Silence really can be golden.
A recent coaching meeting has allowed me to realize that silence does not always have to be awkward. It can provide a space that a person can own, where they can say what they need to say for themselves. My skills as a coach have developed recently after witnessing for myself the impact of staying silent when there is nothing I can say as a coach or a human.
A recent conversation has given me more confidence to allow silence to occur naturally during conversations. I am aware that I have previously felt compelled to fill a silence, by a sense of professional responsibility or social pressure, referring to a meaningless script, like “everything will be OK” in order to make out I can offer a solution, when really, I cannot
Silence is golden: when there is nothing I can say, it becomes a safe space for a person to say what they want to say. Silence allowed an individual to say, truthfully and out loud for the first time in over a year how they feel and why they feel those emotions. They took ownership of the silence, I listened without judgement while they unexpectedly blurted their thoughts and feelings and then validated, by and for themselves why they feel and think the way they do. Feeling safe to finally say this out loud, provided a sense of relief for the individual. Afterwards, they said that “I feel like I can be me because you have a humanistic approach”. They thanked me afterwards and I did not know why.
Sam Abram
Asset Coach