Speaking in riddles

I recently caught up with a coaching colleague, and we had an interesting conversation about the art of asking questions.

I explained that, at times, I found myself asking players unnecessary, or perhaps poorly thought through, questions when, in fact, a different, and more direct, method, could have benefited the learner more.

My colleague shared a great anecdote from a golfing lesson he took part in. The coach had tried to teach him to drive the ball simply by asking him many questions. 

He explained to me that, after 20 fairly painful minutes, and despite his best efforts to answer the questions, he was having no success whatsoever. 

Shortly after this experience, another coach joined him, and told him a couple of key points to consider when swinging his club.

He noted that – even to this day, 10 years on from the experience – he can still remember the exact information, and subsequent success, the coach had given him.

So, in this particular example, being told precise information directly proved to be more beneficial in the learning process than being asked questions. 

Ironically, from this, a number of questions sprang to my mind.

Why do we ask the players questions? What if the learner does not actually know the answers to them? Do we ask too many questions, when other strategies could be used more effectively? How many other strategies or methods are there that we could use? And how do I learn more about this?

As a matter of good timing, a few days after my colleague shared his anecdote, I was listening to a podcast, in which a group of coaches discussed the different strategies that can be used, regardless of age and environment. 

The content and depth of this chat struck a chord with me, as they went into detail about how each of these different strategies can be broken down. 

Subsequently, I began to reflect on the relationship between the following different methods.