Customer Reviews

Coaching: Evoking Excellence in Others

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is heavy reading, but well worth it. Remeber your college philosophy classes and associated textbooks? Well, Flaherty takes the beauty and probing questions of philosphy and creates practical use of them by applying them to the art of coaching. Flaherty relies heavily on a few of his favorite modern philosophers, and takes their discoveries and theories and converts them into assessment models, enrollment techniques, etc. What you end up with is a very lucid, free flowing book that allows the coach to see the client as a human being with varying motivations, competencies, agendas, etc., and frees us from the trap of attempting to coach our clients into becoming ourselves (someone with our values, motivations, etc.); instead allowing them to grow into their own self-correcting, self-generating person.

One caveat, this book looks just as much at the growth of the coach as it does at the growth of the client. In fact, the author asserts that failed coaching often stems from a coaches inability to completely appreciate the client for who s/he is (their motivations, world interpretation, etc.); this falls under the topic of Relationship in the book, and essentially discusses the meaning and importance of mutual appreciation, respect and freedom of expression. He advocates self discovery and continued growth of the coach; allowing yourself to learn from your client while they learn from you.

In summary, the book moves us away from simply using techniques and models as our "catch all" coaching tools and moves us towards understanding the unique human being, their unique situation, their unique drive, their unique interpretation of the world, etc. The author also encourages coaches to understand their own humanity, including their own mortality, so that our connections with our clients are more solid and hopefully more fruitful.

Although the author does provide some assessment model examples, don't expect a step by step coaching program from this work. The author throws out ideas to stimulate our own thinking about ourselves and our clients' needs. It is left up to us to put the theories, suggestions and ideas into a workable form that can be used in our coaching practices.

A note on the heavy, textbook quality of this work: It is just that. It is an amazing, thought provoking work, but it's college textbook like quality (the author does begin to throw in humor around page 90 or so) can be a little rough to get through (hence the 4 out of 5 stars).

If you don't mind free-flowing structure that allows you to draw your own conclusions, or are looking for a humanistic view on this sector of consulting, then this work is for you.

This is one of the two best books on coaching I have seen. Not for the casual reader, it is ideal for the serious practitioner of change. It has the rigor and systematic approach that are needed in a field that has become the province of lifestyle gurus and fortune-tellers. It provides a solid philosophical base for change through coaching that is a great foundation. It could serve as a textbook for how to coach. Thanks, Mr. Flaherty.

I am amazed at the strength of Flaherty's first effort. The well-designed exercises he presents are amazingly effective, and Flaherty's understanding of human behavior is eminently practical. A must-read for any coaching practitioner or anyone who wants a deeper understanding of how to make changes in his/her own life or the lives of others.

I am a coach and i train people into coaching, and I use this book and referr to Flaherty as one good manual to get a frame on how to work with people and which way to build with them the coaching interaction, objectives and achievements. It is also very clear, has a lot of visual maps, and it's quite accurate too when it comes to issues definitions and their origins. It' not the complete guidebokk of coaching but very helpful indeed.I do suggest any coach to have it among the basic important manuals.

Mr. Flaherty's book reveals the wide and disparate meanings we apply to the word "coaching." My primary focus is in the area of managing and coaching professional technology salespeople. I found this book to be uneven and at times even irritating. Too many references to Heidegger and other philosophers, which struck me as irrelevant appeals to authority with little relevance to coaching. I like a good discussion of philosophy, the nature of being, etcetera, but in this context it seemed out of place. At other times, Flaherty's insights were brilliant.

Despite numerous references intended to persuade us of the foundations for the author's positions, Flaherty includes questionable material in this book which he acknowledges will be controversial. The section on body types is, in my view, ludicrous stereotyping. My field is medical technology, and when I read that "ectomorphs are tall, thin, long-limbed, long-necked folks... people of this body type often have complex and highly wrought nervous systems," I cringed. What is a highly wrought nervous system? Where is the scientific evidence to support this? Basing assumptions on people's "body type" is fraught with danger, not the least of which is being dead wrong. More importantly, what in the world does this have to do with coaching, unless perhaps if you are a fitness coach or physical therapist. It might then have some dubious merit, but Flaherty is suggesting that coaches, generally, consider these "factors." On the other hand, coaching awareness of one's physical body and its signals and responses to internal and external influences certainly has merit.

The author also goes out of his way to demean the views of Ferdinand Fournies, whose book Coaching for Improved Work Performance he apparently views as competition to his own. He dismisses Fournies as a behaviorist and suggests his coaching advice belittles those being coached. Yet Flaherty frequently remarks that you must deal with observable behavior. What's more, he acknowledges that "when someone declines coaching," but you are still responsible for their results, "I recommend that you use traditional management procedures," with "clarity about outcomes and the consequences for not reaching those outcomes." In short, he says you should do what Fournies, much more eloquently and sensitively, advocates.

There is a great deal a reader on the subject might gain from Flaherty's book, but I would not recommend it in isolation. After reading it, I was surprised at the numerous glowing and uncritical reviews it received. Read it WITH Fournies' book - the two are not contradictory. But if you are only going to read one book on coaching, read John Whitmore's 3rd edition of Coaching for Performance, a brilliantly straightforward, unpretentious, and exceedingly pragmatic view of how we can help others realize their potential in most relationships. If by chance you are coaching salespeople, also read Managing Major Sales, by Neil Rackham and Richard Ruff.

A friend of mine who did a review of coaching resources for Harvard Management Communication Letter let out a huge yawn when I mentioned James Flaherty's book. We had a good and lively debate over drinks in Cambridge (Massachusetts).

Meanwhile, if you're a serious practitioner (or serious about getting into coaching), don't let the style scare you off. This one is a gem, with an ontological bent, and packed with practical models and exercises. James' book is the result of a lifetime of study, decades of coaching, and integration of diverse intellectual traditions, including hermeneutics, phenomenology, pragmatism, the arts, and Zen.

I have studied under James and my only wish is that his sharp (and sometimes goofy) sense of humor and amazing gift for story-telling had come through in his book. Perhaps in his next book.

As small as the book looks- it carries a lot of punch. If you never buy any book on coaching, at least get this. Made an unexpected impact on my professional development as a coach. All of this in simple, accessible language.

I can't recommend it highly enough!

I am a personal and professional development coach with a graduate education in psychology. I have heard James Flaherty speak and I have also read this book.

The upside of this text is that it is thoroughly researched and philosophically rigorous. If you are an experienced coach, you will probably benefit more from it than if you are a beginner who is not by nature particularly interested in diving into a lot of complex topics. I'm not sure this is necessary when you are getting started. For many people, a simple methodology that is powerful and easier to master is often a better starting point. If you are this type, I recommend getting Co-Active Coaching, 2nd Edition: New Skills for Coaching People Toward Success in Work and, Life. However, the two books are very complimentary.

James Flaherty is very good for getting a wide view of the terrain of coaching and for people who are more focused in the area of business coaching. This is a very heady approach and while this is useful, I think it is important to compliment this with the kind of empathy and techniques that raise a person's awareness more simply and directly. As they say in therapy, awareness itself is curative.

I would also recommend A Brief History of Everything as an even broader perspective for an interdisciplinary examination of the complexities of individual subjective experience as it relates to societal and cultural factors. A person is embedded in a particular environment and inseparable from it. I find this book to be a bit less dynamic and systems oriented than I would like.

While I think James Flaherty is very bright and a good author, I found that in person he didn't engage me. I think what was missing was the embodiment of some of the characteristics that are associated with the humanistic and existential schools of thought. Personally, I think most people don't care how much you know until they know how much you care! This is what I have found to be true in my own practice.

This book on coaching is considered a classic in its field, and I appreciate its depth. I think a beginner could take this book at "face value" and learn a lot about coaching, but an understanding of the theoretical basis makes it an even more valuable resource.

This book probes the philosophical underpinnings of coaching. Jim challenges the reader and coach to examine the core issues and fundamental questions that we all face. It's a serious book for those in the coaching business. Put on your thinking cap for this one.

* Mark Kelly, coauthor of MASTERING TEAM LEADERSHIP: 7 ESSENTIAL COACHING SKILLS