Coaching Questions: A Coach's Guide to Powerful Asking Skills

This is the second time that I've ordered and read this book - and by read, I mean that I keep it handy and review it prior to my coaching sessions. I gifted a friend/coach with the first copy because she could not put it down when she came to visit me. I've also recommended it for a group of Coaches in Training (CITs) who were thrilled to have a book of questions for any coaching situation. The book is easy to read and the table of contents leads you right to where you want to go. Of course, that is usually just a starting place; you'll find yourself flipping through the rest of the pages every time! The book is a primer and the question types are handily categorized under headings such as: Life Coaching and Destiny Discovery (e.g., Dream Barriers), Advance Asking Skills (e.g., Motivation/Habit Change) and Coaching Niches (e.g., Organizational Coaching, Career Coaching, etc.). In addition to offering great questions, the author provides side-bar tips for setting up the coaching scenario and hints and tips for asking the questions effectively. Great value for a great coaching resource! Buy it!

This book is great! It's exactly what I was looking for. I'm a student currently getting my certification in Life Coaching and found this book very helpful. It is broken down into easy to read sections and provides great insight into the coach/ client relationship. Once you start learning to become a life coach you start thinking in questions, and this book has great questions throughout that are designed to enhance the conversation and bring out hidden meaning for the client. It can really can lead to some transformational thinking! I feel it's a must-have for every coach.

Stoltzfus' focus is completely process oriented. Beginning with a focus on how to engender progress through the use of powerful questions, he proceeds to build on this in a methodical way. His approach is pragmatic, and avoids any direct consideration of the larger issues that might be important in a ministry context. This is both a strength and a weakness, in my view. On the positive side, the text is single-minded in presenting the tools and materials for coaching, particularly for those desiring to pursue it as a professional career. The coaching process is presented in a very organized way, and there are practical tools and applications on every page. There is no reason for the reader to be unclear about how to apply any technique because checklists, example questions and hypothetical conversations abound. Step by step instructions are given for each phase of the coaching relationship, so that the reader can expect to jump right in to applying the methods with the book as a handy resource. On the negative side, Stoltzfus glosses over some critical issues when it comes to any discussion of spirituality, values, etc. (admittedly my own preconceptions are of the validity of the Christian worldview). Where these elements do appear, he assumes their presence and or validity in his methods. The first time this issue appears is in his Life Wheel assessment (p.33). One is left to wonder what course of action one should follow if a coachee says that God does not exist, and thus is not a consideration in identifying the important topics that coaching might address. Similarly, as values are discussed throughout the book they are assumed to both exist and be susceptible to affirmation. But anyone familiar with the world will recognize that Stoltzfus' values list (p.57) does not reflect what the world values. The most common values of wealth, power, and pleasure are underrepresented (career advancement and financial independence come closest on his list). One is left to wonder how the coaching would proceed with a coachee who requested assistance to take action in divorcing his wife for a wealthy younger woman (a hyperbolic example to illustrate the point). While one could put this book to good use, and prove a point about tools being value neutral, that does not relieve this author from the responsibility to deal with these issues.

Excellent book! Highly recommend! The author gives lots of questions to ask the client. You will highlight and dog ear many pages.

In my experience, the use of "powerful questions" is the key to exceptional executive, personal, and/or employee performance/development coaching . Mr. Stoltzfus has done an outstanding job of providing a resource to help coaches use more powerful questions and has done so in a succinct and useful fashion. I personally like how he starts at the beginning of coaching with questions to help the person being coached (coachee) set specific and relevant goals and moves through the coaching process with questions designed to help address obstacles, probe deeper, etc. Other topics such as models for coaching (e.g., Whitmore's [Coaching for Performance, 4th edition[ASIN:185788535X Coaching for Performance, 4th Edition: GROWing Human Potential and Purpose (People Skills for Professionals)] GROW model and Stoltzfus funnel model), coaching process, SMART goals, life coaching, and coaching niches. Whether an experienced coach and in training, this can be an extremely useful, practical, and valuable resource.

This is a wonderful book for beginning and experienced coaches. It is well organized and simple to follow. The book contains excellent advice and guidance for the new coach. All content is focused on the power of questions, which is the core of effective coaching. For the experienced coach, the book serves as a great refresher. In any profession, including coaching, keeping in tune with the basics always has value. When a session doesn't go as well as the coach hoped, picking up this book afterward can provide the right kind of fuel to use a different perspective for the next coaching conversation. Thanks to Tony for investing his time to create such a useful resource.

This book is great for coaches just starting out or for those that would like an abundance of questions. The content itself is OK and they questions are separated into specific areas of interest or niches. The questions are very thought provoking and I would recommended any coaches that purchase the book to answer the questions themselves. This way they will have a sense of what their clients will experience. Gregg Swanson Mental Strength Coach [...]

I really enjoy using this book in my coaching and training business. I like the layout of the paperback book and the tons of questions that can be adapted to any coaching subject area. It is evident that the author has experience in coaching and I love that I have access to such a powerful resource to add to my library. As a coach it is important to differentiate between asking and telling. This book presents great methods for listening and asking to enhance your coaching skills and your client's overall experience. I would highly recommend this as an added resource for anyone interested in coaching or anyone who is currently coaching. The book arrived as scheduled and I have no cons related to this purchase.

This is a slim, succinct but very practical and focussed reference book. It is so easy to consult to refresh your awareness of different coaching techniques, styles and questions just before a session. Highly recommended.

Quick refresher or reference for coaching questions

If you're an aspiring coach and would like to improve your skill of asking powerful questions, this is an excellent resource. If you aren't a coach, you'll still enjoy learning the art of asking thought provoking questions to help people see a different side of their situation. Want to help people change their lives? Own your copy right away.

Libro molto pratico e di facile lettura. Utile su alcuni modelli di coaching e su domande potenti, utilizzabili in diverse circostanze. Carino su alcuni trabocchetti e suggerimenti su come essere maggiormente efficaci nelle sessioni di coaching.lo consiglio Giada

Me gusta como está estructurados en temas, simplifica el uso tanto para coach como para uso tuyo. Viene con muchos ejemplos, es muy práctico. Muy fácil de seguir incluso por personas con poco cococimiento previo de coaching. Es ideal para aprender a hacer preguntas poderosas. El tamaño es tipo atlas, aunque delgado.