After five years of research, asking teachers what works really well in their classrooms, and relating what they told me to the Core Skills that are required of a Coach, I notice that there are at least a dozen distinct, interconnected coaching skills that teachers use in the classroom.

There are two ways to finance coaching, either a sponsor pays, or the client pays. Either way, there is an agenda for the coaching.

Sponsor's agenda
In cases where a sponsor is willing to pay for the coaching, they usually expect a benefit from the client being coached. Usually the sponsor has an agenda for the client. A company sponsor might want their employee to "fit in better with an existing team", "sell more than they do today", "become more healthy (lose weight / stop smoking / train more /...". A family sponsor might want their child to "have a better attitude / get better school results / eat more healthily /...".

In some cases the client has first approached the sponsor and they have come to an agreement about the coaching agenda before contacting a coach. In some cases the sponsor contacts the coach first and arranges a meeting together with the client. In some cases the client contacts the coach, creates the agenda and then a sponsor is sought.

In sponsored coaching, the coaching can only be successful when the client is in full agreement with the sponsor's agenda.


Client's agenda
When a client pays for their own coaching they are setting the agenda for themselves.

Client's own agendas can also be "fit in better with an existing team", "sell more than they do today", "become more healthy (lose weight / stop smoking / train more /...)", or "have a better attitude / get better school results / eat more healthily /...".

Often, what a client pays the coach for is to be an ally the fight against their fears, or to be a partner on their journey to a 'better' place.

The details of the agenda are created by the coach and client together. By creating a safe and courageous environment the client dares to face up to their fears and open up to the call of their dreams.

In the end
Whoever pays, the coaching can only be successful when the coach holds true to the client's agenda.