Open-Ended Questions – Tools for Engagement
What a pleasant
surprise to show up at a recent Minnesota
Coaches Association meeting and see that my deck of Q? Basics, was part of the
program. The presenters greeted
attendees at the door with a basket of the open-ended questions and we were
each invited to draw a random card.
The question I drew was “What toll is this taking?” It never
fails to amaze me that the mind immediately goes in search of an answer. Even
with no context provided, I knew immediately what the question pointed to in my
life. This is the power of open-ended questions.
The meeting focused on the core coaching competencies of
trust, intimacy and presence. The presenters, Elaine Gaston and Paula Hemming,
both masterful coaches offered demo coaching. Later we all broke into dyads to
practice the coaching skills demonstrated.
So where did the Q? Basics fit in? The question we each drew
from the basket helped us reflect on some aspect of our lives that was coach
worthy – a great way to prime the pump for a demo client. This also made the
dyad coaching more powerful.
This points to three great ways to use Q? Basics, Open-ended
Questions for Coaching Mastery.
- Invite
attendees at an event, conference or expo (especially if you have a booth)
to randomly draw a question as a way to engage them in a coaching
conversation. - Draw a
question randomly when a client shows up for a session and doesn’t know
what they want to focus on. - Use as
a journal prompt, for yourself or as an exercise in a workshop.
So, just for fun – here is a random question for you to play
with;
“What do you know to be true right now?”
