Structuring the Call

It’s easy to be too casual on the telephone. Prepare the same way you would a face-to-face coaching session. Be clear about the purpose of the telephone call. For instance, you might say, “I wanted to hear about what you’ve been doing and how I can be of help. Give me a summary of your day and then tell me specifics of what is giving you a tough time.”

Paying Attention to the Paralinguistics of the Speaker’s Voice