Challenging Coaching is a real-world, timely, and provocative coaching book which provides a wake-up call to move beyond the limitations of traditional coaching.
The book challenges coaches and their clients to achieve courageous goals that sustainably transform bottom line performance.
"Challenging Coaching is an excellent contribution to the advancement of the profession of executive coaching"
From the foreword to the book by Sir John Whitmore, author of ‘Coaching for Performance’
Facing the FACTS
Based on our extensive experience working at board and management levels, we suggest that for too long coaching approaches have shied away from adopting a more challenging stance. Long-held coaching principles such as being non-directive, building rapport, and holding to the individual's agenda are put under the spotlight, questioning their relevance to a 21st-century business environment where the needs of the wider organisation take precedence over the particular wants of any specific executive.
We detail our unique FACTS coaching model, which provides a practical and pragmatic approach focusing on Feedback, Accountability, Courageous goals, Tension, and Systems thinking. Using this model enables the reader to enter the zone of uncomfortable debate that sustainably transforms individual and bottom line performance.
The book explores FACTS coaching in theory and in practice using case studies, example dialogues, and practical exercises so that the reader will be able to successfully challenge others using respectful yet direct techniques. We dare the reader to go beyond traditional coaching and face the FACTS.

"The FACTS model is clear, well laid out, and easy to grasp. Hopefully it will be a road map for coaches to use to venture into the less-charted territories of conventional executive coaching" From the foreword to the Book by Sir John Whitmore, author of ‘Coaching for Performance’
Order our Coaching Book
Challenging Coaching is published by Nicholas Brealey Publishing and is available in bookstores, on Amazon and as an e-book.
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Praise for Challenging Coaching
"This is a terrific book that should provoke and challenge coaches to ‘up their game’ and thus provide more value to individuals and also, vitally, to their organisations ... Read it and I believe you will improve your coaching." Graham Alexander – Founder of The Alexander Corporation, originator of the GROW Model, and author of SuperCoaching and Tales from the Top
Top 20 Best Coaching Books
Challenging Coaching named in top three of the Top 20 Best Coaching Books by the leading US blog site 'Ready to Manage'.
"Challenging Coaching is a provocative book which encourages coaches to move beyond the limitations of traditional coaching. The authors detail their unique FACTS coaching model, which provides a practical and pragmatic approach focusing on Feedback, Accountability, Courageous goals, Tension, and Systems thinking. Using this model enables the reader to enter the zone of uncomfortable debate that sustainably transforms individual and bottom-line performance. The authors explore FACTS coaching in theory and in practice using case studies, example dialogues, and practical exercises so that the reader will be able to successfully challenge others using respectful yet direct techniques. Dr. Jon Warner, Editor-in-chief of ReadyToManage, Inc.
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