Steps for balancing inquiry and advocacy

1. Describe the individual's situation in a neutral way based on your observations.To balance inquiry (asking questions) with advocacy (presenting your ideas or opinions) during the coaching session, start by referring to the observations you gathered during the preparation stage of coaching.
   
   For example, "Martin, thank you for generating so many reports for the executive committee over these last few months. You really accomplished a lot under extreme time pressure. I think your reports could be much more useful to the committee, though, if you learn how to format them in a more effective way. I've noticed that the five reports you created lack an executive summary, as well as headings to indicate the flow of information." 
2. State your opinion—your interpretation of what you have observed.After presenting your observations, offer your views of what you've observed.
   
   For instance, "Martin, when reports lack certain features, such as a summary and headings, executives find it harder to read and absorb the information." 
3. Make the thoughts behind your opinion explicit.Explain what assumptions or line of reasoning led to your opinion:
   
   "Martin, most of the executives on the committee are eager to get through the material as quickly and efficiently as possible. That's why I'm thinking it would be good for you to learn how to format your reports in ways that make the reading easier for your audience." 
4. Share your own experiences if they might help.Sometimes describing your own experiences can help explain the reasoning behind your opinion or idea.
   
   For example, "Martin, I've discovered that when technical reports begin with a summary and contain headings throughout, it takes me about half the time to read them as it does to get through unformatted reports." 
5. Encourage the other person to provide his or her perspective.To balance advocacy with inquiry, ask questions that invite your coachee to provide his or her perspective:
   
   "Martin, do you agree that it's important for you to learn how to write more effective reports? If so, what steps do you think we need to take to help you achieve this goal? How would you like to measure your progress?"