Another useful distinction is trying vs. committing. Are they going to try to get something done, or are they committed to doing it? When someone says they’ll try to do something by next week, you don’t feel you can count on it.
Commitment is something you can count on. A declaration is a kind of commitment, and you can ask your clients if they’d like to make a declaration (it’s their choice).
A declaration is an announcement to the world of what you will accomplish. And by when.
You make a declaration by telling someone (or the world): “I am committed to doing … by …”
Then you bust your ass to make that commitment happen.
It’s useful to ask if your client wants to make a declaration because it helps them to see where they’re just trying to do something, just going through the motions … and where they’re truly committed.
Now, they will have trouble fulfilling some of those commitments … but that’s OK. That’s where we take a look at what’s going on, using distinctions, looking at their relationship to what they’re committed to doing, etc.
NEXT: How can we view problems in the coaching relationship?