When it comes to coaching, there are five main styles that are used to help clients reach their goals. Each style has its own advantages, disadvantages, and uses, and it's important to understand all of them. The democratic coaching style is often regarded as the most empowering. It places more control in the hands of the client, while the coach provides the momentum and support needed to achieve tangible objectives.
This style is best for clients who are prepared to take responsibility and require less labor. It is ideal for financial advice, professional training, and personal growth training. The autocratic coaching style is quite different. It puts authority in the hands of the coach and directs the client to the desired results and success.
This style should be used when the coach has the experience and knowledge needed to dictate the conditions. The bureaucratic coaching style follows a more old school approach and is more driven by processes and systems. It is adopted for organizational training in disciplined and regulated environments that require a non-negotiable approach to compliance and processes, such as government and public sector bodies. The holistic coaching style focuses on the overall growth of the person, giving equal importance to all aspects of the client's life.
The coach's job is to ask the right questions and provide support and encouragement. This style is best when the client seeks to create lasting results in their life in general: mind, body, spirit, and community. The development coaching style involves understanding your client's “what”, “why”, and “how”. The coach uses 360-degree feedback and questions to understand the client's past experiences and assess where they are in their development journey.
This style takes into account the client's age, mental age, and thought processes. The transformational coaching, also called life coaching or change of perspective coaching, helps the client make necessary changes to drive positive change. Coaches who practice mindful coaching help their clients focus their mental and emotional energies in a line of thinking without distractions. It's based on the leader you train having good social and communication skills (since constructive feedback is important in this leadership style).
Finally, visual coaching requires healthy dialogue and the coach's role is to encourage the client to adopt visualization techniques. It's important to note that there are many other types of training styles in management, as well as completely different approaches to management that are not based on a training mentality. A coaching style represents how you interact with your clients, how you guide them through a coaching session, and how you structure your commitment. The most successful coaches will also ask their employees questions to encourage brainstorming and problem solving. A practical 100-page manual with powerful questions that world-class coaches use can help catalyze profound moments and transformations in their clients. Whatever your experience, it's very possible that your training style (the way you work with your clients) will change over time as you evolve as a human being and as a coach.
