Coaching for conflict resolution

I spoke about the challenging conflicts in one’s life, and tendencies and triggers that initiate them in my Propensity blog (http://yoginiteachings.wordpress.com/2014/10/12/propensity/). When a client presents a situation where there is a conflict and inclination for them to respond in a certain way; it is helpful to provide them a different perspective from the one that they have considering that we often develop farsighted vision while having the experience.

There are ways one might consider during the coaching conversation for conflict resolution. The most basic level one is to coach the individual specific to the situation around their responses. This is often demonstrated in the entry levels into the coaching and often the actions come up during the conversation are related to activities to be performed where client choses one way over the other in their responses towards the resolution of the issue outwardly. My experience revealed to me that these conversations often go in a direction towards how client can be more defensive around the conflict and how they can manage the conflict towards a win-win.

One of the deeper approaches to the situation is to invite client to reflect internally to understand what the root of the propensity is within. Where else the client is having similar conflicts in their life and to have the conversation around that. This requires more profound understanding of emotions and beliefs for the coach to guide the client through their experience. In this scenario client’s emotions and beliefs are explored for specific propensities and their response to processing them.

The final way I will present here is requires a bit of a self-reflection and spiritual advancement work at the coach’s end in order for them to take the client into such depths in their spiritual development. It is said that one cannot coach someone who is spiritually more advanced than them. By spiritually, I am not speaking about religious acts, rather one’s deeper understanding of their journey as a soul. In this conversation, the coach invites client to understand where the client is in their developmental process as a soul. The inquiries employed in such conversations will seek to understand what is the client learning in this life with the propensities they employed as a tool for such learning; how are the propensities creating certain conflicts and events for them to heal through and learn…

Of course it is always important to remember staying with the client, respect to their choices for exploration and resolution.

With joy and grace,

Tijen Genco, PCC, MS, MBB

Executive and Life Coach