By: Elizabeth Saigal, Ph.D.

Perhaps you have heard about EdX and Coursera. They and other content models like them stand to change the course of education. They provide a free pooling of resources and information for anyone on the planet. Some of the world’s best thinkers and teachers have put together lectures and are providing them free online to the general public. This makes education through the use of the web more available than ever before and is a fantastic opportunity for everyone to pursue their interests without financial consideration.

How is this of interest to the coaching community? The first way of course is that it is one way to develop any number of talents or skills that you or your clients identify as they move in to living their life on purpose. The second way is that they have some classes that specifically relate to coaching. One of these is the class by Robert Kegan on Unlocking Immunity to Change (See link at the end of the article for more information). He coauthored a book in 2009 with Lisa Laskow Lahey entitled “Immunity to Change: How to Overcome It and Unlock the Potential in Yourself and Your Organization (Leadership for the Common Good)”. This describes a four step process for identifying where your expression is out of alignment with your wishes and identifying the shifts needed to increase the integrity of your actions. It has been primarily applied in the business and executive coaching forum, but I think it has great merit for all coaching domains.

The basic premise is as follows: We express ourselves in accordance with deeply held values, needs or beliefs. On occasion this leads to behaviors that oppose the fulfillment of other deeply held values, needs or beliefs. With awareness of these inconsistencies we are able to plan for behaviors that will honor both or revise them as necessary.

The model uses four key questions to gain this insight.

1. What is your most fundamental improvement goal?
2. What is being done (or not done) instead of fulfilling this goal?
3. What are any hidden competing commitments?
4. What are your big assumptions?

Each question should be pondered deeply and answered completely with as many bullets as possible before moving on to consideration of the next item. This format mirrors powerful questions often asked during a coaching session regarding what is gained or lost from a given behavior, what gets in your way and what this tells you about possible limiting beliefs. Personally, I have found the root cause of lack of progress in one area of my life is often due to competition from behaviors linked to desires in another area of my life. For example, I have a deep commitment to supporting my children as they develop which often impedes progress on my commitment to my own personal development due to limitations of time and energy. This may resonate with you! Awareness of this helps me to plan for activities that address both aims or to make sure that one is not pursued to the detriment of the other.

These courses provide the chance for sharing mastery in teaching and content to a global audience and bringing it into the mainstream. For coaches, Robert Kegan’s class outlining his powerful technique for making the changes in our lives that have been so challenging us provides an option to add to the breadth of our coaching repertoire and understanding.

Dr. Elizabeth Saigal has been an ILCT student since 2012 and is working towards becoming a master life coach. Her ideal client is one who is intent on connecting with their inner truth and aligning with their intuition to live a life on purpose. You can connect with her by email to esaigal@yahoo.com. You can read more about this course here.