In Coaching, a Gift in the Pause

Writer Sara Novic is a member of the deaf community. In her New York Times essay "Silence Brought Me Community and an Escape," she describes the gifts borne from the silence she experiences -- one being, specifically, having "a buffer between the self and the overwhelming day." 

Today's learners are bombarded with information, media, and data at nearly every moment of the day -- sometimes unwittingly, and other times by design. Having a cell phone available 24/7, as is the case for most students, often prompts the choice to fill time and consciousness with content -- music, podcasts, videos, and more. With the access we've gained to media of every possible type, we've lost the regular appearance of downtime and quiet time that was a regular feature of life before the Information Age.

One of coaching's gifts is the opportunity for students to find what comes to the surface in silence. When a coach hands a student an open-ended question that has no clear answer, the student may be a bit thrown off, and perhaps even uncomfortable with the need to think. The coach can help by encouraging the student to take their time, or perhaps commenting on how ideas can emerge from taking quiet time to allow thoughts to come to the surface. 

Coaches often find silence uncomfortable themselves. if this happens to you, use the time to tune into your coachee, and see what you notice. As Novic says, "Embrace silence, or at least some time without constant content consumption. You might even slip into boredom long enough to hear what your mind is saying." As silence opens possibility, new and productive ideas may have the chance to emerge.