It takes effective effort and a clearly defined purpose to increase the motivation and engagement necessary to promote and practice Executive Functioning skills.
An EEC Executive Functioning Coach uses a holistic and team-based approach to developing skills to manage learning, life, and ADHD.
By looking holistically at the deficits, executive function coaches help clients develop a roadmap to address life's challenges - in school, work, or at home. EEC Certified Coaches help clients develop and implement a strength-based process for managing life's priorities - personal health, family, school, work, chores, and activities. Clients create and practice using future planning tools and strategies to manage meaningful schedules and routines. For example, an EEC Executive Functioning Coach collaborates with therapists, teachers and parents to develop a comprehensive skill development plan that looks at long-term and systemic growth.
Clients with ADHD will say they know what to do but struggle to follow and manage tools, routines and goals consistently. They constantly feel overwhelmed and frustrated with repeated failure. By working with an executive functioning coach on future planning and self-monitoring skills, clients feel like they are finally "working smarter, not harder," to achieve their goals. They are less stressed and less overwhelmed. They feel like they are not a chronic victim of time. Russell Barkley, a leading expert in ADHD, states that developing executive functioning skills starts with repeated practice in self-monitoring, seeing the future, saying the future, feeling the future, and playing with the future so as to effectively "plan and go" towards the future. Consistent practice, self-monitoring, and problem-solving are essential to the EEC Executive Functioning Coach process.
EEC Certified Coaches work with clients and parents on an executive functioning skill development process that addresses core deficits related to meaningful goals in learning and life. Our approach moves clients through the skill development process leading to positive growth, greater independence and improved feelings of self-efficacy. Below are sample benchmarks in the Effective Effort Coaching Process.
- Life skills to manage ADHD
- Self-awareness skills- strengths and lagging skills
- Working memory strategies for school and work
- College readiness skills
- Understanding the superpowers of ADHD
- Future planning strategies - seeing the future and planning toward the future
- Homework Process, Study skills, Note Taking skills
- Maintain a time management system
- Independent positive routines
- Independently manage personal priorities
- Independently control distraction and avoid procrastination
- Problem-solving skills
- Develop grit and a growth mindset
The EEC coaching model teaches skills to address executive function deficits:
Self-regulation skills, scheduling skills, future planning skills, study skills, independence skills, prioritizing responsibilities, stress management skills, managing distractions, organizational skills, writing skills, temporal skills, and spatial skills.
The key to the client - coach relationship is accountability. As clients develop and practice using the strategies, tools, routines and processes they practice under the guidance of their coach, they rely on the positive relationship and trust they have built with them. As clients move down the path to self-reliance and confidence, being accountable for the progress - and sometimes, setbacks - they make will continue to reinforce and enhance their new skill set. The EEC coaching model embodies a dynamic structure that encompasses both direct and indirect coaching, as well as direct and indirect feedback. Accountability develops momentum through the skill development process.
Accountability is key in the coach-client relationship. Clients rely on a strong positive working relationship with their coach and the benefit of consistent accountability as they develop and practice using new tools, strategies, routines, and processes. Over time, clients grow in self-confidence and trust in their ability to do it alone. The dynamic EEC coaching model allows for direct and indirect coaching with direct and indirect feedback and accountability as clients develop momentum through the skill development process. The Four Components of the EEC Coaching Model
EEC Certified Coaches are trained to use the 360-degree methodology, which Sarah Ward and Kristin Jacobsen developed. This process helps students develop a process for project management, long-term planning, and study skills.
Executive Functioning Coach FAQs: (these are the top questions asked)
1. What is an executive functioning coach?
An executive functioning coach is a professional who helps people to improve their executive functioning skills. These skills include planning, organizing, time management, task initiation, and task completion. People with executive functioning difficulties often have trouble completing tasks on time, keeping track of information, and staying organized. An executive functioning coach can help people develop strategies for improving their executive functioning skills related to life's intentions and priorities. This may involve teaching organizational techniques, helping to set up a daily and weekly routine, and providing positive support and accountability. In addition, executive functioning coaches can benefit people with ADHD or other conditions that impact executive functioning.2. Does executive function coaching work?
An executive functioning coach works with the individual to identify areas of executive dysfunction and develop strategies to improve functioning in those areas. Executive function coaches also work with the individual's family and other support systems to promote goal attainment. There is growing research on the efficacy of executive function coaching, and existing research is promising. A study of young adults with ADHD found that those who received executive function coaching had significantly better executive functioning than those who did not receive coaching. Another study found that executive function coaching was associated with improvements in academic performance, independent living skills, and social skills in individuals with an autism spectrum disorder. These studies suggest that executive function coaching can be an effective intervention for individuals with executive dysfunction.