Talking to a colleague I used an analogy to describe the process and impact of our coaching which they really liked and suggested I share more widely. I don't think it is original, but I do think it is quite useful / helpful.
We were talking about patterns of behaviour being determined by the neural pathways in the brain, and I suggested that these neural pathways could be represented by paths through a wood. Our repeated pattens of behaviour are like the heavy traffic of repeated journeys which create a broad clear path that is easily followed. In fact the path would appear to us to be the only route through the wood. The coaching process is like helping somebody strike out directly through the undergrowth to find a new route through the forest. Lots flows from this analogy, both about the process of coaching and it's long term impact.
The coach may not know any more than the coachee the exact path we will take, or even where it will end up, but their job is to stay close and give confidence that it is ok to keep going. As an experienced guide they may play a big role in clearing some of the tangling undergrowth, and they may suggest changing direction or retracing our steps if it looks like we're in danger of getting lost.
And once the new path has been taken, for a while at least, it is clearly there to see as an option. The more times you take that option, the clearer and more permanent that new path becomes. But if you don't ever choose that path it soon grows over and disappears again. And this is exactly what happens literally with the neural pathways created by new ways of thinking.
