One of the founders of coaching, Sir John Henry Douglas Whitmore, died on April 28, 2017at the age of 79.
It was confirmed on the LinkedIn network by David Brown, CEO of Performance Consultants International, the company founded by John Whitmore in 2004. He also asked the coaching community and everybody who is familiar with Whitmore and his work to share their thoughts.
Whitmore started to focus on coaching in the 1970s when he had already been a successful professional car racer. He was interested in transpersonal psychology which he learned to apply in the sporting environment and later in business. He became a pioneer in coaching at workplaces.
Together with another coaching pioneer, Timothy Gallwey, an American, they founded the Inner Game Corporation which developed the Inner Game method of enhancing the performance of both individuals and teams. They started by coaching tennis players and golfers, and in the 1980s they advanced to managers in major global companies.
John Whitmore wrote several professional books, the most famous being the first one, Coaching for Performance. That is the book which introduced the GROW model which is still used by coaches today. More then a million copies in 23 languages, including Czech, have been sold. An updated 5th edition was released shortly before Whitmore's death.
The GROW model based on asking questions from four areas (goals, reality, options, will) has achieved success among managers around the world since it proved to be a way to increase individual achievement, productivity and work satisfaction.
John Whitmore became one of the most sought-after European coaches, and coaching has become a recognized profession thanks to him. In 2007, he was awarded the President's Award from the world's largest coaching organization, The International Coach Federation. He was a major contributor to the ICF's beginnings and a trustee.
Let's recall one of his most popular videos explaining the difference between the traditional managerial style based on commands and the coaching management style.
Sir John Whitmore demonstrates coaching vs. instruction.
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