Hitting the right note – Bringing Music into Coaching Part1.

Opening a coaching session with some classical piano music gently playing in the background is likely to set a certain tone for the coaching session. It encourages calm. Helps people slow down as they arrive. Provides a jolt of something different to help them land in the moment.

At least this is what you may believe as the coach.

But, did you agree with the client beforehand what music they would like to arrive to? Do you know if they love / hate / or are indifferent about classical music? Do they want to be encouraged to feel calm?

What if the music you had played was heavy metal? This would create an entirely different mood, and the reaction is going to be different for every unique client.

So, here’s some things to consider about music playing at the start of a session:

• Be mindful ofYOUR choice, vs the clients choice.
• You could not mention the music, and simply watch their reaction and be curious about this as a way to start the session
• Maybe ask what instrument are they arriving as today
• Consider asking them when they want the music turned off, or if they prefer it to be changed to something else
• You could ask in advance what mood they hope to develop during the coaching, and chose music that matches that
• Or as they arrive, ask them what music sums up their day so far and play this for them

This is a short post to provoke some thinking about the use of music at the beginning of a coaching session. It’s an incredibly powerful tool, but should be used mindfully, and with curiosity to see if it’s helpful for the client or not. After all, you want to start the session on the right note…