Coaching for Doctors and Healthcare Teams

The coaching relationship underpins my coaching. The relationship is essential for success. In coaching I fundamentally see you (the individual or the team) as striving for and being capable of becoming the best that you can be. Coaching then is a shared journey where you are the expert in being you, and I am a participant in your growth journey. Together, we form a relationship that supports your achievements and progress. You set the agenda, and we will discuss whatever matters to you.

​However, I do not see myself as a passive bystander in the coaching relationship. Listening is a key aspect of coaching, but there is more. I will ask questions, point out patterns and inconsistencies, and challenge you to notice your actions and assumptions. You will hear me challenge, but of course it may be me making assumptions rather than you, or maybe both of us are - so feel free to challenge me in return, and give me feedback as we go along. Through questioning and challenging I hope to help you examine world views that are being taken for granted, and, if appropriate, develop new ways of seeing that world that are more useful and better suited to the present circumstances.

I might also share some of my own experiences, or how others have managed similar situations to yours, or I might suggest certain ways of viewing the world that may be helpful; these serve as invitations for you to consider, but what you do with them is always up to you, as you are the only person who can possibly know what is right for you.

​For me the notion of choice is a key aspect of human existence. Whilst it may not be possible to change external factors, it is possible to choose how one responds to them, how one thinks, feels, behaves, and who one is. Each person constructs their own unique meaning in life. Inherent in this view is an appreciation that people can and do change, and that different contexts lead to different choices potentially setting up an internal conflict. Choosing one's own paths in life is incredibly empowering, but at the same time also scary because it means having to make those choices, take responsibility for the outcomes, and accept things outside of one's control. Coaching helps you recognise the choices that you have, and supports you in making those choices. It also helps you recognise where you don't have choices, and helps you find a way of accepting that.

​Everyone is a unique individual with their own view of the world. This means that other unique individuals might have a different view of the world than I, although of course we all influence each other and create socially-constructed context-dependent meaning. So one aspect of successful human relationships is accepting, appreciating, valuing, and celebrating the different views, rather than judging things as right or wrong. Coaching can help develop a pluralist view of human interactions. I have a postmodern view of the world, recognising that hard truths no longer exist - instead, as a society we socially create what we deem to be the truth. Of course, different societies in different eras create different truths, this makes it hard to exist in a world where truth and knowledge are no longer just about hard facts.

​Identities and narratives are a key part of my coaching. I don't think we have just one identity. I think we all have multiple identities, and that these identities are based on the stories that we construct about ourselves based on our interaction with others. My coaching then helps people identify and appraise their narratives and identities, and develop new ones that are best suited to the reality or desired future. You might hear me use the terms narratives and identities in coaching, but you are just as likely to hear me ask "what's your mind saying" or "what does this say about the kind of person you are", or "what kind of a person do you need to be".

Whilst narratives and identities might require deep exploration, my coaching is also practically orientated for when the goal is already clearly know. Here I work with a solution-focused approach that taps into what you are already doing to deliver more of what you desire.

Team coaching is similarly influenced by what I have outlined above. In team coaching, we are likely to spend a significant amount of time at the beginning developing psychological safety, as this is a key pre-requisite for successful teamwork. Team coaching is likely to examine internal team processes and relationships (including learning and leadership), external processes and relationships, and the team's mission and objectives. The focus will be on what the team itself wishes to discuss.