What Makes a Great Coach- the good the bad and the ugly?

This month I want to have a look at what makes a great coach.

As you can imagine, because I am a coach, the algorithms determine that I need to be pushed content from all sorts of other coaches, the good, the bad and the ugly. This is a great way for me to calibrate, find people to inspire me, improve my methods and those to put in a bloody great spook from and canter off in the other direction!

The thing to note with coaching as an industry, is that it is currently unregulated, so anyone can call themselves a coach regardless of whether they have been trained. Don’t get me wrong, there are fabulous, life-changing coaches out there and a few unscrupulous ones too, just like in any other profession.

Quality Varies Widely

The best coaches blend great quality training with real-world experience. The way this shows up, dare I say, is in someone who is a little older and can apply their training and adapt it with what life has taught them over many years. You could call it wisdom. Qualifications are all very well but applying the tools and strategies adaptably, with empathy and in the face of the rapidly changing landscape of social licence is a skill in itself.

Qualifications vs. Experience

• Qualifications – it doesn’t take long to find many different courses offered for coaching. A few have an academic level attached to them. British Equestrian and BHS offer such courses and provide a comprehensive framework. It makes sure they have reached a good standard, they are insured and have been DBS checked.
• Practical experience – what the classroom can’t teach is the practical experience that years around horses gives. Whatever your level of ambition, whether it is to get more enjoyment from your riding or be on that podium raising the trophy over your head, navigating your way through the options requires insight.
• Balance matters: the best coaches bring a blend of the tools and strategies, the practical experience and the art of asking the right questions of you to accelerate your development.

Where to find the right coach for you?

The Power of Personal Recommendation –  Nothing beats word of mouth. If you are being told by someone you trust about the difference the coach has made and you can see the results for yourself, it’s worth far more that any amount of manicured content on social media. However, what is right for one person is not necessarily right for another.

Personality Fit and Adaptability

The coaching relationship is a very close one built on rapport and trust. Great coaches are adaptable and will change their approach to suit your learning style and personality. The coach’s adaptability is key to getting the best out of you. It’s essential that when you hit a block they have a range of tools and strategies at their disposal to help you get the breakthrough you need without  leaving you feeling demotivated or disheartened.

Underpinning Knowledge & Specialisation

What might be in this toolkit that a great coach has gathered through the course of their initial training and subsequent continuing professional development?

The GROW Model (Goal, Reality, Options, Will) for example, is a foundation tool a coach will use to provide structure, so you have clarity on what outcome you are working towards.

Solution-Focused Coaching as the name suggests, this is used to overcome challenges find ways forward, rather than “admiring the problem” – as one of my coaches put it.

Sports Psychology coaches bring a scientific understanding of how to manage performance stress and build confidence.

Neuro-Linguistic Programming  done right, this is a very powerful tool for change. It focusses on how we talk and think. It allows you to become consciously aware of the subconscious drivers of your behaviour that can hold you back or sabotage your best efforts.

This is not an exhaustive list of tools and strategies available to coaches, there are many more.

Guard Against the Dark Side

So before bringing this all together, what does bad or ugly coaching look like? Some people are great riders but are not suited to coaching, others have never reached the dizzying heights of the podium and medals but have the knack of asking the just right question or spotting the one small thing that makes a huge difference.

This is also a financial relationship for most people and so the question is are you getting a return on your investment?

If working unethically, some coaches may begin to make you feel like you will not be able to progress without them, constantly highlight areas of weakness in your performance, remind you that you are fearful or anxious while encouraging to do the next (more expensive) part of the programme that never quite leaves you feeling fully like you have overcome your challenges and have significantly moved forward. A bad coach will dampen your enthusiasm.

What is the ugly? Let’s be plain, being threatened with physical violence against you or your horse, being sworn at, insulted, manhandled into a ‘correct’ position without your consent is abuse. It should never happen, no matter who it is or their reputation. This is not coaching.

Never feel like you are the only one this has happened to. All it needs is one person with the courage and support to call it out and the others will appear.

Asking the Right Questions

The secret of a great coach is that the client determines what is right for them. Coaches don’t prescribe. The fundamental premise of coaching is that the clients themselves have the answers, the coach facilitates that discovery. The key to this is the right question at the right time. This prompts insight to where conflicting beliefs, values and attitudes lurk. When you discover these incongruencies, you may feel temporarily uncomfortable. You have the opportunity to challenge and align them, providing the breakthrough that leads to profound change.

Without this, change is superficial and temporary at best, however many times you are told to do it differently or try. The skill of the coach here is to give you the space to make your own choices.

Propelling You to New Heights

Investing in coaching should accelerate your journey and fire up your enthusiasm. An outstanding coach helps you:

• Break through plateaus with fresh perspectives.
• Build resilience so a setback becomes fuel for growth.
• Expand your vision of what’s possible, both in the arena and beyond.

In short, a great coach isn’t defined solely by their certificates but by a blend of experience, adaptability, and the ability to ask the right questions at the right time. They help you chart your own path through challenges. Never making you feel “not good enough.” Instead, they empower you to build confidence and independence, helping  you achieve what you never imagined possible.

Author – Alison Sandford Mindset Coach and NLP Practitioner

If you want to find your perfect coach who will empower you to be your best and give you all of the tools and coping mechanisms you need in a fabulous supportive community then look no further. Our own membership is just the place to be.