Olympic Effort

I'm really enjoying watching the Olympics. It is inspiring to watch people reaching towards their goals and fulfilling their potential. Heartbreaking for them when they don't, and fabulous to see the joy when they do. But what has really struck me over the last few days is how clear-cut it appears. You win, you lose. You get a medal, you don't. I envy this with sporting performance. There is seemingly less grey area and it is obvious what you are aiming for so; all the hard work is directed at one point. My clients are all Doctors and I think they know what this kind of hard work over many years feels like. They know what the step by step achievements mean, the sacrifices it takes and how it moves them that little bit closer to their goal of becoming a GP Partner or Consultant. It seems like an Olympic effort. But after the Olympics are over, or you have got that Partner / Consultant post? What next, how do you take stock, redefine where next and what to do? How can you continue to develop your performance, judgement and practice for rest of your professional life and what do you aim for? I believe coaching helps you identify, plan for and sustain your personal best.

There was a moment in sports when employing a coach was unimaginable—and then came a time when not doing so was unimaginable. We care about results in sports, and if we care half as much about results in schools and in hospitals we may reach the same conclusion.” Atul Gwande (Endocrine Surgeon at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts)

For full article in the New Yorker Click Here