01 Wunderleiter

Levels of the Wunderleiter

Purpose

Purpose refers to something bigger than just one person. It is the higher good, the impact someone wants to have on the world.

Someone’s purpose or sense of meaning and contribution is not part of the Wunderleiter yet. It is the goal, to which this ladder leads.

• Coaching Ears: When someone speaks about the greater good, higher goals, legacy…
• Coaching Questions: What is the purpose of all of this? What will this leave behind for others, for the future? What is the positive impact this will have on the people you love – or all people?

Identity

Psychological identity is a personas sense of self. What they think about themselves, who they believe they are. Identity in this sense is not a fixed entity that never changes. Instead, it can vary in different contexts, where people show different facets and sides of themselves depending on mood, environment, activation and other elements. In coaching and developmental work, we see identity as the sum of the “inner team”. Depending on who is currently in charge, a person might think, feel and behave in different ways and show different sides of themselves.

• Coaching Ears: “I am someone who…” “I am not like that” “I, as (a mom, an athlete, an accountant), see it this way” “One side of me feels this is too hard, but another side is motivated to try it.” “I say to myself ” (Which side says something to which other side?)
• “Who are you in this role?” “Who are you in this moment?” “What title/nickname could you give yourself in this moment?” “What other sides do you notice, when you think of x?” “Who are you, when…” “Who do you become when…”

Changes at the identity level are usually activation patterns of different facets, sides, different members of the inner team.

Values
(in many variations of this model values are part of “identity”)

What is important to a person and motivates them. Values can be very diverse, ranging from adventure to satisfaction, from prosperity to work-life balance, from love and family to success and prestige. Values are usually closely linked to the purpose, but while the purpose is an outcome, values are the driving force that bring energy to persue this goal.

• Coaching Ears: “The most important thing is…” “Without … it makes no sense” “For me, … is important.” “What really matters…”
• Coaching Questions: “What do you achieve with that?” “How does this make you feel?” “Why is it important to you?” “What is your motivation?” “What are you striving towards?”

Changes at the level of values are usually a shift in priorities. For example, from professional success to health after an illness. Or from excitement to security after becoming a parent.

Beliefs

Beliefs represent what people believe about the world and how it works. Beliefs shape someone’s logic and reasoning. The level of beliefs includes speculations, hypotheses, assumptions, certainties and convictions. The scale can range from uncertain to absolutely certain.

• Coaching Ears: “If… then…” “It is like this: …” “Always, never, all, nobody…”“Men are…“ „Women are…“ „The world is…“ „Selling is difficult.“ „Selling is easy.“
• Coaching Questions: “How would you explain this?” “How does this work?” “What are the reasons for x?” “What needs to happen for y?”

Changes at the level of beliefs can have a lasting impact when they update the worldview and enable new actions.

Competence

What a person can already do, encompassing professional competence, self-competence, social competence, and methodological competence.

• Coaching Ears: Descriptions of one’s abilities. Sometimes on a conscious level: „I am good at this.“ “I don’t know how to do this.” „This comes easily to me.“ but often also on an implicit level by showing something with ease or avoiding a challenge altogether.
• Coaching Questions: What exactly did you have to learn for that? How did you learn it? What exactly would I need to learn to do that too? Can you teach this to me? What else could you learn?

Changes at the competence level are often achieved through training, practice, and learning.

Behavior

Actions observable from the outside, including communication and interaction with the environment. Emotional responses can also be part of this level.

• Coaching Ears: All descriptions of actions, including communication, thinking, and emotions, can be considered behavior.
• Coaching Questions: What exactly are you doing? How exactly did you feel then? Have you ever reacted differently? How do you want to behave?

Changes at the behavioral level range from automatic to complex. Simple behavioral changes, such as operating a new coffee machine, are possible at a moment’s notice. Changing habits and routines typically requires a longer process with frequent repetitions.

Environment

The context in which behavior occurs, including other people. The environment (just like the level of purpose) is not part of the Wunderleiter, but represents the foundation on which is placed. It includes, people, places, things, but also other people’s behaviors and communication. Therefore, the sociological construct of culture is also part of the environment.

• Coaching Ears: Statements describing environments, places, other people, and general external sensory impressions: visual (what I see), auditory (what I hear), haptic/kinesthetic (what is feels like to the touch, weight, movement), olfactory/gustatory (what it smells and tastes like).
• Coaching Questions: Where exactly? With whom exactly? When exactly? What does it look like there? Can you describe it in more detail? What are the others doing exactly?

Changes in the environment can be achieved by physically changing it (moving furniture, building a house) , visiting different places, surrounding oneself with different people.