G.E.A.R.E.D for Progress



So we’re tasked with coming up with our very own coaching model. And to be honest, I started thinking about this one even before the webtorial and I had a couple of ideas but in the end, I threw it all away and started again from scratch.

At the end of the webtorial, I asked myself, “what would my coaching model look like? How will it represent me and my style of coaching? What is my style of coaching?!” There were many questions, but little answers. As I reflected on those questions, it helped me shape my first coaching model, or at least the first one I didn’t throw out.

In the past months, I’ve begun to see what coaching is, why we coach and to me, it’s about helping others make progress. And progress really is about moving forward. So with that, I came up with the “G.E.A.R.E.D. for Progress” model.

1. Goal – What is the desired outcome or what result do I want to see? This is the first step, articulating the goal and putting it in writing. Writing it helps us make our goal clear, it becomes a reminder, helps us stay focused and prioritise. If we ever stray or forget, we have it written down to remind us.

2. Evaluate – Why is this achievement or result important to me now? We know what we want, we have set the goal… the next question is why? Why now? Knowing the reason and the purpose we are pursuing the goal helps engage us emotionally. Emotions are a powerful force that drives us, if we are not emotionally connected to the goal, the odds of us achieving it, is slim.

3. Align – What steps do you need to take to achieve the desired outcome? Knowing what you want is one thing, knowing how to get what you want is another. The third step is really considering the steps required and the options available. It’s really about making clear plans to guide our steps towards the goal.

4. Review – What are some potential obstacles or challenges you may face? Obstacles and challenges are inevitable, identifying what they may be would help better prepare us to face them. The old adage, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail” and this plan have to include plans to face potential obstacles.

5. Engage – What resources and/or support you might need to engage to help you along? Chances are, we will need help to achieve our goal. This step is to help us identify what help that is. Do we lack skills, expertise or maybe just moral support? 

6. Direct – How will you know you’re moving in the right direction? We need to be able to track progress to ensure we arrive where we want to be. What does progress look like? How will we know if we’ve arrived or made any progress? We need to be able to articulate progress, or we could be running around in circles.

The model isn’t meant to represent a linear process, at some points, we may need to re-evaluate, re-align or maybe even redefine the goal. Revisiting previous steps doesn’t mean we’ve regressed, it simply means we’re re-considering some aspects of our journey. Progress is about learning from our mistakes, adapting to new situations, and finding new ways to succeed.

G.E.A.R.E.D. for Progress. One step at a time.


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