The Coaching Habit: The Focus Question (2024)

The Coaching Habit: The Focus Question (1)

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“What’s the real challenge here for you?”

When we jump into problem-solving before we have a complete understanding of the issue from the employee’s point of view, we tend to solve the part of the problem that we assume they are struggling with which may or may not be accurate.

By asking this question, you’ll get a clear picture of the precise element that your team member is struggling with.

Now, you’re ready to help them explore their options to achieve better outcomes.

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The Coaching Habit: The Focus Question (2)

The Coaching Habit: The AWE Question

“And what else?”

Ask this question more than once. Stanier says he typically asks it at least three times, and rarely more than 5 times. “As a general rule, people ask this question too few times rather than too many,” he says.

This question slows ...

217

The Coaching Habit: The Focus Question (3)

ockquote>Talk less and ask more.

Your advice is not as good
As you think it is.

MICHAEL BUNGAY STANIER

188

2.18K reads

The Difference Between Coaching and Feedback

Feedback is backward-looking and corrective. It doesn’t allow for exploration or possibility.

Coaching is preparative. It involves less telling and more questioning

206

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The Coaching Habit: The Kickstart Question

"What's on your mind?"

This question is open enough that it grants your team member autonomy to guide the conversation whichever way they’d like, while also being focused on cutting right to the chase and getting after what matters most to them.

Once...

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The Coaching Habit: The Focus Question (2024)

FAQs

The Coaching Habit: The Focus Question? ›

What's the real challenge here for you?” When we jump into problem-solving before we have a complete understanding of the issue from the employee's point of view, we tend to solve the part of the problem that we assume they are struggling with which may or may not be accurate.

What is the focus question in coaching? ›

Question 3: The Focus Question – What's the real challenge here for you? As the question implies, this question begins to funnel the topic in a way that focuses the conversation. It works in conjunction with the next question.

What are The Coaching Habit questions? ›

7 Coaching Questions
  • What is on your mind?
  • And what else?
  • What is the real challenge here for you?
  • What do you want?
  • If you're saying yes to this, what must you say No to?
  • How can I help? (I prefer 'How can coaching help? ')
  • What is most useful or valuable here for you?

What is The Coaching Habit summary? ›

Brief summary

The Coaching Habit by Michael Bungay Stanier is a management book that teaches how to ask effective questions and provide impactful feedback to help team members solve their own problems and reach their goals.

What is a focus question example? ›

Here are examples of effective Focusing questions: How do you measure the success of your company? Of your department? Tell me about the goals you have in place for your department?

What is the focus question asked? ›

A focus question asks the learner to think deeply about the issue and produce original thinking about the issue. It is an “open” question which means that it does not have clear-cut answers and is designed to make learners think.

What is the focus question in The Coaching Habit? ›

What's the real challenge here for you?” When we jump into problem-solving before we have a complete understanding of the issue from the employee's point of view, we tend to solve the part of the problem that we assume they are struggling with which may or may not be accurate.

What are the 3 coaching questions? ›

What do you hope to achieve in our time together today? What would you like to take away from our conversation? What do you need to accomplish from our discussion?

What are the 5 C's of coaching? ›

The 5Cs are represented by the attributes and skills of commitment, communication, concentration, control and confidence - with the goal of helping organisations create 'psychologically-informed environments' that nurture the 5Cs in young athletes.

What are the 3 C's of coaching? ›

Coaches embody numerous traits, which can be categorized into what we call the “3 C's” of exceptional coaches — curiosity, courage, and compassion.

What is the main focus of coaching? ›

Coaching is a partnership between coach and client. Coaches help clients to define and achieve their goals and objectives. The ultimate aim of coaching is to help people develop and improve performance.

What are the 4 C's of coaching? ›

The 4Cs in Coaching - Competence, Confidence, Connection and Character/Caring.

What are the 7 key questions? ›

A key question is a form of words addressed to a person in order to elicit information or evoke a response; interrogative sentence. It is a formula to get the whole truth about a problem. Who, What, Why, When, Where, How, How Much? - Consultant's Mind.

What are the 3 strategic questions? ›

The 3 Strategy Questions Every CEO Should Ask Regularly
  • Where are we today? Every organization will focus on the things it believes its leader is focusing on. ...
  • Are we ready for the next steps? ...
  • Do we still want to take the next steps?

What are the 4 strategic questions? ›

The Four Questions of Strategic Doing
  • What could we do? What are all the possible opportunities before us, based on the resources that we currently have, that would help us move toward the future we'd like to see?
  • What should we do? ...
  • What will we do? ...
  • What's our 30/30?

What is a focus question in a lesson plan? ›

What is a Focus Question? A focus question delineates what students are trying to figure out. A science investigation can offer very different things to your classroom, depending on the question you use to focus it.

What is a focus question in PAT? ›

The Focus Question is the point of truth for your entire PAT . A concise Focus Question will allow you to maintain focus and keep your project on track at all times. If at any time, you are doing something which does not directly contribute to answering your Focus Question, you are off-track.

What is a focusing question task? ›

Your focus question should serve as your north star as you plan text-dependent questions to guide students reading, writing, and discussion. It outlines what students should be able to answer in writing as a culminating task and will shape the lesson, or series of lessons, to get students to that point.

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