44 A COMPARATIVE STUDY ON COACHING IN BUDDHIST AND WESTERN PSYCHOLOGY TO CREATE A SUSTAINABLE  SOCIETY

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A COMPARATIVE STUDY ON COACHING IN BUDDHIST AND WESTERN PSYCHOLOGY TO CREATE A SUSTAINABLE  SOCIETY

 

by Ven. Raniswala Sunanda*

ABSTRACT

The objective of this research is to make a comparative analy- sis on coaching presented in Buddhism and Western Psychology with the aim to provide guidance to create a sustainable society. Coaching means helping someone to help oneself by way of finding solutions to one’s own problems and thereby helping to be aware of oneself. Coaching is a form of development in which a person called a coach supports a learner or client in achieving a specific per- sonal or professional goal by providing training and guidance. The learner is sometimes called a coachee.

The Buddha was capable of using more intuitive and insightful knowledge of coaching. His compassionate words have been signif- icant in helping to achieve the individual aims of a person and He has shown the secure place for a better life. Buddhist coaching is not limited to the time of the Buddha but His Disciplinary Codes provide guidance to the whole mankind for a sustainable society. The self-coaching system of Buddhism is very fruitful for the entire mankind.

According to Western Psychology, self-centred listening, em- phatic listening and intuitive listening help in entering into the

* B.A (Hons), M. A(Thailand) M.A(Sri Lanka) M.A(Malaysia), Royal Pandith
Certified Professional Coach (ICF-ACTP ).Lecturer, Buddhist & Pali University Institute Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

 

mind of people who have obstacles to reach to the expected goal of life by using four organs ear, eye, heart and head. The coach can direct coachee’s inner world.

There are many similarities and differences in coaching between the Buddhist and Western Psychology. They will be analysed in this research in order to identify the ways of proper coaching to create a sustainable society in the present globe.

INTRODUCTION

Thepurposeofthisarticleistomakeacomparativestudybetween Western Psychology coaching and Buddhist Psychology coaching to create a sustainable society. Psychology which is combined with coaching practice leads to analytical mind status of the coachee and to guide Coach to understand variety of individuals. According to Western Psychology, deep listening, Emphatic listening and Intuitive listening help in entering into the mind of a person who has obstacles reaching an expected goal in life. This is also known as Corporate Coach Academy (CCA, 2015 p.18) Through the four channels of the Ear (through listening skill i.e. tone, voice), the Eye (overall body language) the Heart and the Head (not merely understand the presenting issue but the root cause challenge i.e. iceberg view – the emotional needs), hence, the coach can attempt to direct the Coachee’s inner world (CCA, 2015 p.7).

Buddhist psychology teaches how to use various methods for the deep calmness, sereneness and clarity through the practice of meditation deep mindfulness and awareness (sati) that allow direct insight and clear knowledge in coaching others. Loving kindness (mettā) and compassionate (karunā) words used by the Buddha in various occasions significantly applicable to modern psychology teachings. The Buddha was very careful in helping to achieve the individual aims of the many who came to him and He has shown the secure place for a better life. Buddhist coaching is not only limited to the life-time of the Buddha, but His Suttās (one part of Buddha’s Teaching) and Disciplinary Codes continue to provide guidance to the whole of mankind for a sustainable society since. Therefore, both teachings Buddhist and western psychology collectively contribute much guidelines for a better world by creating perfect

 

individuals. Within this context special attention will be paying to illuminate psychological coaching methods used in Buddhism 2500 over years before. Findings of this study, considerably will improve modern coaching methods.

WHAT IS SUSTAINABLE SOCIETY?

Sustainable society is one of the eminent topics discussed in the socio-economic field in the world today. The term sustainable society is defined by Wikipedia as one that possesses the following characteristics:

An ecologically literate society, which has the ability to understand the natural systems that make life on earth possible, guided by the understanding the principles of organization of ecological communities (i.e. ecosystems) and using those principles for creating sustainable human communities.

A society rooted in environmentalism, non-violence, social justice, and grassroots, an aim of green politics defined as a political ideology that aims to create an ecologically sustainable society rooted in environmentalism, nonviolence, social justice and grassroots democracy.

A society striving for sustainability where sustainability is the process of maintaining change in a balanced environment, in which the exploitation of resources, the direction of investments, the orientation of technological development and institutional change are all in harmony and enhance both current and future potential to meet human needs and aspirations (Wikipedia).

SIGNIFICANCE OF THIS PAPER

The findings and information on the effectiveness of coaching in the fields of Western Psychology and Buddhist Psychology in the creation of a sustainable society are very important taking into consideration that coaching represents an essential step in learning. This paper therefore highlights how the benefits of effective coach- ing can be harnessed and integrated into the Western and Buddhist psychology in the creation of a sustainable society which in turn benefits people as a whole. Since there is a lack of research with findings on the role of coaching in both Western Psychology and

 

Buddhist Psychology in the creation of a sustainable society, this research outcome will provide much support for the modern schol- ars for further studies.

WHAT IS THE MEANING OF COACHING?

According  to  the  description  given  in  Wikipedia,  coaching  is a form of development in which a person called a Coach supports a learner or client in achieving a specific personal or professional goal by providing training and guidance. The learner is sometimes called a Coachee. Occasionally, coaching may mean an informal relationship between two people, of whom one has more experience and expertise than the other and offers advice and guidance as the latter learns; but coaching differs from mentoring in focusing on specific tasks or objectives, as opposed to more general goals or overall development. Generally, Coaching is defined as “A deep learning partnership that supports people to achieve their goals in the most fulfilling way through raising their self-awareness to gain courage, commitment and capabilities” (CCA, 2015p.7).

According to the definitions given on the concept of coaching, coaching itself cannot be explained in a brief way. This field of study highly supports people to achieve their goals, in the most fulfilling way, through their own self-awareness to gain courage, commitment and capabilities. As such, for a bitter person, once successfully coached, the positive results are limitless. It is clear therefore, that the coaching system does not depend on theoretical background but its total power comes out from the mind of the person (knowledge and experience) who seeks to reach the bigger purpose of his or her life. It is not an issue for the outer mind - it’s an inner game.

Coaching is discipline that has been deployed for more than 200 years to boost the extraordinary performance of people in sports where they can tap into their hidden potentials to attain break through results of even higher levels of performance, all in the face of fierce competition and challenges. In the late 90’s, coaching has broken into the non-sports activities worldwide, and has since become available to support anyone in any facet of their lives including Corporate Coach Academy. (CCA, 2015 p.6).

 

A coach needs to have emotional competencies in order to have the ability to understand and manage his own deep-seated emotions, thoughts, ideas, motives, perception and judgments. Other coaching competencies include establishing trust with clients, establish coaching presence, have good listening and sensing skills, impactful questioning techniques, direct communication and managing conflict skills, critical thinking skills, action learning, goal oriented, managing process and accountability. (Low, J. Y. F. and Arthayukit 2007. P. 17).

The coach works on finding ways to raise a positive inner voices of the coachee through the use of affirmation, acknowledging the emotions, assurances and challenging their beliefs system, perception and assumptions. The coach exceeds when the coachee is able to remove her informal behaviours or negative feelings and practices. Coaching is known to be a more powerful tool in accelerating people to achieve their goal. In fact, other interventions do not seem to make as much improvements on mental reforming.

Although, the coach can help a coachee in many ways, he should never try to achieve this by controlling, taking advantage or compelling on him/her to another level of the mind. Modern psychologists have tried their level best in brooding the inner power of a person who needs helping hand and correct guideline to avoid breaching the professional ethical values.

BUDDHIST PSYCHOLOGY COACHING

The Buddha was not only a religious teacher but also a greatest Psychologist, Psychotherapist, Counselor and Coach. He had consoled many individuals from every walk of life - normal and abnormal persons. His teachings provide prominent guidelines for the full contentment for the whole of mankind. Its teaching can be divided into two:
The Philosophy of Lifestyle. (Jīvanadassana)

The Emancipation from all Types of Suffering. (Vimuttidassana) (Sunanda. R.1995, p.76)

The Buddha’s duty was to help people to eradicate their all problems, barriers, hindrances, difficulties or whatever they feel as

 

negative emotions. Buddhism arose in the world in the 6th century BC. At that time, there were no English terms like coaching, counseling etc. The Pali equivalent terms for coaching and counseling can be ‘upadisati, (Davids Rhys 1921, p. 161) anusāsati, (Davids Rhys 1921, p.52) mantanāti, (Davids Rhys 1921, p. 581) ovadati.’ (Davids Rhys 1921, p. 580) These terms give almost same meaning as ‘giving instruction, counseling or coaching.’ Although there are many explanations of the term ‘coaching’, but the aim of both - the secular and Buddhist coaching are to help people overcome their problems. The self-coaching system of Buddhism is clearly included in teaching of the Buddha. Modern psychology term “ Client” is the equal in Pāli term Yogāvacara which means
, one who practices spiritual exercise. (Davids Rhys 1921, p. 621). The modern psychologists tried to interpret the ancient popular techniques in different words and terms from their own. But the method the Buddha used is still relevant to all challenges and problems that the modern confused man faces today in this confused society.

The final goal of Buddha’s teaching is to be free from the sphere of existence or eliminate the suffering. Human beings must undergo practices following the correct way of thinking, understanding and practicing. This is the moral observation of all Buddhist followers. Buddhist attitude on psychology depends on the whole behaviour of the mind. When the mind runs astray, the individual life of a person begins to deteriorate. Buddhist psychology teaches how to understand the shortcomings of the mind through a person’s self- analyzing power.

Furthermore, Buddhist teachings show how the Buddha continued his coaching system within the 45 years of his spiritual voyage. Some of his followers came to him in the most difficult hours of their lives. Some of them wanted to find the person who can make them totally free from all types of suffering and loss.

Coaching system followed by the Buddha to guide with correct path to Kisāgotamiī, (Gnānobhāsa M. 2008 p.236) Anguliumāla, (Gnānobhāsa M. 2008 p. 359) Patācārā, (Gnānobhāsa M. 2008 p.233) Culla Pantaka Thero (Gnānobhāsa M. 2008 p.48) show how they benefited by the Buddha with his more intuitive and

 

insightful knowledge of coaching. The Buddha used many kind words without any compelling to achieve the individual aims of a person, but he has always shown the clear path to a secure place/or a better life.

Buddhist coaching is not limited to the time of the Buddha; it continues till today with the emphasis of Buddha, Dharma and SanghawhereSanghaandtheco-disciplesaremutuallysupportiveto enable the continued learning of Buddha teaching. His disciplinary codes (vinaya) can guide the whole of mankind forever.

WHY IS BUDDHIST PSYCHOLOGY COACHING IMPORTANT IN CREATING A SUSTAINABLE SOCIETY?

Buddhist way of psychology coaching depends on four types of basic teachings. (Sunanda. Rev.2017, p6).

Reflecting and knowing one’s own weak points (through mind- fulness and self-reflection)

Understanding the main reason caused for the issue (the condi- tion that resulted the “cause and effect”)

Realizing that there is a solution for the problem or Buddhist way of problem solving skill (the Four Noble Truth – have the in- sight of understanding the following (i) Dukkha – the truth of suf- fering = Problem; (ii) Samudaya – the origin of suffering = what is the root cause of the problem; (iii) Nirodha – Cessation of suffer- ing = by understand the root cause of the problem, we are able to resolve them and to achieve our set goals; (iv) Magga – the path to the cessation of suffering = by understand the root cause of the problem, we are able to find other alternatives and solutions to- wards the problem).

Gradual practice to achieve the final goal – the importance of Mindfulness training where this training allows us to “check-in” to our body and understand how our breathing changes in conjunc- tion with the emotional change. This practice allows greater aware- ness of ourselves and how our thoughts, the dynamic and engage- ment with the external environment and challenges triggers the change in our emotions.
The  excellent  coaching  skills  of  the  Buddha  in  creating  a

 

sustainable society are evident in the Pāli Canon, where the Buddha provided inspiring Dhamma talks and coaching to lay people, the monastics and the devas on ways to live harmoniously with good moral values and virtues, through avoiding evil, practising generosity, supported by right livelihood, respect for elders and family members, supporting one’s family, and to cultivate positive traits such as humility and being grateful. Such excellent qualities taught by the Buddha through his wonderful coaching skills are essential and integral in creating a society that is orderly, peaceful, economically self-sufficient supported by good moral values and the eradication of evil actions.

In this regard, the Buddha’s excellent coaching and teaching can be evidenced from the Mangala Sutta in Khuddaka nikāya with Buddha’s utterance is summarized as follows, where the Buddha taught and coached a deva on how one should live in order to generate the greatest blessings:

“Not to associate with the foolish, but to associate with the wise; and to honor those who are worthy of honor, to reside in a suitable locality to have done meritorious actions in the past and to set oneself in the right course, to have much learning, to be skillful in handicraft, well-trained in discipline, to be of good speech, to support mother and father, to cherish wife and children, and to be engaged in peaceful occupation, to be generous in giving, to be righteous in conduct, to help one’s relatives, to be blameless in action, to loathe more evil and abstain from it, to refrain from intoxicants, to be steadfast in virtue, to be respectful, humble, contented and grateful; and to listen to the Dhamma on due occasions, to be patient and obedient, to associate with monks and to have religious discussions on due occasions, Self-restraint, a holy and chaste life, the perception of the Noble Truths and the realization of Nibbana, a mind unruffled by the vagaries of fortune, from sorrow freed, from defilements cleansed, from fear liberated, those who thus abide, ever remain invincible, in happiness established. These are the greatest blessings” (Khuddaka nikaya, 2006 p.8).

The excellent coaching skills of the Buddha are further evident in sutta where the Buddha advised and coached rulers and kings on the virtues that should be possessed by rulers and kings in order to govern righteously and successfully. This is evident from the

 

Dasavidha-rājadhamma found in the Cakkavatti sihanāda sutta ( Dighanikāya 3, p. 96) where the Buddha enumerated ten qualities and virtues that a righteous king or ruler should cultivate as follows:

Dāna (charity) — being prepared to sacrifice one›s own pleasure for the well-being of the public, such as giving away one›s belongings or other things to support or assist others, including giving knowledge and serving public interest.

Sīla (morality) — practicing physical and mental morals, and being a good example of others

Pariccāga (altruism), being generous and avoiding selfishness, practicing altruism.

Ājjava (honesty) — being honest and sincere towards self and others, performing one›s duties with loyalty and sincerity to others.

Maddava (gentleness) — having gentle temperament, avoiding arrogance and never defaming others.

Tapa (self-controlling) — destroying passion and performing duties without indolence. Ascetic practice/torment

Akkodha (non-anger) — being free from hatred and remaining calm in the midst of confusion.

Avihimsā (non-violence) — exercising non-violence, not being vengeful.

Khanti (forbearance) — practicing patience, and trembling to serve public interests.

Avirodhana (uprightness) — respecting opinions of other persons, avoiding prejudice and promoting public peace and order.

The Buddha’s wonderful and remarkable coaching skills are not confined to merely kings and righteous living; they also extend to the domain of the environment. This is evident from the Vanaropa Sutta. Discourse on the Merit Gained in Planting Groves found in the which the Buddha coached a deva that one who has concerns and cares for the environment by planting orchards, gardens and groves is one who generates great merits by day and by night. The Buddha’s coaching of the deva is illustrated below:

 

“They who plant orchards and gardens, who plant groves, who build bridges, who set up sheds by the roadside with drinking water for the travelers, who sink wells or build reservoirs, who put up various forms of shelter for the public, are those in whom merit grows by day and by night. They are the people that are established in the Dhamma, that are endowed with morality and that are bound for the deva realms.”( Sumyutta  Nikāya  2006,  p.60).

The enormous contributions of the Buddha in the creation of a sustainable society are further evident from the discourses given by the Buddha in which the wonderful benefits of cultivating and radiating loving kindness were emphasized in sutta found in various sections of the Pali Canon. The cultivation of loving kindness is indeed integral and essential in the creation of a sustainable society where people are moved by genuine concerns for the welfare and happiness not just for our family members and friends, but to all beings in the world and in the universe. The Buddha highlighted the eleven wonderful benefits that can be reaped by one who constantly cultivates loving kindness:

“If, O Bhikkhus, the liberation of the mind through loving-kindness is practised, developed, made much of, made one’s vehicle and foundation, firmly established, consolidated, and thoroughly undertaken, eleven benefits are to be expected.

(i). One sleeps in comfort; (ii). One wakes in comfort; (iii). One has no bad dreams; (iv). One is dear to human beings; (v). One is dear to non-human beings; (vi). One is protected by deities; (vii). One is not harmed by fire, poison and weapon; (viii). One can concentrate easily; (ix). One’s facial complexion is calm and serene; (x). One dies unconfused; (xi). If one does not attain anything higher, one will be reborn in the Brahma world after death.”(The Great Protection book
, 2015. P 7).

The Buddha’s wonderful and excellent teachings further encompass down to the details on how society should behave and relate to each other depending on the functional roles one plays in the society, through fulfilling the roles and responsibilities that each societal group has to others. The excellent teaching of the Buddha in this regard is evident in the sutta where the Buddha on one early

 

morning met a young Brahmin named Sigāla who was paying respect to the six directions as instructed by his father without understanding the real meaning of such a ritual. The Buddha upon seeing this then gave a wonderful discourse and coached the young Brahmin on the significant of paying respect of the six directions. (Dighanikāya 3, 2013, p. 28)

“My father, Lord, while dying, said to me: The six quarters, dear son, you shall worship. And I, Lord, respecting, revering, rever- encing and honoring my father’s word, rise early in the morning, and leaving Rājagaha, with wet clothes and wet hair, worship with joined hands, these six quarters.”

“It is not thus, young householder, the six quarters should be worshiped in the discipline of the noble.”

“How then, Lord, should the six quarters be worshiped in the discipline of the noble? It is well, Lord, if the Exalted One would teach the doctrine to me showing how the six quarters should be worshiped in the discipline of the noble.”
The Buddha then expounded that by paying respect to the:

Eastern direction: The children and parents fulfill their duties and responsibilities.

Southern direction: The pupils and teachers fulfill their duties and responsibilities.

Western direction: The wives and husbands fulfill their duties and responsibilities.

Northern direction: Friends husbands fulfill their duties and re- sponsibilities.

Nadir direction: Servants and masters fulfill their duties and re- sponsibilities.

Zenith direction: Householders and ascetics fulfill their duties and responsibilities.

HOW IS BUDDHIST PSYCHOLOGY COACHING PERFORMED TO CREATE A SUSTAINABLE SOCIETY?
The Buddha was very pragmatic and humanistic. He didn’t

 

philosophize about “the nature of reality”. He gives us simple, basic guidelines about how we can and manage the challenges and difficulties in our lives. The Buddha started with the basic human condition – ‘people often suffer’. One very important element in Buddha coaching is to encourage enquiry (ehipassiko) (The Great protection book, 2015 p3) and never imposed his thoughts and values. He encourages his coachee to questions his teaching and test his teaching in their daily life instead of forcing them to belief him. This has enable the coachee to really experience life and learned from their life experience.

Suffering can take many forms, anxiety, tension, stress, grief, fear, dissatisfaction and so on. He emphasized that suffering is workable, that we can engage with our suffering in such a way as to be freed from it.

He described five faculties that we need to develop to do so, confidence (faith), effort, mindfulness, concentration and discern- ment (wisdom). These five qualities are present in varying degrees in almost every activity. They are useful in developing any skill, be it playing a musical instrument, training in a sport, or cultivating a meditative mind. The Buddha recognized these universal human capacities and taught us how to use them to develop the craft of meditation. (Sunanda R.1989 p 89)

The other fact is that firstly, the Buddha often used to know the intrinsic nature and temperament of a person before guiding for finding solution or coaching to achieve the goal.

When The Buddha discusses with people regarding their issues, it is easy to understand how the Buddha used some of his teaching methods. There are 4 teaching methods in Buddhism. (Piyarata- na M, p.13) They are known as Vyākarana. From these four, first three have a positive value.
Regular answer - “ekaṅsa vyākarana” Analytical answer - “vibhajja vyākarana”
Answers by posing opposing questions - “patipuccā vyākarana”
No Answer -  “Thapanīya vyākarana”.

 

Fourth way presents that the Buddha did not give any answer. There he put aside without solving questions. It was with the belief that solving them won’t help to fulfill any practical objective. According to this, the Buddha teaching becomes special and its main feature is that it consists of a practical value system.

There is another Coaching technique used in Buddhism to discuss and explain something. There are four types of Individu- als. Those who are quick in acquiring, those who learn by means of a detailed exposition, those who may be guided, and those for whom the letter [of the Teaching] alone is the highest thing. In the Abhidhamma Piṭaka these are defined as follows: (Chandawimala R ,2012 p. 43)

What sort of person is quick  in  acquiring  (ugghaṭitaññū) The person for whom there is penetration of the explanation at the very time when it is being taught is called “quick in acquiring.”

What  sort   of   person   is   one   who   learns   by means      of      a      detailed      exposition      (vipañcitaññū) The person for whom there is penetration of the explanation when the meaning of what has been taught in brief is later analyzed in detail is called “one who learns by means of a detailed exposition.”

What sort of person is one who may be guided (neyya)? The person for whom penetration of the explanation comes gradually by means of recitation, questioning, proper attention, and by serving, cultivating and waiting upon kalyānamittas is called “one who may be guided.”

What sort of person is one for whom the letter alone is the highest thing (padaparama) The person for whom penetration of the explanation will not come in this life, however much [of the Teaching] he may hear and speak and bear in mind or recite, is called to be “one for whom the letter alone is the highest thing”?

Another most important teaching in Buddhism is the four noble path and the condition for the cause and effect. (Dependant origination) whichever problem appeared Buddha mentioned first should be find the root cause of the problem. then need to destroy the root. Finding the cause of the problem and treating for that is

 

highly appreciated in Buddhism.

From the discussions above, it is evident that the Buddha possesses excellent coaching skills in that he is able to identify the causes and conditions for the suffering experienced by an individual and through his omniscience, is able to know the temperaments and inclinations of the individual, which in turn allows the Buddha to tailor make and craft his teachings and coaching to achieve the maximum benefits of the coachee. This greatly enhances the chances of success of the coaching implemented and the effectiveness in the creation of a sustainable society.

WESTERN     PSYCHOLOGY     COACHING     IN     CREATING SUSTAINABLE SOCIETY

The most  important  communication  activity  for  all  living persons is the awareness. It is the greatest gift and ultimate solution to the person to speak his or her heart aloud. Modern psychology too gives much attention to give the chance to a coachee to explore and discover the concealed process of their unconscious mind. The goal or the aim of life can be fulfilled when the mind has full clarity, non-avoidance, no-suppression and is balanced. The coach does his duty to the coachee when she is able to reach to the well-developed position of the personality. Furthermore, coaching is said to be more powerful than many other interventions with respect to accelerating people to achieve their goals because it is not only improving the intrinsic aspects (emotions, self-beliefs, value system, moods and feelings) of people, but it also improves the extrinsic aspects (skills, knowledge, experience and logic).

More and more people seek Coaching as the best way to grow themselves in order to continue to perform at extraordinary levels instead counselling or therapy where they still struggle with the stigma issue. Research findings show that 98.5% of coaching clients said their investment in a coach was well worth their money spent (Low, J. Y. F. and Arthayukit 2007. P 23). The highest proven benefits are in self-awareness, followed by setting goals and understand their needs and passion, work-life balanced, self- confidence, improvement in the quality of life, and enhancement of communication skills, better relationship with superior, peers

 

and subordinates, better family relationship, increased energy, and more fun. This explains why even successful people like Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, Donald Trump and other world famous people are working with coaches to get more out of their personal and professional lives.(CCA, 2015 p.7).

Based on the above, whilst it is evident that both Buddhist and Western psychology coaching is essential in creating a sustainable so- ciety, we see that in contrast to the Buddhist psychology coaching which emphasizes on the application of wisdom in understanding the causes and conditions for the suffering experienced and under- standing the tools and methods in dealing with such negative condi- tions which enhance the spiritual development leading to societies which are happy spiritually and economically, the Western psychol- ogy emphasizes primarily on self-awareness of one’s intrinsic aspects with the end results of enhancing one’s achievement of goals.

HOW IS WESTERN PSYCHOLOGY COACHING PERFORMED TO CREATE A SUSTAINABLE SOCIETY?

Coaching is successful when a coach is able to inspire the Coachee’s positive inner voices louder than the negative ones in order to remove their self-limiting beliefs. The key objective of the following 3-stages coaching model is to get the coachee to gain awareness, get commitment and to take action.
The coaching is usually carried out by using these fundamentals:

• The 3-stage coaching model (See, Say and Do) guided by the 10 coaching milestones,
• 5 coaching tools
• 11 coaching competencies (CCA, 2015 P. 12).

The ‘See’ stage is further guided by four milestones (connect, contract, clarify and challenge), the ‘Say’ stage is guided by two milestones (co-create and commit), while the ‘Do’ consists of four milestones (change, continue, check and close). The ‘See’ stage - Connect means “ the ability to create and sustain a safe environment for strong bonding through a “give and take” attitude, mutual respect, recognition and trust for the Coachee. (CCA, Part 11, 2015 p.27).

 

Contract is to establish, negotiate and agree on the Coaching- Coachee context, including the agenda and desired outcome and the coaching parameters, roles and expectations, ground rules and confidentiality. This is to enable strong buy in and to execute them. (CCA, Part 11, 2015 p30).

Clarify is to uncover, understand and discern people’s issues, goals realities and the self – limiting beliefs to establish their mental frame to prevent coachee using this as an excuse or reason to avoid facing them. The clearer they understand the myths and limiting belief, the more they will have greater self-empowerment and execution power. Just as the Tagline of Nike “Just Do It.” (CCA, Part 11, 2015 p32).

“ Challenge” is about finding and empowering way that will persuade and convince the coachee to break out of her comfort zone for a positive change to be made in her world meanings that will move her closer to her goal. It will help them to have a greater understanding that Challenge is not merely about problems, crisis or obstacles but more importantly, we can use this as an opportunity to be our stepping stone, “Turning our stumbling block into our stepping stone.” Additionally, the meaning of crisis in Mandarin which comprises of two words means “Danger” and “Opportunity”. Hence, coaching can help the coachee to change their perspective of viewing things from a narrow to a greater or a wider perspective i.e. able to see the tree and at the same time able to see and appreciate the forest too.” (CCA, Part 11, 2015 p.35).

In fact, the ‘Say’ stage is guided by two milestones (co-create and commit) Co-create is about working together with the Coachee to set up self-directed goals and most importantly, plan concerning self-awareness, self-inspiring and motivation. An important point to consider is to ensure that the Coachee can commit to the plan without much difficulties. (CCA, Part 11, 2015 p.43).

To Commit is to get the Coachee to take ownership of the goal and accountability of the actions to move out of the comfort zone to achieve the goal she want. The Coachee also need to be mentally locked in to the necessary action. Here the Coachee finalizes what she wants and strengthen her determination and actions with flavor

 

and desire. (CCA, Part 11,2015 p.33).

The ‘Do’ stage consists of four milestones (change, continue, check and close). To Change, is to help Coachee the  intrinsic aspect of her well-being for the game plan to be achieved. It is about executing the game plan. Through the tools and techniques of Continue such as Buckets and Balloons, the Coach helps Coachee to maintain their inner strengths, self-confidence and maintain their stamina and energy until achieving the goal. The Coach and Coachee relationship should communicate openly and honestly about theirs challenges, obstacles and issues. Following the tools and techniques of Check, the Coach gets feedback from the Coachee about progress of the goal plan occasionally. The tools and techniques of Close help to find out and reflect whether the Coaching value has been delivered successfully as per plan and scheduled. (CCA, Part 11, 2015 p.37).

There are 5 coaching tools within the 3-stage coaching model. These tools are deep listening, powerful questioning, and raising self-awareness, action-learning and feedback-giving.

Deep listening is the most important communication for every human being. It requires mindfulness and regular practice. Secondly, through deep listening, the coaches are constantly staying in the ‘present’ to hear, observe, feel and understand and at the same time and able to empathized what the coachee is saying and not saying by focusing their 4 organs of the coachee. As mentioned above, the mindfulness is an important requirement in achieving the goal of one’s life. Mindfulness means complete balance of the mental feelings and practices. Modern psychology expects four organs of person (ear, eye, heart and head) should be contemplated through the way of using them. In another way, it can be explained as the observer mind, higher supervising of the mental state of one’s life. Coachee assists coachee to get the answers to help them attain their goal and gain greater clarity to overcome their issues through powerful questioning by keeping the conversation tight and use funnel or filtering approach to get to the answers. (CCA, Part1, 2015p.18).
The quality of listening of coach is determined by the 3 levels of

 

listening; (CCA,Part 1, 2015 p.45).

Level 1 - Self- Centered Listening (This occurs when listening is limited only to decoding the words for its meaning as to what the receiver thinks it is, but not necessarily what the speaker actually means. This occurs when the ears are used more than the other  organs).

Level 2 - Empathetic Listening (This occurs when listening is now deepened to find out what the speaker really means (not what the receiver thinks it is) in her spoken and unspoken words and its tone, or her body language. This occurs when the eyes are used together with the ears).

Level 3 - Intuitive Listening (This occurs when the listener lis- tens with utmost importance that entails total curiosity and interest in what the speaker is saying and not saying. To achieve this, the listener places the speaker at the ‘center of the universe’ in order to get an all-rounded feel of the whole person that is captured through the use of the 4 organs of ears, eyes, heart and head).

The powerful Questioning is also another important Tool of Coaching journey. The powerful questions are the “spotlight” that shines on to the right areas (focus) of the mind to get the answers to help the person to attain her goal, gain greater clarity and overcome her issues. (CCA, Part1 p.18)

Broadly, there are two categories of questions. (CCA, Part 1 2015 p.22).

Inquiry questions (triggering the person’s to think rather than spoon feed culture)

Exploratory questions (Explore with the coachee to enable them to understand the subject matter more deeply and have clearer understanding).

Coach raises the Coachee’s self-awareness to propel them to take self-initiated actions to improve themselves. It is important because it would connect to the needs of the person and to improve herself always.

In addition, getting coachee into the action taking mode so that learning can take place where they gain confidence, take

 

accountability and sharpen their capabilities. When a person gains self-confidence, he or she will have clear picture of what need to be done exactly. After that, tracking and measuring that person progress becomes easier. Finally, the coaches will give feedback to the coachee on the right areas for improvement after observing the Coachee’s performance such as their words, body language, behaviours and results.

From the above discussions on the various methodologies engaged by Western psychology in engaging individuals to be more self-aware and introspective, these will lead to the creation of a society that is driven by motivation, resilient and is able to withstand difficulties through the investigation of one’s strengths and weaknesses and the devising of action plans to address and resolve the issues that one faces, which are factors essential in creating sustainable societies.

MASLOW’S HIERARCHY OF NEEDS

Maslow (1943, 1954) stated that people are motivated to achieve certain needs and that some needs take precedence over others. Our most basic need is for physical survival, and this will be the first thing that motivates our behavior. Once that level is fulfilled the next level up is what motivates us, and so on.

Physiological needs - these are biological requirements for human survival, e.g. air, food, drink, shelter, clothing, warmth, sex, sleep.

If these needs are not satisfied the human body cannot function optimally. Maslow considered physiological needs the most important as all the other needs become secondary until these needs are met.

Safety needs - protection from elements, security, order, law, stability, freedom from fear.

Love and belongingness needs - after physiological and safety needs have been fulfilled, the third level of human needs is social and involves feelings of belongingness. The need for interpersonal relationships motivates behavior

Examples include friendship, intimacy, trust, and acceptance, re- ceiving and giving affection and love. Affiliating, being part of a group ( family, friends, work).

 

Esteem needs - which Maslow classified into two categories: (i) esteem for oneself (dignity, achievement, mastery, independence) and
(ii) the desire for reputation or respect from others (e.g., status, prestige).

Maslow indicated that the need for respect or reputation is most important for children and adolescents and precedes real self-esteem or dignity.

Self-actualization needs - realizing personal potential, self- fulfillment, seeking personal growth and peak experiences. A desire “to become everything one is capable of becoming”(Maslow, 1987, p. 64).

In western psychology coaching, it is essential that the coach understands at which stage or phase the coachee is at in order to know what is lacking in order to tailor make its coaching methods for more effective end results. Once the shortfall in meeting the needs of the coachee is identified, the coach will be more effective in crafting its coaching methodology in order to fulfill the needs of the coachee such that all the different levels of needs as enumerated under the Maslow’s hierarchy are eventually met. With these, the effectiveness of the coaching would be greatly enhanced, with the ability to create a sustainable society greatly improved.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, coaching is the modern subject introduced by researchers linking with modern psychology to recognize mental status of an individual through personal approach and guide her for better findings within and support to achieve final goal step-by-step. Buddhism itself offers a collection of guidelines for building and cultivating stronger and more resilient minds in the people of the society. It is exactly a subject focuses mental status and behaviour of a person who is seeking for one’s advancement.

Comparatively it may be said that there are considerable areas that the modern Coaching practice can draw and benefit from Buddhist teachings. As stated above the way of coaching a person in different occasions varies in Buddhist practice as compared to Western psychology. However, we should accept that modern Coaching practice has introduced systematic methods and facts which have not collected and compiled in an orderly fashion within

 

the Buddhist teachings. Modern Coaching practice provides ample practical guidance since it is nicely adjusted and introduced facts apt with modern world. However, I suggest here for further researchers to continue comparative studies between the modern Coaching practices and Buddhist teachings of Coaching.

Moreover, whilst it is evident that both Buddhist and Western psychology coaching is essential in creating a sustainable society, we see that in contrast to the Buddhist psychology coaching which emphasizes on the application of wisdom and deep spiritual realization in understanding the causes and conditions for the suffering experienced and understanding the tools and methods in dealing with such negative conditions which enhance the spiritual development leading to societies which are happy spiritually and economically, the Western psychology emphasizes primarily one self-awareness of one’s intrinsic aspects with the end results of enhancing one’s achievement of goals with an apparent lack of emphasis on the application of wisdom in overcoming negative states essential in improving one’s performance in the process of coaching and in the creation of sustainable societies.

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