The Art of Transformational Coaching: A Guidebook For Helping Others Heal and Transform

The world of coaching has erupted the past 20 years to become a viable and much needed profession, with hundreds of books written that teach people how to become good coaches. Most of these focus on the essentials of coaching - good listening, good inquiry, and good coaching practices. They focus on how to give advice, challenge a client, and generate business. As the coaching profession matures, so too does the sophistication of its clients. Now the people buying its services are more discerning, and the people offering must respond to the need. The Art of Transformation is such a book. It is the kind of book that comes every so often that truly rattles the cages of our understanding of what it means to be human and how to inspire and guide others to their greatest potential.At the core of the book is an exploration of the nature of personal paradigms – what causes them to emerge, get reinforced, and then solidify. The aim of this exploration is to teach a process and a set of principles that help any coach seeking to inspire fundamental and sustainable shifts in the way their clients engage in the world. Each chapter, building on the prior ones, takes the reader on a powerful journey of transformation that, in the end, helps them help their clients dislodge themselves from the beliefs, assumptions and strategies that heretofore have shaped and limited them. As part of that journey, the book inspires readers to question their assumptions about what “coaching” truly is, and to explore an alternative that bears little resemblance to what we currently call “help.” Going beyond yet incorporating notions about “guidance” or “witnessing,” or “being a sounding board,” The Art of Transformational Coaching is about “busting paradigms.” In the end, the book fundamentally changes our understanding of personal problems and their solutions. As a result of reading the book and following its guidance, the reader becomes a powerful agent of transformation for others.