As we deal with what’s going on around us it can be a real struggle to filter out the bits that are getting in the way of us making real progress. Removing these interferences is a key outcome of coaching. The great coach does not play the game for the one being coached, the great coach is not a teacher, the great coach is one who removes the interferences that are limiting the performance of the coachee; limiting the coachee’s ability to realise his or her potential; helping the coachee to make decisions which will change the way they are playing the game.

What about the interferences we face at work? Imagine having time in your work cycle to see with absolute clarity what you want to be, the change you want to lead, the difference you want to make, without the barriers thrown up by your inner self. No thoughts about the baggage of the past, no concerns about a future which may never emerge, just an interference free zone in which you and the issue are all that’s in play. Great coaching takes you to that place we’ve all heard about – being “in the zone”. It brings you into the now making the right choices and the right decisions easier. Choices made in this interference free zone will be aligned to your being, and as a result they will be so much easier to implement and have much greater impact.

Eliminating the interferences that are getting in your way right now as you bring your leadership to those around you is the deliverable of the great coach. In closing I must make reference to Tim Galwey whose book The Inner Game of Tennis is the source for much of what I’ve talked about here.