#110: The One Thing That Solves Most Coaching Problems: Contracting Well
The Coach's Journey - build a coaching business with integrity
Differences contracting with internal vs external clients
Robbie contrasts contracting for private clients versus internal or associate work, noting extra contracting time for organizational work.
What if almost every coaching challenge you face in your practice could be solved with better coaching contracts and clearer agreements?
That’s what Robbie dives into in this short episode.
Drawing on his own coaching practice, experiences in supervision, and lessons learned from mentors and peers, Robbie explains why contracting with clients is one of the most important skills a coach can develop… and how better contracting could have solved almost every challenge he’s ever brought to supervision. He shares how he builds contracting into every part of his work: from the very first client conversation, through re-contracting midway, to closing an engagement with clarity.
Robbie explores the written coaching agreements he uses, the questions he asks clients, how he contracts with stakeholders while keeping confidentiality intact, and why he has stopped sending written coaching notes. Along the way, he also reflects on ICF ethics, the role of supervision, and what really matters for coaches who want to build a meaningful, sustainable business.
In this episode, Robbie talks about:
Why most coaching challenges come back to contracting and agreements
The questions he asks to set up effective coaching contracts
How he re-contracts with coaching clients partway through an engagement
The importance of private goals when coaching within organisations
Why he stopped sending coaching session notes and what he does instead
How ethics, supervision, and simplicity shape his coaching practice
If you’ve ever wondered how to contract in a way that supports your clients, strengthens your coaching practice, and makes your work more impactful, this episode offers plenty to take away.
Download Robbie’s ebook, An Introduction to The Coaching Business Flywheel, here.
Buy The Coaching Business Flywheel Booster Pack - including all the emails Robbie sends to his clients at every stage of his business, plus a flowchart, coaching agreements and his favourite emails for creating clients.
For more information about Robbie, visit https://www.robbieswale.com/
Read more about The Coach's Journey at www.thecoachsjourney.com.
Music by My Good Man William: listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4KmeQUcTbeE31uFynHQLQg
To support the Coach's Journey, visit www.patreon.com/thecoachsjourney and to join the Coach's Journey Community visit www.thecoachsjourney.com/community.
THINGS ROBBIE MENTIONED THAT YOU MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN
The Coaching Business Flywheel: https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/the-coaching-business-flywheel
Robbie’s article about starting coaching sessions well: https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/writing/how-to-start-your-coaching-sessions-so-they-practically-run-themselves
The Coaching Business Flywheel Booster Pack: https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/the-coaching-business-flywheel-booster-pack
Robbie’s Meaningful Productivity workshops: https://www.robbieswale.com/meaningful-productivity-workshop-series
The video version of this episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhjuhKWx9iA
Episode #8, containing this and lots more nuts and bolts of coaching: https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/podcast/robbie-on-structure-first-conversations-marketing-price
Simon Feldman on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/simonfeldman/
Robbie’s video with ways of talking about coaching: https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/podcast/106-how-to-lead-a-powerful-first-conversation-with-a-potential-coaching-client
Robbie’s video about endings and reflecting on coaching: https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/podcast/91-how-to-create-a-powerful-ending-to-a-coaching-engagement
Miles Downey – Effective Modern Coaching - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Effective-Modern-Coaching-Developing-Professionals/dp/1441186102
Robbie’s conversation with Miles Downey on The Coach’s Journey Podcast - https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/podcast/ep-14-myles-downey
BetterUp https://www.betterup.com/
64 Million Artists https://64millionartists.com/
The ideas of Zone of Genius and Zone of Excellence: https://www.robbieswale.com/the-12-minute-blog/2022/2/3/the-zone-of-genius-the-most-powerful-thought-experiment-for-personal-transformation
Mike Toller on The Coach’s Journey Podcast: https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/podcast/episode-32-mike-toller
International Coaching Federation (ICF) Code of Ethics https://coachingfederation.org/ethics
Free Ethics Training from the ICF https://learning.coachingfederation.org/products/ethics-training
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