Have you questions about Time to Think Coaching or Facilitation or Courses?

Below are the answers to the questions I receive most about my work

Frequently Asked Questions About My Coaching Services

  • The Coaching Model of “Coaching in a Thinking Environment” is based on the principles and practice of the internationally recognised Thinking Environment ® developed by Nancy Kline. This approach is based on a view that the quality of everything we do depends on the quality of thinking we do first, and that by providing a framework for independent thinking, the thinker finds their own insights and solutions, which enables better outcomes. As an accredited Time To Think Coach, I am committed to helping you think well and independently for yourself, and not to do your thinking for you. In the presence of my generative attention, you will be encouraged to think for yourself, with courage and imagination, with rigour and grace.

  • As a Time To Think Coach, my role is to help you think well and independently for yourself on whatever issue or question you bring to a Coaching session. I will not do your thinking for you.

    I will offer my insights and perspectives only after you have had sufficient time to come up with your own solutions. In each session, we can revisit your goals and agree what you want to work on and achieve.

    Sometimes people expect that in a coaching session, the coach will ask a series of questions. The Time To Think approach is different and I will ask you very few questions. This is because I believe that if you are given undistracted and uninterrupted time, in the presence of my generative attention, you will be able to do your own best thinking.

    By creating a boundaried environment for you to think without interruption, you will be able to generate clarity and insights. The purpose of the session is to give you the opportunity to think things through, in a safe and non-judgemental environment, so that you can discover ideas and solutions that work for you.

  • By thinking in this way, in the presence of my generative attention and incisive questioning, you will be able to think clearly and challenge obstacles that might be in your way.

    Each session will be guided by what you want to think about. Free from distraction or interruption, you will find you can focus your attention on what is important for you. You’ll be able to think clearly for yourself, without feeling rushed, or directed.

    By accessing your own insights and ideas, it will give you back the power to decide what’s best for you. Discovering your own answers, understanding what you want to do and what you can do, will give you the confidence and courage to bring it to reality.

    I’ll offer you questions to help you explore and address what may be holding you back or blocking you from moving forward. This will give you the opportunity to think afresh, to think with courage and imagination and to make better decisions.

  • You may already think well for yourself and wonder what is different about thinking with a Time To Think Coach. What this coaching approach offers you is the opportunity to really think things through, and not block off options you may think aren’t possible. You will be encouraged to go to the edge of your thinking, to question and break through what might be holding you back, and to discover possibilities you may be overlooking.
    We often don’t allow ourselves time to explore all our thoughts about an issue or a problem. We may interrupt or block our own thinking either by external distraction or by self-limiting thoughts or beliefs. We can limit ourselves to our initial thoughts and hold back from thinking something through fully. In a Thinking Session, my unconditional support as your thinking partner can help you think calmly and with greater confidence about the issues you’re facing. And because it comes from your own thinking, you will be more likely to take the next steps.

  • By thinking for yourself without distraction, without judgement, without intervention, you will be able to think through the issue or problem and fully explore it.

    As Nancy Kline has said “the brain that contains the problem usually contains the solution, and often the best one”.

    I believe that when you can think for yourself without my intervention, you are more likely to reach an insight or discover answers for yourself. I also believe that by thinking things through for yourself, you are more likely to make better decisions, and then make them happen.

    You may find, during a session, that as you are unravelling a problem or figuring out options, you need some information. Sometimes we need information to help us map the way forward. Thinking for yourself will help you clarify if there is information you need in order to make a decision or discover that you already have information that you hadn’t factored in or taken account of.

  • Yes, you can include a Mentoring element as part of the session, if that is something you would value. We can agree to set aside some time at the end of the session, where you can ask me questions from my experience.

    By scheduling this at the end of the session, it allows you to do your independent thinking first, to see how far you can go in your own thinking without needing any input from me. Doing your own thinking first can also help you clarify what questions you want my input on.

  • My commitment is to support you to think well for yourself, not to direct or instruct you.

  • Yes, I am committed to a Code of Ethics and I will treat our thinking sessions with Confidentiality.

  • A Time To Think Coaching Session is sometimes referred to as a Thinking Session. This approach, which is different from other forms of coaching, is based on the principles and practice of the Thinking Environment® as developed by Nancy Kline.  

    In a Thinking Session, my role as Coach is to help you think well and independently for yourself. The issues and questions you bring to the coaching session are best addressed and explored by you, supported by non-judgemental attention from me.  Working in this way, with the promise of no interruption, can produce insights, clarity, new ideas and possibilities for those who commit fully to the thinking sessions.

  • A Thinking Session can be for 60-90 minutes, and I usually recommend committing to 3 or 4 sessions.

    The sessions can be scheduled for 4-6 weeks apart, depending on the circumstances, and will be as agreed between us. The frequency and scheduling of sessions can be discussed in a Discovery Call.

  • My coaching fees are €400 + VAT per session. Please contact me for more details.

  • The venue for sessions can be discussed with each client. One of the components that helps create a Thinking Environment is place, a place where the thinker feels they matter, and where they can be at ease and free of distraction.

    It is possible to hold Thinking Sessions online. However, I aim to meet a client for at least the first session in person in order that we can create a sense of connection for the generative attention that is at the heart of this approach.

  • Before meeting for our first session, I will invite you to consider these questions:

    What do you want to achieve for yourself through these coaching/ thinking sessions?

    What changes or developments will you consider to be signs of success?


    We will revisit your goals at each session and agree what it is you think is most significant and relevant to work on and to achieve. My role at all times is to maintain a supportive and encouraging environment in which you can think through ideas and solutions that work for you.

Frequently Asked Questions About My Courses

  • The entry level courses to learn about Time To Think are either the Foundation (2-day) Programme is which focusses on working with groups or the Thinking Partnership (3-day) Programme which focusses on one-to one application.

    Having completed the relevant foundational course, you can then proceed to the next level courses, each of leads to (following completion of a supervised practicum) qualification as a Time To Think Practitioner. These are the 3-day Facilitator Course or the 4-day Coaching Course. ‍ ‍

    I also run an accredited one-day Transforming Meetings Programme for in-house teams , groups or Boards.

  • The Courses are run in the historic Members Building, RDS, Merrion Road Ballsbridge, Dublin 4. One of the most important conditions for creating a good learning environment is “place”, and you will be in a place that is comfortable and free from distraction.

  • Each course is for a small group.

    The Partnership and Coaching group size is no more than 4 people.

    The Foundation and Facilitator courses are for 4-6 people.

    The Transforming Meetings Programme is ideally for 6-8 people.

  • Yes , I am qualified and authorised by Time To Think Ltd to run these courses, and the courses are accredited by them.

  • I love introducing people to this way of working and this way of being. In my design and delivery of these Programmes, I am committed to the ethos and principles of Time To Think Ltd. If you have any questions about the course content or format, or if you’re unsure about which is the best option for you, book a discovery call and we can talk it through.

  • More information on the work of Nancy Kline and Time to Think Ltd is available here

    References:

    Kline, N. (1999) “Time to Think: Listening to Ignite the Human Mind”, Cassell

    Kline, N (2009) “More Time to Think:  The Power of Independent Thinking”, Cassell

    Kline, N (2020) “The Promise that Changes Everything: I won’t interrupt you”, Penguin Random House UKItem description

Frequently Asked Questions About Facilitation

  • In these sessions, I work with the team or group to co-create an environment where people can experience and learn about this approach. Sessions are experiential and participative and designed to encourage a focus on real and practical challenges where people want to change or address something.

  • Prior to design and delivery of a Session or Workshop, I work with the Client/Sponsor to understand the context and challenges facing the team or group, so they can be taken account of in the design. This includes considering focussed questions that can help generate good thinking in the context of the challenges or issues.

  • When people can think for themselves, in an encouraging and collaborative team environment, it enables them to be more creative, more engaged and enables better problem solving. Valuing different perspectives and diverse thinking builds collaboration and drives innovation.

    It can help people shift perspective, it can lead people to resolve conflict in a respectful way and it can enable change. It can help build accountability as people engage in problem solving.

  • When we are listened to with interest, when others are paying attention, we feel more engaged in what we are thinking and talking about. We feel our thinking matters. And this helps us feel that the meeting matters. When we know that our contributions are being paid attention to, we are more likely to feel involved and be prepared to take responsibility for action.

    Being listened too in this way can lead us to articulate an insight or idea that is new to us, that we didn’t realise we were thinking.

    And it doesn’t just benefit the thinker. When team members listen to each other, it can also trigger fresh thinking for those listening. As team members listen to each other and even as they hear themselves express their own thoughts, it can shift perspectives and spark ideas.

  • Yes, a programme can be designed for an online setting. Creating the Thinking Environment conditions in virtual meetings is a highly effective way to improve connection and interaction for people meeting online and can transform their experience of interactions and meetings.

  • Book a Discovery call or email mary@marypyne.ie to discuss your requirements.

Discover for yourself how to create a Thinking Environment

Discover courses which are designed so you can explore and practice a radical approach to increasing people’s capacity to think well in groups, teams and organisations.

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Build a Thinking Environment with my help

You and your team will experience the components and building blocks of the Thinking Environment methodology, in facilitated sessions designed to focus on a challenge facing the team, so that you generate fresh ideas and fresh thinking. 

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