Book review: Coaching Cards for Christmas by Kim Morgan

These clever little question cards – from Barefoot Coaching – pack a powerful punch when it comes to communicating with your loved ones and developing good relationships.

Coaching is now widely used in organisations, schools, by individuals and in institutions like the NHS. It can be used for career planning, for life, for dealing with specific situations or aiding low self-esteem.

The cards, which include packs for children, new parents, grandparents and couples, have been created by Kim Morgan, one of the UK’s most respected business and personal coaches, who wanted to find a way to demystify coaching and make it accessible to all of us in our daily lives.

‘The ability to ask good coaching questions is a skill which can benefit us in all the roles we play in life… as parents, partners, colleagues, friends, teachers,’ she says. ‘These cards make it easy and enjoyable to adopt coaching questions in our everyday life.’

The questions on each card help you to start meaningful conversations and get to know yourself and your loved ones better. Asking different types of questions enables us to take the time to think about what is working well, or not so well, in our lives.

Coaching cards, claims Morgan, can also help us to think well and find our own solutions. And when we find our own solutions, we are much more likely to implement them and bring about changes in our lives.

A fun, family activity for the festive season, the Christmas pack of 45 conversation starters is designed to make the party even merrier. From ‘What is your most memorable Christmas’ and ‘What is the best Christmas present you have ever received’ to ‘What three things have you learnt this year’ and ‘How did you spend Christmas when you were a child,’ the questions will inspire Christmas cheer in all ages.

And as an added bonus, the cards include five top coaching tips to help you keep calm, whatever happens this holiday season.

Also in the series are Coaching Cards for Grandparents which reinforce the very special relationship between grandparents and their grandchildren. Parenting styles and practices change all the time but one thing that has remained important is talking, listening and playing with children.

Grandparents are ideally placed to spend quality time with children and with 40 per cent of grandparents now taking on a childcare role, they can play an increasingly important part in children’s social development.

These cards help break down cross-generational barriers and prompt fun, meaningful conversations between grandparents and children to help them make the most of their time together. Could you describe your grandchild’s perfect day? Do they know the funniest thing that has ever happened to you? What games did you play when you were a child, and if you could be Prime Minister for a day, what would you do?

There are 25 questions each for grandparents and grandchildren to answer, and the cards are suitable for children aged six to 12 years… and for grandparents of any age!

The Coaching Cards for Children aim to encourage the whole family to get to know one another even better and can be used to make the most of regular family moments together whether that is in the car, on holiday, after school or around the dinner table.

What have you learned that is really fun and interesting, and who or what makes you laugh the most? These are the kind of questions that help parents and adults to communicate and to build closer relationships. Also suitable for children aged 6 to 12 years, the box of cards contains 50 question cards and two information cards.

Fun, family-focused and a good preparation for life’s big events, the Barefoot Coaching Cards make brilliant gifts and provide a welcome opportunity to connect with family and friends in a new and entertaining way.

(Barefoot Coaching Limited, £15 per pack)