You're not going to be shocked that, as a coach, I appreciate this perspective from Atul Gawande. Of course, I do. But there's something here that's deeper, that goes beyond an external pair of eyes and ears.
👀 Yes. A coach can help you see things that you're missing due to any number of biases. I'll never forget my first swim coach and how she could see things in my form that I couldn't. I *thought* I was doing things correctly. I *felt* like I had proper form. But she could see I did not and helped me correct it.
👂 Yes. A coach can hear things you're missing. I went to a vocal coach to help me with singing for a musical I was in. I knew I could hit the notes of the song, but I was struggling both in practice and rehearsal. She noticed immediately that I was carrying tension every time I approached the climax of the song which prevented me from having the support and breath to hit the note and finish strong.
But here's the deeper part... I engaged a coach because I believed I could get better! It's a growth mindset vs a fixed mindset.
As Atul points out, if we believe that we've learned what we need to and that's it, then we will not grow beyond that point. It's the fixed mindset of "I'm a good leader," or "I'm not a public speaker" that continues to hold us back.
Instead, if we apply a growth mindset to our skills and be willing to invite in another pair of eyes and ears to see and hear the things we can't (or won't), then we remove barriers and self imposed limits.
To read more about mindset, read Carol Dweck's book "Mindset"
And whether you're looking to get better at Yoga, painting, leading, swimming, surgery, singing, juggling, and a million other things, there's someone who can coach you to grow beyond where you are today.
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