Word salad, yummy yummy

Fruit salad might be yummy yummy, but word salad not so much.

What’s word salad? It’s the unintelligible word vomit of phrases that sound like they might be profound but actually mean nothing.

Q: What is your team focusing on?

A: We are currently looking at our internal frameworks to ensure that our ongoing operations align directly with our long-term goals while maintaining the overall stability of our core functions throughout the upcoming periods.

Translation: We are doing our jobs.

The word salad answer describes the default state of any team (looking at operations and wanting to stay stable) without adding any new or specific information. It lacks a concrete subject, a defined problem, or a clear next step.

How does word salad sound in coaching?

Client: I feel completely stuck in my current role. I want to scale my business, but I just feel overwhelmed by all the moving parts, and I don't know what my next step should be.

Coach: To truly step into your next chapter, you need to lean into the empty space of your own potential and actively co-create with the unfolding narrative of your inner alignment.

Translation: You should try existing.

The word salad creates a false sense of wisdom, but doesn’t actually give you anything to work with.

Unfortunately, there’s a lot of people calling themselves coaches and mentors who use a lot of false guru word salad. Clients can think “Wow, that sounds deep but I don’t really understand it. I must have a lot of work to do”, putting the authority and agency on the “guru” rather than on themselves.

How might a more robust coaching exchange go? Perhaps something like this...

Client: I feel completely stuck in my current role. I want to scale my business, but I just feel overwhelmed by all the moving parts, and I don't know what my next step should be.

Coach: The word I felt the most energy with there was overwhelmed. If we could set aside that overwhelm right now, what could be sitting behind it?

Client: (Pause) I guess... I'm worried that if I scale, I will lose my connection to the actual craft that made me start this business in the first place.

Coach: So if the real tension isn't the 'moving parts' but that fear of losing your connection to the work as a creator, how could we start exploring that?

In good coaching, the coach focuses entirely on your own words and emotional reality. A false guru might leave you feeling momentarily inspired but there’s a disconnect, and actually they’re setting up a power dynamic that leaves you dependent on them. A good coach will ask you a simple question that gets you to uncover your own truth and agency.

Look for a qualified, credentialed coach... who you can understand!

Until next week,

Madeleine

I help accomplished professionals untangle difficult career questions so they can thrive in work and life.

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