One of the biggest challenges coaches face is getting their clients to take action toward their goals; these coaching tips will help you hold your clients accountable.  Each of these tips for coaching lay the foundation to truly be effective in getting people to do what they know they need to do.

Tips For Coaching: Realize Most Clients Will Try to Get Away With Doing Less than They are Capable of Doing

Coaching Tips #1:  Realize that most people are sandbaggers when it comes to committing to action.  Tips for coaching and holding people accountable will not be powerful unless you realize when it comes to commitments, most people will promise to do five when they know they can do at least ten.  When they show up to their next call, they are certain you’ll be excited that they did seven and exceeded their commitment.  Not exactly powerful when you stop and think about it.

Tips for Coaching; Ask Your Client to Reach Higher

Coaching Tips #2:  Challenge people to stretch.  Coaching is about possibilities.  When your client tells you they will complete a project three months from now that you feel could be completed sooner, call them on it.  This tip for coaching is about following your intuition.  Don’t settle for less.

Tips for Coaching: Don’t Let Your Client Set Themselves up for Failure

Coaching Tips #3:  Watch out for over-promisers.  These are the clients who will set themselves up for failure by committing to do more than is possible.  These people love to feel significant in the moment they make the commitment, but then pay the price later when they “fail.”  Make sure you don’t allow your clients to follow this pitfall when you are using the above two tips for coaching.

Tips for Coaching: Let Your Client Know You Are Going to Follow Up With Them

Coaching Tips #4:  Make sure your clients know you plan to follow up with their commitments.  That means don’t step over anything that they commit to.  More specific tips on coaching include asking your clients explicitly when they plan to complete the commitment, make sure it’s on their calendar, and call you when it’s completed.

Tips for Coaching: Be Accountable to Yourself

Coaching Tips #5:  Make sure you are following through on your own commitments.  This tip on coaching is not just that it’s much easier to let things slide when you are being let off the hook.  It’s that you don’t want anyone pushing your buttons and triggering you into an emotional reaction.  The key to holding someone accountable is to be completely there for your client, and leaving your own stuff at home.

Hope you took some great value out of this post today! I’d love to hear your feedback, so make sure you leave a comment with your thoughts or questions. And also, you can click on the Twitter button below to retweet this article… Thank you!

Colette Seymann

JTS Advisors Bi-Designated Strategy and Accountability Coach