Author: Dr John Blakey

Blog Archives

What is the most challenging question you have asked a coachee? I was asked this once when presenting at a conference. Linked to this I’ve also noticed a number of Linked In discussions about questions coaches could ask. By asking for examples of challenging questions are we seeking an answer,

Read more ›



As the Americans would say ‘Brene Brown you rock!’ I finally got round to reading Brene Brown’s hot-to-trot book ‘Daring Greatly’ and, after all the hype, I was not disappointed. Given Brene Brown’s role as full-time academic researcher, I expected the book to be highbrow and sophisticated so I was surprised at the simple,

Read more ›



Sheryl Sandberg’s recently published book ‘Lean In – Women, Work and the Will to Lead’ is causing quite a stir. Currently No.1 in the Amazon leadership best sellers, the book is Sheryl’s manifesto for helping professional women get to the top; as COO of Facebook she certainly has the war stories to be a credible author.

Read more ›



We are delighted this week to have our first guest blogger, Angela Sabin. If anyone else would like to blog on a theme related to Challenging Coaching then please get in touch. Here are Angela’s intriguing thoughts on the topic of the ‘loving boot’. (John Blakey)

‘I am a passionate advocate for John and Ian’s work on Challenging Coaching,

Read more ›



As you set your goals for the coming year you might find it useful to read the LeadershipIQ white paper – Are SMART goals dumb. This US based leadership and training firm surveyed over 4,000 workers across 397 organisations to find out whether SMART goals (usually defined as specific,

Read more ›



This week John and I presented to the Bristol and Bath Coaching Group. After discussing the FACTS coaching model we talked about chapter 10 of “Challenging Coaching” and what we call the ‘deeper FACTS ‘ for the first time. In chapter 10 we move our focus from the balance of support and challenge in coaching to the balance of freedom and responsibility in the world at large.

Read more ›



Last week I had the pleasure of hosting a conference session with Olympic gold medallist rower Martin Cross. Over the Summer I had read Martin’s book ‘Olympic Obsession’ in which he talks about his long career performing at the top of his sport. As I read Martin’s book I was struck by his penchant for engaging in challenging conversations as he and his rowing colleagues pursued their courageous goals.

Read more ›



In preparation for a workshop I’m delivering I’ve been reading “The five dysfunctions of a team” by Patrick Lencioni. This book has received a lot of interest and seems to be a core text around team work. It struck me that the Zone Of Uncomfortable Debate (ZOUD), speaking your truth and the ‘A’

Read more ›



It has been a big week for us in terms of the ‘F’ of FACTS – feedback. On Monday, Ian had an article published in ‘People Management’ on the topic of ‘How to give challenging feedback’[no longer available online]. On Thursday, I delivered a short session on the topic of feedback to the leadership team of a major UK company that has recently gone through a significant merger to become the market leader in its sector.

Read more ›



I recently joined one of the pre-conference webinars for the World Business & Executive Coach Summit (www.wbecs.com) which was being led by Sir John Whitmore. Sir John kindly wrote the foreword for ‘Challenging Coaching’ and I was keen to hear his latest thoughts since he has been a valued mentor and inspiration to me in my coaching career ever since I read his classic book ‘Coaching for Performance’

Read more ›



Top