Why language matters
In executive coaching, we often focus on goals, behaviours, and outcomes. The language we use to describe these elements is fundamental; the words we use don’t just describe our experience — they shape it.
Within psychology, this aligns with a broader understanding that how individuals interpret their reality influences their emotions, decisions, and performance. By extension, in executive coaching, language can be more than communication, it can be a tool for transformation.
And perhaps, in an Irish context, this idea isn’t entirely new. Storytelling has long been part of how we make sense of the world — not just in literature, but in everyday conversation. We use images, humour, and narrative instinctively to explain complex experiences. Coaching can tap into that same instinct, but with intention.
The psychology behind metaphor and meaning
From a cognitive perspective, metaphor is not simply decorative language. It is central to how humans think.
Research in cognitive linguistics suggests that we understand abstract concepts (like leadership, change, or pressure) through more concrete experiences.
For example, a leader might describe their role as “spinning plates,” “fire-fighting,” or “swimming upstream.” Each metaphor reveals not just their situation, but their internal experience of it.
In coaching, this matters.
Because when a client says, “I feel like I’m constantly firefighting,” we are hearing more than workload — we are hearing urgency, reactivity, and perhaps a lack of control.
Metaphor creates a bridge between cognition and emotion. It allows clients to:
- Externalise their experience
- See patterns more clearly
- Reframe challenges in new ways
Similarly, writing — whether reflective journaling or structured exercises — slows thinking down. It creates space for sense-making, a process critical in leadership where ambiguity is the norm.
Poetry, while arguably less conventional in corporate settings, can distil complex emotional experiences into something precise and resonant. It invites reflection without forcing immediate solutions.
Why this matters in executive coaching
Executive coaching is about expanding awareness as well as solving problems or achieving goals. Traditional coaching questions can sometimes keep clients operating within their existing mental frameworks.
But metaphor and creative expression can gently disrupt those patterns.
They invite curiosity rather than defensiveness and can help leaders to explore:
- Identity (“What kind of leader am I becoming?”)
- Meaning (“What does success actually look like for me?”)
- Perspective (“Is there another way to see this situation?”)
A coaching story: From reactivity to clarity
A senior leader I worked with came into coaching feeling overwhelmed and frustrated by her own way of operating.
She described herself as constantly reacting — moving from one issue to the next, struggling to step back and think strategically.
When I asked her what it felt like in the moment, she paused and said:
“It’s like one of those old cinema reels — you know, the kind that flicks rapidly from one image to another. That’s what my mind feels like. No still frame, just constant motion.”
We stayed with that image and, rather than moving straight into prioritisation tools or strategic frameworks, we explored the metaphor.
- What kinds of images are flashing up?
- Who is choosing them?
- What would it take to slow the reel down?
As she reflected, she began to see just how automatic her responses had become — driven by urgency rather than intention. I invited her to write a short piece titled: “If I could pause the reel…”
What emerged was simple but striking. She wrote about space; about choosing where to focus; about being deliberate rather than pulled in every direction. The language shifted from speed and fragmentation to control and clarity.
From there, more practical changes followed — creating protected thinking time, redefining priorities, and being more intentional in how she responded to incoming demands.
That shift started with an image and the space to reflect on it.
Bringing creativity into your coaching practice
We don’t need to be a poet or a write, or ask our clients to be one!, to use these approaches effectively. Here are a few simple ways to integrate writing and metaphor into executive coaching:
1. Listen for the metaphor already present
Clients are constantly offering images. Slow down and explore them.
2. Extend the metaphor
Ask: “What else is true about that image?” or “What would need to change in that picture?”
3. Use short reflective writing prompts
For example:
- “What’s the story you’re telling yourself about this situation?”
- “Write a few lines about what success would feel like.”
4. Introduce gentle creativity
This might be as simple as asking a client to describe their leadership as a landscape, a journey, or even a piece of music.
Final thought: creating space for new thinking
In fast-paced organisational environments, leaders are often rewarded for speed, decisiveness, and action.
Coaching offers something different: space.
Writing, metaphor, and poetry deepen that space and enable leaders to pause, reflect, and reconnect with what matters, not just what’s urgent.
In that space, there is the potential for powerful, new thinking to emerge.
