How Coaching Cubes Support the Coaching Process
The aim of coaching is to develop an individual’s own resourcefulness. Coaching helps someone stuck in their thinking or unsure of their ability or hesitant to seize an opportunity, as well as those grappling with a challenge or feeling puzzled and confused. Coaching helps them develop their own answers and their own way forward. One of most effective techniques to help someone develop their own thinking is to ask them questions. Good questions prompt new thoughts, bring previous experiences to bear on present dilemmas, shed new light on the issue, and prompt plans for action. This Coaching Cube set introduces 36 carefully worded and targeted questions suitable for use in any coaching situation.
Introduction to the Coaching Cubes
The Coaching Cubes are designed to be used and rolled as dice. They are squidgy, robust, and bright, bringing a fun, tactile, and colourful edge to the coaching process. Each coloured cube is themed as below.
The Green cube explores the positive aspects of someone’s work and life, positively affecting perspective and mood.
The Blue cube identifies peopleimportant to the situation, stimulating context-aware thinking.
The Orange cube creates shifts in perspectiveto throw new light on the topic, revealing new insights and possibilities for action.
ThePink cube illuminates ideas, values and energy, the powerhouse for energised possibilities
The Purple cube creates movement,facilitating energised action
The Red cube clarifies first steps, thebeginning of feasible, effective, motivated and energised change.
Using your Coaching Cubes
The cubes are designed to be versatile. Here are seven suggestions for how and when you can use the Coaching Cubes to add value to the coaching process
1) To Support the Coaching Process from beginning to end
The cubes can be used to shape a whole coaching session from ‘exploring the positives’ with the Green cube right though to ‘deciding on actions’ with the Red cube. Alternatively, at any point in the conversation they can be used separately or all together, revealing a choice of 1-6 questions at each ‘throw’.
2) To facilitate Self-Coaching
Want to work on an issue of your own? Roll a cube and answer the question, roll another. Make notes on the thinking and ideas generated as you go. You will soon experience a shift in your thinking and new ways forward will begin to appear.
3) To help someone relax into the process
Perhaps you are working with someone who finds the intensity of one-to-one coaching uncomfortable. Using the cubes as dice gives them something to handle and focus on, while lessening the requirement for eye contact.
4) To promote ownership of the process
Actively involve the person you are working with. Let them select which dice to roll or question to answer to encourage active participation and engagement.
5) To support Peer Coaching or Coaching skills training
The coaching cubes offer an instant resource to inexperienced or trainee coaches. One of the hardest coaching skills to learn is that of developing generative questions. By using the cubes the participants can access thirty-six useful questions.
6) To get a session moving again
If the conversation runs into a dead end, roll all the dice, look at the six questions together and ask your client ‘which of these are you most drawn to engage with right now?’ and pretty soon you will find yourself back in a productive place.
7) To move on from ‘Why don’t you’, ‘yes but’ conversations
Even the most experienced coaches occasionally find themselves being drawn into this unfruitful exchange. Break the cycle by rolling the dice and asking questions that don’t contain any advice!