Today I field an enquiry about coaching from a reader of my postings on a forum for fellow professionals. I remember her vividly even though we have never met – I was touched to receive a card from her a few months back telling me how much she enjoyed my writing. It didn’t escape me that she’d gone to the trouble of going to my website to get hold of my address in order to send me a card. Her card also prompted me to reflect on my love of writing and to begin to explore it more consciously. This blog is one fruit of that conscious exploration.

I take time to respond to her e-mail and it occurs to me to include a testimonial from a client with whom I have recently finished working. I have a sense of a handing over of some metaphorical baton – from a client with whom my work is complete (at least for now) to someone who may or may not become a client in the future.

Working as a coach, my life is populated with such beginnings, middles and endings. It always gives me joy when I hear from someone who is considering investing in coaching – whether or not I end up working with them as a result, their reaching out marks a moment of decision, a first step towards some outcome that they yearn for and in which they want to invest. Such reaching out also marks a step into the unknown – an unknown which, in my experience, often goes way beyond anything people imagine in advance.

What can I say about my coaching “middles”? Many of my clients are senior leaders working in corporations. Some are fellow coaches. A few are fellow entrepreneurs. All are human beings. The dryest of business goals quickly give way to something more personal – the highs, the lows, the times of feeling stuck, the times of moving forward, the times of breakthrough and momentum. Oftentimes, such close teamwork brings me an enormous sense of privilege.

And what about the endings? These are a time to review progress and to formulate a forward path. To do this is often to sit up and take notice of – to celebrate – the progress that has been made. They are a time to mark the completion of a phase of coaching. This is not always welcome: some clients somehow never quite make time to book a final meeting, as if to do so is to recognise that yes, our coaching is over. Sometimes an ending gives way, in time, to some new beginning as former clients return to resume our work together.

Beginnings, middles, endings… I celebrate them all.

Whilst some coaching clients infinitely prefer to meet face to face, today I speak with clients who prefer to speak by phone. This has many benefits all round – our calls are condensed and productive and nobody spends any time travelling. What’s more, our calls today are timed so that I have time to walk to Blackheath at lunchtime, adding 4,000 steps to my daily target of 10,000 minimum.

As I walk I savour the privilege that comes from working with clients one to one. I think how much it would inspire others to be, like me, a witness to the work my clients do through coaching. I think also of the tight confidentiality agreement I have with my clients and make a mental note to alert my clients to this blog and to remind them of my commitment to our confidentiality agreement.

Still, recognising the way we are inspired by the experiences of others, I also start to play with asking for permission: what will it be like when I say, “if you’re willing to allow me to share it, I’d like to say something about your experience on my blog”?