Monday, September 14, 2009

The questioning way to enabling - an understanding

I would be hovering over three main areas in this writing. One, the layers of the brain as I read in the GEO. Two, the practice of journaling. Three, how all this seems to fit in in the context of the use of questioning for enabling.

It was quite a chance happening that I requested my fellow passenger for his copy of the GEO magazine after reading the cover item about an article on decision making. I found the article extremely insightful. The author in his wisdom speaks about three layers of the brain's working. The lower most or outmost layer receiving 1,50,000 impulses every second. The second layer, processing these impulses and abstracting them into feelings. The innermost layer consisting of the cognitive ability - one that cannot handle more than 7 or 8 pieces of information at a single instance. The feeling layer thus plays an important role - it abstracts and codifies the lakhs of impulses - which otherwise would overwhelm the cognitive thinking - into easily recognisable feelings.

Journaling as many of us would know, consists of writing down, usually at the end of the day, one's own learnings from the day. The mind, it is said has the ability to thinking sequentially and more interestingly, from a birds eye view - both of which play an important role when journalling. 1. Ask yourself a question, once, twice, maybe thrice 2. Start writing whatever comes to your mind very fast 3. Once you are done, read whatever you have written and look for patterns.

During coaching - which to me in many instances is a simple process of enabling the other individual by questioning beliefs, replacing older with newer beliefs and helping the other individual get his/her own answers - is often the art of asking the right questions.

Putting all this together, it looks like this - the cognitive mind impinges the question on the feeling layer with much force. This seems to stimulate the cognitive mind to see many of the underlying patterns which were very much present like furrows in a playground, but get exposed only during a downpour.

Understanding this, to me is useful for anyone who is getting into the practice of coaching.

Warmest regards,
Siddhu