The GROW Framework is one of the more common coaching frameworks used by executive coaches and managers adopting a coaching approach. Its relative simplicity and logic makes it easy to understand and adopt, yet organized in a way to encourage results. Use this model to help teams and individual employees improve performance, solve problems, make better decisions, learn new skills, and reach career goals.

GROW is an acronym that stands for:

Goal
Reality
Options (sometimes this is worded as “Obstacles”)
Way Forward (sometimes this is simply worded as “Will”)

Within the framework of the four-step GROW model, a coach can ask targeted questions to support the process and the individuals involved. Let’s explore each step.

Grow

Coaching using the GROW model starts with establishing a clear goal, be it a performance goal, a development goal, a decision to make, a problem to solve, or simply a goal for a particular coaching session. To ensure clear and consistent goals, especially when working with a team, consider using the SMART goal format. It is critical that this goal is represented in a way that will make it clear when it has been achieved.

Below are some questions to help everyone gain clarity on the goal.

• What goal do you want to achieve?
• What would you like to happen in working toward this goal?
• What will get you to that goal?
• What needs and values are you seeking to meet through this goal?
• What would you like to accomplish?
• What result are you trying to achieve?
• What outcome would be ideal?
• What do you want to change and why?
• What would the benefits be if you achieved this goal?
• What does success look like?
• How will you measure the results and determine the success?
• What’s the bigger picture here?

(Current) Reality

In this stage, we develop awareness of the current situation we are working in – where we are now.  It considers how far we are we from our goals. In exploring this stage consider both the outer and inner perspectives. The outer perspective identifies the playing field – the strengths, challenges, and issues that will come into play. The inner perspective explores the emotions and motivations connected to the desired change.

Below are some questions to support the exploration of this stage:

• Where are you now in relation to your goal?
• What steps have you already towards your goal? What impact has that had?
• What has contributed to your success so far?
• What progress have you made so far?
• What is working well right now? What is not?
• What is required of you?
• What’s keeping you from having reached that goal already?
• What obstacles/challenges are you experiencing?
• What can you learn from others who have achieved this goal?
• What can you learn from what has not worked so far?
• What could you do better?
• What is any current resistance to change telling you?

Options

Once we have a clear understanding of what the goal is and where we currently stand in relation to it, we are able to begin focusing on what we need to reach our goal. This stage is referred to either as “obstacles” or “options,” with options sounding a bit more optimistic. Essentially there will be here will be obstacles stopping us from getting us from where we are now to where we want to go, otherwise, we would already have reached their goal. In identifying those obstacles we can find a way of dealing with them to make progress – these are the options we have.

During this stage we awaken and encourage creativity to brainstorm options and strategies, daring to consider options we would take if all things were possible. Continue to push for “what else?” and give space for pondering further ideas.

Here are some questions to help explore options and generate solutions:

• Without filtering them, what are the first options that come to mind?
• What are some of the ways you could approach this?
• What do you think you need to do next?
• What could be your first step?
• How can you break this up into smaller steps?
• What do you think you need to do to get a better result (or closer to your goal)?
• What if you could start all over?
• What else could you do?
• Who else might be able to help?
• What would happen if you did nothing?
• What has worked for you already? How could you do more of that?
• What have you learned from what has NOT worked?
• What would happen if you did that?
• What is the hardest/most challenging part of that for you?
• What advice would you give to a friend about that?
• What would you gain/lose by doing/saying that?
• If someone did/said that to you what do you think would happen?
• What’s the best/worst thing about that option?
• Which option do you feel ready to act on?
• What excites/intrigues you about that option?
• How have you tacked this/a similar situation before?
• What could you do differently?
• If anything was possible, what would you do?

Way Forward

Based on the options we come up with, we can support an employee or team in establishing a clear action plan for the next steps. Accountability is crucial here. By outlining what people will actually do and by when they’re going to do it, we can ask for commitments and establish accountability structures.

Below are some questions to help support moving into action:

• What do you think you need to do right now?
• Tell me how you’re going to do that.
• How will you know when you have done it?
• Is there anything else you can do?
• On a scale of one to ten, what is the likelihood of your plan succeeding? What would it take to make it a ten?
• What roadblocks do you expect or require planning?
• What are three actions you can take that would make sense this week?
• What resources can help you?
• Is there anything missing? What is one small step you can take now?
• When are you going to start?
• How will you know you have been successful?
• What support do you need to get that done?
• What will happen (or, what is the cost) of you NOT doing this?
• What do you need from me/others to help you achieve this?
• On a scale of one to ten, how committed/motivated are you to doing it? What would it take to make it a ten?
• The below questions are useful for supporting accountability:
• What will you do?
• When will you do it?
• How will you track your progress?
• What criteria will define this as completed successfully?

Troubleshooting

In the Way Forward stage, if you see hesitation and a reluctance to commit to the action steps, revisit the Goal or Reality stages to clarify vision and explore what needs and values are or are not being met. Since each step depends on the preceding stages, any breakdowns in flow would indicate a need to cycle back through the other stages.

Coaching conversation in the GROW model hardly ever follows a clean, sequential four-step path. Rather, it provides a useful feedback loop through which to fully develop each stage.