The Now, New, Next – 3Ns to the New You Coaching Model

A Coaching Model By Christie Chua, Transformational Coach, SINGAPORE

3Ns: Now, New, Next Coaching Model

Imagine this. Your life is like a Lego building plate.

Through the course of growing up and getting older, you start to accumulate experiences and you start to shape it the way you want. You can upgrade, downgrade, paint it completely in bright pink, decorate it, light it up, or make it a tropical rainforest. It is all up to you.

There is only one catch. You cannot “up and relocate”. You cannot exchange the plate for a new one, and neither can you get a pre-built version. What the plate becomes, is all down to the conscious choices and intentions you make.

As time goes by, there comes a point in your life when you start to feel that this life (or Lego design) that you created is not serving you as well anymore. In the words of Marshall Goldsmith “What got you here, won’t get you there”. The structure and build are not allowing you to fulfill your purpose anymore.

And you would like to make a change.

I feel stuck.

Why am I feeling so unmotivated in life (and/or work)?

I don’t know what else is out there for me.

I seem to be doing well on the outside, but something is missing on the inside…

Soon, questions of uncertainty and doubt start to appear.

How do I know if I am making the right choice?

How do I know which path I should take?

3Ns: Now, New, Next

My coaching model can be applied to create the basic structure required to help clients understand their current status, envision their preferred end state, and shed light on what steps and actions they must take to bring themselves closer to their vision.

NOW

An important and critical step in this coaching model is establishing a firm understanding of the client’s present state. This includes understanding the client’s values and beliefs. A good amount of time should be devoted to understanding how the client got there and what they did to bring themselves here gives the coach a good foundation of how the client thinks and what makes the client tick. In this segment, some guiding questions to facilitate the client are:

• In one sentence, how would you describe your current state?
• What are some of your proudest / lowest moments (in the context of the current state)?
• Reflecting on these proud/low moments, what are some of the key learnings?
• How would you rate your happiness/satisfaction/motivation on a scale of ten?
• In your personal life, what are the things that make you happy?
• Which relationships do you value the most?
• How important is it to look at your current state afresh?

NEW

In this next step of the coaching model, clients are encouraged to try to describe what they would like their future state to be. Understanding the context for this change helps the client to better focus on the long-term plan, and to help them sift out what might be temporary reactions to their current state. It is also important to maintain a positive outlook toward the future in this segment.

Oftentimes, clients may start to raise their self-doubts, which might hinder their move forward. I tend to encourage my clients to approach these thoughts with compassion by encouraging them to note them down so that they can be looked at when we go into our next segment. This helps the client to focus and remain at ease as they attempt to further dissect and specify what exactly their new state might be.

• What is your definition of success?
• How would you describe your future state?
• If you can break it down further, what are the various components you will need in place to get you to where you want to be?
•  

NEXT

With both the current and future states established, it is now time for the fun part – how do we get there? What do we need to do to bring us to that new level? It is important to remember that during this period of change, there needs to be awareness of how the various aspects of the client’s life are affected and in what way.

Here are some questions that can be discussed and brainstormed on together with the client:

• What is your biggest fear?
• What is the biggest compromise you are willing to make to get you to where you want to be?
• What might get in the way of you and your goal? What do you think is causing it? How might you be able to overcome it?
• If you could set a time for this, how long would you give yourself to achieve your goal(s)?

The 3Ns A Workable Timeline: Now, New, Next

Similar to any major renovation or building of a house, monitoring and time are important factors that would be worth reminding our client of. Together with the client, come up with a workable timeline and break down the goal into smaller achievable tasks. Patience and positivity will help the client push through this period. It will also be useful to stay agile through this period, as specific plans may need to be changed, pending circumstances and the environment. No matter what, help remind the client of what the larger goal and purpose is, and why the change was important for them.

Developing sustainable habits can also help the client stay on course. Certain habits that got the client to their current state might not be useful in their journey to their new state. Help the client to build awareness of what works and what does not. If new habits have to be created, help the client identify what is required to help support them.

Regular review and monitoring of the client’s progress is imperative. Through that, it is hopeful that the client will come away with a fuller sense of purpose, clarity, and calm in their new state.

Beliefs have the power to create and the power to destroy.- Tony Robbins

References

David, Susan (2017), Emotional Agility: Get Unstuck, Embrace Change and Thrive in Work and Life, Penguin Life Random House, UK.
Daweck, Carol S., Ph.D. (2016), Mindset. Ballantine Books Trade Paperback Edition.
Goldsmith, Marshall (2013), What Got You Here Won’t Get You There. Profile Books Ltd.