Coaching the Faltering Executive

This article describes how recent advances in the application of attachment theory to adults in relational psychotherapy can be employed to positive effect when coaching faltering executives. Three overlapping streams of research and theory are cited, which can guide adaptation of these clinical practices for coaching faltering executives: 1) the dominant role of the right-brain in affect regulation, formation of the self, and implicit (non-verbal) relational knowing; 2) the role of a secure base in fostering exploration, reasonable risk-taking, and seeking help in situations of significant challenge; and 3) the role of mentalization skills for coping with emotional distress, making meaning from troubled feelings, and relating more empathically to others.