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Authors, Explore Stories and Context : Open-Ended Questions
5 of 28 big ideas from the world of coaching to grow your author business
The fifth in a 28-part series on 28 big ideas from coaching for authors to coach themselves, adapted from my book, The Coach Within.
“A story is open-ended. A story invites you into it to make your on meaning.”
— Katherine Paterson
“Deep in their roots, all flowers keep the light.”
— Theodore Roethke
Asking powerful, relevant, open-ended questions in service of the client and her agenda may be one of the most important skills a coach can cultivate, which means it is not to be underestimated for use on ourselves!
Why?
Because I said so.
Oh, is that right?
Yes.
Ask why? and you get a “because,” a reason (perhaps an accurate one, maybe not), and often a defensive posture and a defensive response.
Ask with is? or a fact-based question and you likely get a yes, no, or a fact (maybe accurate, maybe not) for an answer.
Ask an open-ended question and you get stories, exploration, context, background, musings, release, work. The…
