Supervision – somewhere to put things down.
Coaching can sometimes be a very challenging profession for me. I hear all my clients’ secrets and hurts, fears and dreams. I share their joy and their sadness, their triumphs and their defeats. And then I go home and can’t share it with anyone.
Part of my contract with my clients is absolute confidentiality from me. It doesn’t matter if what I hear is awful or awesome, I need to keep it to myself.
That is why it is so important for me to have a safe and confidential space to go and share my own experience of the coaching process. A place to make sense of what I have heard, what I have felt, and how I have responded. A place to put down the awful and celebrate the awesome.
A place called Supervision.
Therapists and Counselors are expected to have regular sessions (called Supervision) with a more experienced therapist or counselor. These Supervision sessions are designed to help the therapist by casting a new and different pair of eyes and ears on the cases they are working with. Together, the supervisor and supervisee discuss any blocks, blind-spots or challenges the therapist may be experiencing with his or her clients. In this way, the therapist is supported and assisted to think about their work in different ways, and their clients are supported by the additional experience and attention of the Supervisor.
Although Supervision is not yet as formal a requirement for coaches, I am a big believer in the power and value of Supervision for myself. For all the reasons mentioned above – and more. My regular sessions with my supervisor help me to be the best coach that I can be, and are the best investment I make for myself and for my clients.
This is also why I offer Supervision to the coaches that I have trained (and others); because I know that training stops when the programme ends, but Supervision ensures that the learning continues.
Feeling overwhelmed in your life, work or relationships?
- Purchase one of my self-study online courses.
Tags: coach | coach the coach | coaching | learning | put things down | supervision | support
Subscribe to Real Life Coaching
For email notifications about new blogs I publish, click here.
- “I have seen various psychologists and therapists but none of them have the skill of Judy in being able to relate to me and the way I think about things.”
- “Judy, you have given me the tools to change and move my life in directions I never knew possible. I am truly grateful for your help.”
- “Perception is everything and working with Judy has helped me realise my true potential by changing my outlook of life into more positive ones. I enjoy walking out of a life coaching session feeling like I am in control again, less stressed and more energetic.”
- “Judy is my go-to person when I find myself uncertain about how to interpret the signposts in my life. Her insights and ability to draw out what lies deepest inside have helped provide clarity and integrity at pivotal life moments over many years.”
- “I’d recommend Judy to anyone who’s feeling stuck, weary, confused, discouraged, uncertain, in need of support – basically, I’d recommend her to any carbon-based life form that breathes oxygen and would like to have a wonderful life.”
As seen on and in
