The Art of Coaching Workbook Tools to Make Every Conversation Count

A practical guide for getting the most out of The Art of Coaching

The Art of Coaching Workbook is the resource you’ve been waiting for to accompany Elena Aguilar’s The Art of Coaching. Ideal for new and novice coaches, as well as for those who have years of coaching under their belt, this workbook will help you improve your coaching skills.

This vital companion text includes:

• Dozens of activities to help you internalize the concepts described in The Art of Coaching
• Exercises to guide you in identifying your own coaching beliefs, style, and practices
• Short and lengthy transcripts of coaching conversations
• Additional examples of key concepts in The Art of Coaching, including the Ladder of Inference and the Coaching Lenses
• New ideas and information that build on those in The Art of Coaching 

This workbook is also for those who lead and manage coaches. An entire chapter is dedicated to structures, routines, and practices that are easy to implement in professional development sessions. In addition, a new Transformational Coaching Rubric and other tools for assessment and reflection are included. If you aspire to provide meaningful learning for coaches, and you already have The Art of Coaching, this workbook is all you’ll need.

ELENA AGUILAR is the bestselling author of The Art of Coaching, The Art of Coaching Teams, Onward, and Coaching for Equity. She is also founder and president of Bright Morning Consulting, an international education, coaching and consulting firm. Her expertise derives from twenty years as a classroom teacher and educational coach.

Introduction xiii

Welcome xiii

Eavesdropping on a Transformational Coaching Conversation xviii

Introducing the Three Bs xxiii

Presenting the Three Buckets xxviii

Pause. Breathe. Reflect. xxx

1 Figuring Out Who You Want to Be 1

Who Am I As a Coach? 1

Identifying Core Values 3

The Things That Get Under My Skin 7

Understanding Personality Types 9

Exploring Identity Markers 16

Celebrating Strengths 20

How Do I Learn? 22

2 Defining Coaching 25

Analogies for Coaching 26

What Is Transformational Coaching? 29

Coaching Behaviors, Beliefs, and Ways of Being 33

Toward a Coaching Mission and Vision 37

How to Get Clarity from Your Boss About What You’re Supposed to Do 40

Creating Coaching Mantras 44

Toward a Definition of Coaching 48

Creating a Coaching Manifesto 51

Depicting Your Role 53

3 Understanding How to Coach Beliefs 55

The Iceberg Principle: Examining Beliefs That Lurk Below the Surface 56

Which Comes First—Beliefs Change or Behavior Change? 59

The Ladder of Inference in Action 64

The Ladder of Inference Questioning Strategies 71

Exploring Beliefs About Equity 76

Reflecting on Educational Philosophies 78

4 Unpacking the Coaching Lenses 83

A Story About a Teacher Who Just Wanted to Plan 84

Putting on the Lenses 87

Yes, You Can Use the Coaching Lenses 108

The Key Assumptions and Questions 109

Looking at Yourself Through the Lenses 111

One Last Thing 115

5 Beginning a Successful Coaching Relationship 119

Designing a Plan to Build Trust 120

The Transformational Coach’s Way of Being 124

Reflecting on Trust 133

Exploring Your Client’s Identity Markers 135

Coaching Across Lines of Difference 138

How to Create a Coaching Agreement 142

How to Build Even More Trust 145

An Initial Coaching Conversation 150

6 Enjoying the Exploration Stage 155

The Exploration Project Plan 156

Collecting Data: Reflecting on Our Own Attitudes 159

Knowing Your Community: Shadowing

a Student for a Day 161

Knowing Your Community: Understanding School Culture 165

Knowing Your Community: Classroom Learning Walks 168

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7 Assembling Your Basic Coaching Toolbox 171

How to Structure a Coaching Cycle 173

How to Focus a Coaching Cycle 178

Three Goals in a Coaching Conversation 181

The Arc of a Coaching Conversation 184

The Spheres of Influence 187

Using the Spheres of Influence in Coaching 190

Strengths‐Based Coaching 193

Mind the Gap 196

What to Say When You’re Stuck: Survival Coaching Phrases 201

Transformational Coaching Stems 204

The Core Emotions 209

Filling Up Your Toolbox 213

8 Deepening Your Listening Skills 217

Who I Am as a Listener 219

Quiet Listening 221

Reflective Listening 224

Honing Your Intuition 230

Exploring Mental Detours 232

Listening to Your Own Listening 236

Nonverbal Communication:

Focusing on Ourselves 240

Nonverbal Communication:

Understanding Our Clients 243

When You Get Triggered 247

Common Mistakes Coaches Make in Conversations 251

Six Tips That Will Transform the Texture of Your Conversations 255

9 Practicing Facilitative Coaching Conversations 257

(Re)Introducing the Coaching Stances 258

Why Deal with Emotions? 261

What Is an Emotion? 265

The Cycle of an Emotion 267

Using the Supportive Approach 271

Using the Cathartic Approach 275

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Using the Catalytic Approach 279

Practicing Facilitative Coaching Approaches 283

When to Use One Approach or Another 289

Attending to Your Own Emotions 292

Wrapping Up the Facilitative Stance 295

10 Exploring Facilitative Coaching Activities 297

Coaching Around Core Values 298

The Legacy Question 303

Questions to Elicit Symbolic Thinking 306

Using Visualization and Guided Imagery 309

Using the Body to Access and Shift Emotions 311

When Finding Strengths Is Challenging 314

Did I Make a Mistake Becoming a Coach? 318

11 Practicing Directive Coaching Conversations 321

Using the Confrontational Approach 322

Using the Informative Approach 326

Using the Prescriptive Approach 329

Identifying Limited Mental Models 333

Using Confrontational Coaching to Interrupt Limited Mental Models 338

Shifting Out of Victimhood 344

Practicing Directive Coaching Approaches 348

Wrapping Up the Directive Stance 354

12 Exploring Directive Coaching Activities 357

Conversations About Data 358

Observing Teachers 364

Observing Leaders 368

Teacher-Student Interaction Tool 371

Using Video with Teachers 379

Analyzing Student Work 384

Using a Gradual Release Model and Scaffolding Learning 390

13 Transformational Technical Tips 397

Planning for a Coaching Conversation 399

Preparing Yourself for a Coaching Conversation 404

From Planning to Practice: The Coaching Conversation 406

Reflecting on a Coaching Conversation 408

The Intersection Between Organizational Systems and Educational Equity 410

Designing Your Work Life: Setting Priorities 416

Setting Up for Virtual Coaching 420

Making the Most of Virtual Coaching: Identifying Opportunities and Needs 422

If You Feel Stuck Getting Started 424

14 Planning for Ongoing Learning 427

Using the Transformational Coaching Rubric 429

Analyzing Your Coaching Conversations 432

Analyzing Someone Else’s Coaching Conversation 434

Coaching the Three Bs 438

Gathering Feedback on Your Coaching 440

The Conscious Competence Ladder 443

Focal Person Reflection Tool 446

15 Facilitating Professional Development for Coaches 451

Protocols to Guide Your Learning 452

Preparing for Role‐Playing 454

Role‐Play Protocol 458

Coaching Role‐Play Scenarios 460

Consultancy Protocol 465

Artifact Analysis Protocol 469

Text Discussion Protocol 471

Being Present Protocols 473

Sample 1‐Hour Professional Development Sessions 475

Sample Multihour Professional Development Sessions 482

Concluding and Celebrating 491

Acknowledgments 495

About the Author 497

Appendix A: Transformational Coaching Rubric (TCR) 2.0 499

Domain 1: Strategic Design and Planning 500

Domain 2: Listening 501

Domain 3: Thinking 502

Domain 4: Responding 503

Domain 5: Coach’s Beliefs About Self and Client 505

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Domain 6: Coaching for Equity 506

Domain 7: Coach’s Emotional Intelligence 509

Domain 8: Coach’s Dispositions 511

Appendix B: The Phases of Transformational Coaching 513

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