familiar!

The first task is to think about and identify the outcome that you want to achieve. This is your goal that will represent what a successful result will look like if you achieve it. This can take some time to figure out because often when we are struggling with an issue our mind can be a bit overwhelmed by it. And in addition, it can be hard to see what goal might be possible if the problem is big and complex. In that case you need to start small, think about the short term and set a goal that represents a step forward toward resolution of the larger issue. Small steps can be the best way to get to an end result when the problem is big!

Try these questions to help you to unpack and sort your thinking about the outcome you want:

  • What specifically am I concerned about?
  • What is it about this situation that matters most to me?
  • What would a good solution to this issue look like in the longer term? (long term goal)
  • What would a successful small step forward look like? (short term goal)

Write these goals down!

Now that you have an idea of your goals and where you are heading, it is time to come back to reality and think about the situation that you find yourself in.

  • Who is involved?
  • What has been happening?
  • What is the history of the issue?
  • What have been the effects of the issue on you and others?
  • What have you tried so far to resolve it?
  • What has worked and what hasn’t?
  • What is your hypothesis about what is happening and why? What evidence do you have that supports this hypothesis? What evidence doesn’t support it?

This is like a situation analysis where you unpack what is happening, the effects of the situation and the range of factors that are contributing to it. It is important to look at this reality closely and make sure that you are not jumping to conclusions, or making unfounded assumptions. Make sure you write down thoughts or map them out in some way (e.g. a mind map is an excellent tool for this kind of work).

Now it is time to think about the future. Based on this understanding of what is happening, and based on your short-term goal, what options available to you that will help you to move toward your goal? List them down. Try to think out of the box and don’t be too dismissive about options that might seem unrealistic – this stage is really a brainstorm of any and all options that will help you to move closer to achieving your goal.

  • If you were to take a step forward, what would that require?
  • What actions are within your power to take?
  • What help will you need from others?
  • What barriers might you expect to encounter?
  • What resources might you need?

By now in the process, you might notice that your mind is a bit clearer and you start to imagine a pathway forward. If you are not feeling it yet, then spend a bit more time considering options, or if needed go back to the reality or even to your goal and give them some more thought.

When you are ready to move on, then you can go to the final stage and that involves deciding what you will actually do. This is where you make a decision and commit to taking action, no matter how small. The action you decide to take will be founded on all the thinking you have already done, so once you make it, you should feel like it is well grounded – meaning that it is solid and backed up by good thinking, analysis and evidence.

This part is critical because as human beings, we need to feel empowered to manage our lives and to take action to achieve the things we want or need.

This whole process moving through: Goal, Reality, Options and Will together form a really simple but powerful model that we can use with ourselves and with others as a coaching and problem-solving tool. Plus it is easy to remember because the acronym is: GROW! Use it and let us know what happens when you do!

Written by Vicki Vaartjes, Equity and Program Enrichment Specialist, Australia Awards Cambodia

 

Australia Awards

 

Post graduate learning opportunities for Cambodia’s future leaders

 

Got a problem to solve? How about coaching yourself?

 

Sometimes talking to someone else about what is going on for you is just not possible. Although we value our relationships and the people around us who are willing to be our ‘coach’ – to sit and talk with us, provide us with feedback or act as sounding boards for our ideas when we need it, sometimes those people are just not available.

So what can we do during those times when we really need to sort out our thinking but no one is there for us to talk to? We can coach ourselves! Being a coach to ourselves mean we are willing to invest the time and effort into improving our own capacity and performance. But “how is that possible?” I hear you ask!

Well, there are some fundamentals of coaching that we can do for ourselves anywhere and anytime. All we need is some space in our busy day to stop and spend time in quiet reflection, and somewhere to record our thoughts and work through a systematically process of analysis. The process is one of inquiry that uses questions very similar to the kind of questions you might ask if you are researching and problem solving as a scholar. So this process should sound familiar!

The first task is to think about and identify the outcome that you want to achieve. This is your goal that will represent what a successful result will look like if you achieve it. This can take some time to figure out because often when we are struggling with an issue our mind can be a bit overwhelmed by it. And in addition, it can be hard to see what goal might be possible if the problem is big and complex. In that case you need to start small, think about the short term and set a goal that represents a step forward toward resolution of the larger issue. Small steps can be the best way to get to an end result when the problem is big!

Try these questions to help you to unpack and sort your thinking about the outcome you want:

  • What specifically am I concerned about?
  • What is it about this situation that matters most to me?
  • What would a good solution to this issue look like in the longer term? (long term goal)
  • What would a successful small step forward look like? (short term goal)

Write these goals down!

Now that you have an idea of your goals and where you are heading, it is time to come back to reality and think about the situation that you find yourself in.

  • Who is involved?
  • What has been happening?
  • What is the history of the issue?
  • What have been the effects of the issue on you and others?
  • What have you tried so far to resolve it?
  • What has worked and what hasn’t?
  • What is your hypothesis about what is happening and why? What evidence do you have that supports this hypothesis? What evidence doesn’t support it?

This is like a situation analysis where you unpack what is happening, the effects of the situation and the range of factors that are contributing to it. It is important to look at this reality closely and make sure that you are not jumping to conclusions, or making unfounded assumptions. Make sure you write down thoughts or map them out in some way (e.g. a mind map is an excellent tool for this kind of work).

Now it is time to think about the future. Based on this understanding of what is happening, and based on your short-term goal, what options available to you that will help you to move toward your goal? List them down. Try to think out of the box and don’t be too dismissive about options that might seem unrealistic – this stage is really a brainstorm of any and all options that will help you to move closer to achieving your goal.

  • If you were to take a step forward, what would that require?
  • What actions are within your power to take?
  • What help will you need from others?
  • What barriers might you expect to encounter?
  • What resources might you need?

By now in the process, you might notice that your mind is a bit clearer and you start to imagine a pathway forward. If you are not feeling it yet, then spend a bit more time considering options, or if needed go back to the reality or even to your goal and give them some more thought.

When you are ready to move on, then you can go to the final stage and that involves deciding what you will actually do. This is where you make a decision and commit to taking action, no matter how small. The action you decide to take will be founded on all the thinking you have already done, so once you make it, you should feel like it is well grounded – meaning that it is solid and backed up by good thinking, analysis and evidence.

This part is critical because as human beings, we need to feel empowered to manage our lives and to take action to achieve the things we want or need.

This whole process moving through: Goal, Reality, Options and Will together form a really simple but powerful model that we can use with ourselves and with others as a coaching and problem-solving tool. Plus it is easy to remember because the acronym is: GROW! Use it and let us know what happens when you do!

Written by Vicki Vaartjes, Equity and Program Enrichment Specialist, Australia Awards Cambodia

 

Skip to content