Book Review

Liz Adams reviews ............

Coach Yourself

by Anthony M Grant & Jane Greene

Published by Pearson Education Ltd 2001
ISBN 1843 040131 Price: £15

From the moment I saw this book, I was drawn to read it, and once started I was reluctant to put it down. One of the delights is that it is so well structured. Slightly unconventional in format, it is not that it is "gimmicky" but the design supports the content and one's own learning. I felt as if it was written with me the reader in mind.

The purpose of the book is to provide a self-help course in coaching. There is a wealth of supporting information, by way of summaries of relevant research, mini case studies and stimulating quotes from world leaders and thinkers.

The authors are concerned to present supporting research to demonstrate that their methods really work - but this is done with a light touch so it never interferes with the main messages. And if you are keen on "evidence based" learning, you might find these occasional references helpful.

In the first two chapters there are clear explanations as to why we might need coaching, what coaching is about, and what it is not about (i.e. it is not psychotherapy or counselling). In the following chapters there are explanations and illustrations of key concepts and each chapter takes the reader through a major step in the coaching process, with relevant tools and techniques explained clearly at each stage.

There is a chapter on co-coaching, and the last chapter sets out in summary a life-coaching programme. I liked the way that the steps in the last chapter correspond to the numbering of the previous chapters, so for instance step 4 "creating dreams" relates to chapter 4 in the book, headed - "hopes and dreams" - "what do you really want"? This makes it easy to check back for more detail.

The book works well if you like to dip in, as I do - although I did get round to reading it from start to finish. The authors bring a wealth of personal commercial and academic experience to their writing, and these elements shine through. I found it both an excellent coaching manual and a thought-provoking good read.

If you would like to review a book you have read - send it to czeditor@changezone.co.uk