Coaching World Issue 19: Science of Coaching | Page 14
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Ethical Matters
Complexity in the
Coaching Space:
It’s Far More Than Ethics
14
Coaching World
Jim Smith, PCC
Jim is an Executive and Life Vision
and Enhancement Coach, international
speaker, author, and change strategist
based in the United States.
He is a founder of ICF Cleveland, and
currently serves as the Chapter’s
Ethics Liaison. He can be reached at
[email protected].
The situation: A coaching conversation with an executive
client. The client is married, male and holds a C-suite role. After
working with his coach for nine months, he declares he wants
to take the conversation “in a different direction today.” He’s
incredibly stressed about a situation that he characterizes as “a
time-management issue.” He reveals that he has been having an
affair with a male colleague, and wants to work on this during the
coaching session.