06: Psychodynamics in Coaching

In this episode of The Coaching Psychology Pod, host Dr. Natalie Lancer, with Raul Aparici, an integrative coach and psychotherapist, and Dr. Susan Kahn, a psychodynamic coaching psychologist, engage in a rich discussion about the nuances of psychodynamic coaching. We explore the wounded and celebrated self, emphasising the need for coaches to be self-aware and to understand their own vulnerabilities. The conversation also covers the contributions of influential thinkers such as Winnicott and Bion, and the use of creative techniques in coaching. The importance of ethical boundaries, supervision, and respecting client defenses in deep psychodynamic work is highlighted.

We ask:

• What is psychodynamic coaching?
• What is the difference between psychotherapy and psychodynamic coaching?
• Which tools and concepts are useful in psychodynamic coaching?
• Does goal-setting show up in psychodynamic coaching?
• What are the challenges in using psychodynamic terminology with clients?
• Why is containment, referral and maintaining boundaries in the coaching relationship important?
• What roles do supervision, reflective practice and self-awareness have in psychodynamic coaching work?
• Who are influential thinkers in the field of psychodynamic coaching?
• How can we train in psychodynamic coaching?
•   What are the risks and rewards of psychodynamic coaching?

The importance of taking a client-centred approach is emphasised in psychodynamic coaching. It privileges understanding the unconscious and the here and now in coaching relationships, such as unpicking transference and counter transference in coaching sessions. Psychodynamic coaching draws upon a rich lineage of a specific set of assumptions and philosophical foundations, aspects of which we cover in our conversation. Learn how this distinctive approach can be integrated into your coaching practice with expert guidance and education in this field.  Our guests today are:

Dr Susan Kahn is a Chartered Coaching Psychologist and Business Psychologist, an executive coach, consultant, mediator, BPS registered supervisor and author.  She writes about below the surface dynamics at work and her research interests encompass vulnerability, conflict, leadership and resilience.  She has written three books, Death & the City: On Loss, Mourning and Melancholia at Work; Bounce Back, How to Fail Fast and be Resilient at Work and Reinvent Yourself: Psychological Insights that will Transform your Work Life. She is also a lecturer at Birkbeck, University of London, teaching coaching and organisational psychology, and is a faculty member at the School of Life, working with businesses to develop their emotional intelligence.

Raul Aparici is a coach, psychotherapist, consultant and facilitator. He is the Head of Faculty for The School of Life, a global organisation focussed on delivering psychological and philosophical insights to help people learn, heal and grow. With a diverse background in literature, fitness, management and consulting, an MA in Critical theory, and an MA in Gestalt Therapy Theory, he is driven by curiosity and a desire to help others make the most out of their current situation and likes to match academic insights with commercial pragmatism. He provides Equine Assisted Coaching and Leadership Consulting with Operation Centaur in Richmond Park and he is the former Programme Director for Coaching Psychology at Birkbeck College, University of London.

Your host, Dr Natalie Lancer, is a Chartered Coaching Psychologist, and British Psychological Society (BPS) Registered Sup