I’ve been wondering about the concept of ‘Dancing in the moment’ used in coaching to describe the state of flow during which coach and client achieve a strong resonance that is precious and captivating. Previously, I had blogged about coaching being the dance or the music accompaniment where coach supports the melody of the coachee. Has there been a shift in the way I view coaching as music. The answer is both Yes, and No. Let me explain.
When we view a coach’s work as being the accompaniment to the client’s sonata, the coachee is the one leading with the melodic tune. They know exactly what the next musical notations are, and are freely expressing the beautiful tune as they play on, supported by the harmonics of the coach. On the other hand, when we speak of a duet – the tune is carried both by coach and client, and the music is the result of both playing their part in tandem – much like an immersive conversation.
This was the metaphor that recently came to me and jolted me awake one Sunday morning at 5:30am. That coaching can be a Duet is an emerging thought, and curiously – it was framed as a violin duet! Perhaps it was because I have played violin duets in my student days that has caused this subliminal message to bubble up. But I think it has more to do with expanding the possibilities that coaching can bring to my mind.
So what is coaching? Yes, it is both the coach accompaniment and a duet. Perfect example of the power of “Yes, And”.
The thing about imagery is that it grows on you as you let it simmer. Over the next days, I pondered over the significance of this revelation and attempted to make the connection between the PEARLS Coaching framework to the Violin Duet. Interestingly, although I had not played the violin for a good 20 years now, yet I can certainly remember fondly that duets are such beautiful music compositions because it is about two individuals collaborating to play one tune, and taking turns to carry the melody while being supported by the other. The harmonics of a duet are dynamic in that both violinists ebb and flow to create the perfectly balanced sounds in captivating unison. There is no competition for one to outdo the other, or for one to ‘’do all the work’. Together, the duo creates the wholeness of a musical duet. Together, the coach and client achieve that breakthrough – What a wondrous thought indeed!
So as we come back to the phrase ‘Dancing in the moment – What can we make of it? Not much of a dancer myself, I can only contemplate this in terms of the different dance forms. So is it more like expressive breakdancing or artistic ballet? For now, my thoughts lean towards it being like Cha-Cha. I have always marveled at cha-cha dancers synchronizing in such a way they seemed to instinctively know what their partner’s next move would be. It’s amazing to watch Cha-Cha music being played and seeing pairs of dancers interpreting the same tune in their own unique way, whilst keeping to the unifying forward-and-back sequence. So if dancing is your passion, consider coaching resonance as being engaged in a ‘cha-cha’ dance – in the moment.
In closing, the duet I’d like to leave you with today is Violin Duo Divites – Antonio Vivaldi’s Winter 1 and 2. Which you can find on YouTube. And don’t miss the beautiful pizzicato in the second movement at the 3min 45sec mark!
I warmly welcome you to comment and share if this blog resonated with you, dear reader. Thank you for reading!
Coach Tom’s Inquiry: How might coaching as a duet of violins add a new perspective to your coaching?
You may also wish to check out Coach Tom’s first published Forbes article here.
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