What sort of topics come up in coaching supervision?

Over the last seven years, some of my supervisees have said that it took them a while to get into supervision as they weren’t sure what they would talk about in a session, and how a supervisor could help.

So, to give you some idea, here is a list below of some of the things that have come up in supervision. This is not exhaustive!

Initially, at the beginning of our supervision relationship while we are still growing rapport and trust, we’ll talk about very client focussed issues such as:

  • What should I be including in my contracting (read more about the secrets to good contracting here)?
  • How much structure must there be in the session?
  • How do I end coaching with a client?
  • Who should I be involving in a corporate coaching contract?
  • How do I deal with multi-party contracting?
  • What if the organisation wants me to help them dismiss a coachee via coaching?(but they are not admitting this explicitly)?
  • Can I coach everyone in the same team?
  • Do I always follow the clients agenda; what if what they want is not what they originally said they wanted at contracting or even what the company wants?
  • Is my client dependent on me? Are they contacting me too much between sessions?
  • Am I allowing my need for increased business affect my decision on who to work with?
  • What can I do about a client who is just playing along in the coaching?
  • What if I know something about their situation at work that they don’t know?
  • Should I keep in touch with my clients at the end of coaching?
  • I don’t really like my coachee; can I work with them?
  • Can I work as Non-Executive Director and coach in this organisation?
  • How much do I feedback to the organisation about a client when they (the organisation) are footing the bill.
  • I am feeling queasy about the type of business my coachee is in and whether I approve of what they do; how will this affect my work with this client?
  • How do I work with an extremely talkative client?
  • What should I do with a flirtatious client?
  • I am concerned about the mental/physical health of my client.
  • I know my client’s wife, could that cause an issue for us both?
  • How do I wrap up Session 6 when I feel dissatisfied looking back on the previous five?
  • How important is it to do mid-way reviews and how should I structure them?

However, as the supervision relationship develops then the content of discussion changes

Here are some examples:

  • What clients am I enjoying working with? Why? What does this say about me?
  • Which clients do I least enjoy working with and why? What does this say about me?
  • How should a coach record their sessions? What is legal, what is practical and how can a coach ensure they help self-reflection and pattern spotting across clients?
  • Am I allowing my own personal experience of my client’s situation get in the way of our work?
  • My client reminds me of an old boss and I think it is influencing how I work with him?
  • Why can’t I get clients to commit beyond three sessions; am I sending out the wrong signals?
  • How do I take my coaching to another level?
  • What if I want to work at a transformational level and their focus is transactional?
  • Is my client coach-able?
  • My open ended contract with my client is great for business but I’m worried this is not ethical or good for them.

If any of the above issue resonate for you and you would like support to develop your capability as a coach then contact me, on 01785 603726 for a no obligation chat about one to one phone supervision or group supervision in Manchester.

Julia

Published

9 years ago : May 14, 2014

By Julia Menaul

Content Tags

Coach Supervision