• Deepening understanding
  • Promoting self-awareness
  • Forming connections between new and existing knowledge
  • Developing skills and reviewing their application and effectiveness
  • Question existing practices and find better ways of doing things in the future

Coaching is about change and growth. Using a self -reflection journal will support your growing appreciation of the factors at play and what to do about them as you develop new ways of tackling challenges or approach problems.

Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle was developed by Graham Gibbs in 1988 to give structure to learning from experiences.  It offers a framework for examining experiences, covering 6 stages:

  • Description of the experience
  • Feelings and thoughts about the experience
  • Evaluation of the experience, both good and bad
  • Analysis to make sense of the situation
  • Conclusion about what you learned and what you could have done differently
  • Action plan for how you would deal with similar situations in the future

How do you do it?

In a notebook take time to write out the journey through the stages

Description of the experience

  • What had you planned?
  • What happened?
  • What did you and the other people do?
  • How did what you planned compare to what happened?

Feelings and thoughts about the experience

Before

  • What were you feeling and thinking?
  • What were others involved feeling and thinking?

During

  • What were you feeling and thinking?
  • What were others involved feeling and thinking?

After

  • What are you feeling and thinking now?
  • What are the others involved feeling and thinking now?

Evaluation of the experience, both good and bad

  • What went well?
  • What didn’t go so well?
  • What did you contribute ?
  • What did others contribute?

Analysis to make sense of the situation

  • What was it that made elements go well?
  • What contributed to the part that didn’t go so well?
  • What could help me understand the situation better?
  • How could you make sense of the situation?

Conclusion about what you learned and what you could have done differently

  • What have I learnt from this experience?
  • What could have made it better?
  • What skills do I need to develop to handle a situation like this better in the future?

Action plan for how you would deal with similar situations in the future.

  • What do I want to take forward?
  • What will I hang on to?
  • What will I do differently?
  • What skills will I develop to support my progress?
  • How will I know I have made progress?

If you would like to start exploring then get in touch with me for a free 30 min taster session

Madeline Cranfield is a highly experience Executive coach. She has worked internationally for complex organisations across sectors as diverse as finance and engineering, FMCG and technology. She combines strong business skills in strategy implementation with an ability to engage and motivate people to deliver more of their potential utilising a behavioural approach.

Read more of Madeline’s blogs here.