The Magic of Metaphor in Coaching Outdoors
Coaching is full of natural metaphors; “What is dawning for you right now?”, “What lies down that path?”, “What would help you to flourish?”. By incorporating metaphor in our coaching approach we facilitate opportunity for illumination on experiences, creative thinking, problem-solving and new perspectives, thus enhancing the potential for positive change. Couple that, with the outdoors providing a comfortable space for exploring situations that are often difficult to articulate in conventional coaching settings, and you’ve got a magical partnership.
This article reflects on what metaphors are, outlines the benefits of metaphor, looks at why they align so well to coaching outdoors and explores how and when they show up. Read on to find out how seasons can symbolise life stages, weather patterns represent emotional states, woodlands reflect systems, landscapes offer journeys and animals embody personal strengths or challenges.
I realised today in our coaching session that just as the birch tree peels its layers of bark, that I can deal with my overwhelming amount of life challenges in layers, I don’t have to do it all at once, that would be too much. One layer at a time, when I am ready, just like the birch. - A. Client, 2025
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What Do We Mean by Metaphor?
Metaphor, Mirror and Parallel Process can all be considered in the same realm when coaching outdoors. Let’s take a quick journey through each.
A metaphor is a figure of speech that involves comparing two things (using "like" or "as," is characteristic of a simile, which in my book is the same as a metaphor!). For example, the inclusion of the metaphor ‘stormed’ in the sentence "He stormed out the room" conveys so much more than “He left the room” and for coaches, offers up an opportunity for exploration of their clients thinking and experience.
Mirror
When coaching outdoors Nature offers us a mirror. Here’s a really lovely example from a coaching session I had with a client;
“That tulip over there, the one that is green and pink with the frilly edges, that has been gloriously blousy and bright but has now lost a few petals and is drooping, that’s exactly how I’m feeling. The event went well and I’m pleased with my contribution, I know it was valuable and impactful, but I’m now drooping. I can only keep that up for so long.” – A. Client, 2025
Parallel Process
Parallel Processes (Searles, 1955) refers to the phenomenon where patterns or dynamics in the coaching relationship mirror those in the client's personal or professional life. In coaching outdoors, there is a third party in the relationship – Nature, and it may be there that the parallel process is found - Nature offering a twin of the client’s experience. For instance, a swan on a canal in the nesting season aggressively defending its territory by raising up and beating its wings at ducks and passers-by can parallel a client’s experience of a line manager who becomes aggressive when they are under pressure and people challenge them.
Sometimes Nature’s parallel may be something the coach experiences;
It was a winter morning and I began the [coaching] session without much of a view due to the mist hanging over the river. Towards the end of our conversation, I found myself back at the same spot on the river bank. I was asking my client about her insights from the session when I found myself looking at a beautiful view in glorious sunshine. I shared with her what I was seeing. The perfect clarity now the mist had lifted, which chimed with her getting clarity from our conversation.
(Roberts, 2022, p.136.)
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The Power & Benefits of Metaphor for Coach & Client
Metaphor in coaching was first studied by David Grove, an extraordinarily inventive counselling psychotherapist and coach who developed numerous processes to help people know and heal themselves. In the 1980’s Grove worked with traumatised clients whom he noticed naturally used metaphors to describe their experiences. He developed a form of metaphor therapy he called Clean Language to explore the complex world of the clients’ inner experiences. Grove recognised that the metaphors people related were deeply personal due to them being intrinsically liked to lived experience, values, desires and each individual’s context. He developed the tool of Clean Language to give priority, when searching the clients sense making, to ensuring that the metaphor’s exploration was not tainted by the coach’s own ‘map of the world’.
Metaphors help us synthesise, store and sort vast amounts of data. We encode our significant experiences in metaphor so we can efficiently store them and other similar learnings in our subconscious minds for later use. Metaphors offer a bounty of riches for coaches and clients to explore, working at both the conscious and the unconscious levels. They offer a shortcut to symbols from the unconscious mind, thus helping us to unlock, understand and make sense of complex thoughts and experiences through symbolic representation (Lakoff & Johnson, 1980).
Metaphor exploration is a powerful coaching tool and is recognised by the ICF in their ‘8 core competencies of coaching’, here metaphors are cited as part of communicating effectively with our clients and in evoking awareness – facilitating ‘client insight and learning by using tools and techniques such as powerful questioning, silence, metaphor or analogy.’ When outdoors a coach can offer a client, “Take a look around you and select something (plant, animal, landscape, weather, etc.) that represents the person you are talking about.” The door is then open to clean questions; “What is it that drew you to X?”, “In what way does the [repeating their chosen words to the previous question] of X relate to Y?”, “Is there anything else about X?” and so on. Each answer opening the door to new avenues for exploration. Metaphors can also enhance memory and retention of insights from coaching sessions, research shows that metaphors make abstract ideas more concrete and memorable (Gibbs, 1994).
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Metaphor and Coaching Outdoors
People have a widespread affiliation with natural metaphors. Hungarian professor of linguistics Zoltán Kövecses has shown that four out of six of the most-used sources of metaphors are in the living or physical worlds, arising from weather, elements or biology. Intrinsically we are drawing on our natural world connection to help us better understand, not a huge surprise given that we are a product of Nature. “We are designed to be connected to the natural world, to listen to the wind and taste the air.” (Dr Qing Li, 2018, p.12).
The natural world offers an abundant oasis of metaphoric material in a way that the dessert of a room cannot. When we coach outdoors, we are increasing our toolbox many times over.
Metaphor is abundant in the outdoors… the space offers a language for people that don’t necessarily know how to put words to their feelings… In a place full of metaphor, you can see what they’re drawn to and say ‘[in what way] is that relevant?’
(Dr Ruth Allen, Ramblings, 12 March 2020)
The natural world offers a vast array of symbolic imagery that reflects the challenges, opportunities and experiences individuals face in their personal and professional lives. The presence of animals, landscapes, and natural elements in coaching outdoors provides an embodied experience of metaphors allowing the individual to see their challenges and opportunities in a new light.
Nature has the ability to evoke strong emotional responses (Kaplan & Kaplan, 1989), which can help clients engage more deeply with the issues they are working through. For example, a client struggling with change may relate to the concept of a tree evolving through the seasons and surviving floods, frosts and droughts. Walking under a tree in autumn and experiencing the leaves gently falling around them, as part of that cycle of change, brings a very visceral experience of the elegance of letting go. They are experiencing a role model in action. Natural metaphors resonate because they draw upon universal symbols that are deeply embedded in human cognition. Wilson (1984).
Seasons are not the only place with abundant metaphors on offer, landscapes too have an evocative power. Additionally, the presence of natural elements; wind, water, earth, and fire can serve as powerful metaphors for emotional states and life cycles. The wind might represent change ‘a breath of fresh air’ or risk taking ‘throwing caution to the wind’, while water might symbolize emotional depth ‘still waters run deep’ or the fluidity of life ‘go with the flow’. Each metaphor being authored by the client in reference to their situation and life experiences.
Sometimes Nature automatically offers us a mirror or reflection to something we are experiencing or talking about. Unlike seeking out a metaphor, where we may have invited the client to find something that represents something else, where the stimulus has come from the coach, sometimes a metaphor, mirror or parallel experience comes along unprompted by the coach. In “stepping back and letting, nature in” (Roberts, 2022, p.129) to the coaching relationship, we accomplish a number of things, not least getting out of the way and enhancing the opportunity for communication between our client and the natural world. In doing so, we create the space for Nature to be the coach and for us to quietly observe and hold space for what unfolds.
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Examples of Natural Metaphors in Action
Landscape
The landscape we find ourselves in is full of rich opportunity for creativity and insight. For example, the terrain may present metaphoric representations for the obstacles or opportunities the client faces in their personal or professional life. As the client navigates the physical terrain, they might simultaneously reflect on the ‘rocks, hills or cracks’ in their path; whether it’s self-doubt, limiting beliefs, or external challenges. Perhaps the terrain offers ‘gateways’, ‘junctions’ or ‘stepping stones’, reflecting choices, opportunities or first steps in the right direction. Coming across bridges and water can be great gifts for coaching too; “How might you bridge the gap between your current state and your desired state?”. Rivers are commonly associated with the idea of flow and adaptability. A river may symbolise one’s life journey, with twists and turns representing challenges, while a calm, steady stream may role model ease and clarity of direction. Water also offers the potential for reflecting both our internal and external worlds; “looking at yourself in the pond, what do you see reflected back?” or for a moment’s reflection “take some time to sit by the river and connect with how you are feeling.” Watching water as it moves draws our eye gaze down thus engaging with our internal sensations (Bandler & Grinder, 1975).
Here’s an example of actively bringing the terrain into a coaching session; JP has been talking about a difficult situation where she is struggling to make headway. Just as I ask, “How long can you continue in this way?” we arrive at a clearing with views over the water. To our left is a path bordered by fields that takes us to a bench at the water’s edge; to the right the path continues into the woods. I ask JP, “Which path would you like to take?”. We are both aware that I’m talking about the route ahead and her difficult situation.
Seasons
We’ve already seen how seasons can be a powerful metaphor in coaching, they offer such variety and collectively, they offer a cycle. The transition from Winter into Spring for example, can symbolise a journey of challenge, rest and renewal. A coach might ask a new client; “If your life were in a season, which one would it be right now?” With one of my coaching clients; we were reflecting on how he is moving towards the autumn of his life. A time to celebrate success, harvest the rewards of years of work, share the harvest with others and let go of things that are weighing him down as his energy reduces (we don’t have the fizzing mitochondria that we once had, a friend of mine observed!). We were also struck by how, at this time of transition, there are still light filled, energetic summer days.
Animals as Archetypes
Archetypes are fundamental, universal patterns of behavior and character that appear across species, cultures and time. They are essentially ‘original patterns’ or ‘models’ that we use to understand and interpret the world. Animals can serve as powerful archetypes for personal qualities; ‘wise owl’, ‘prickly’, ‘bevering away’, ‘quiet as a mouse’ for example. A really simple offering I make to clients is to share what the archetype of the animal they have encountered is. For example, if we are lucky enough to encounter a kingfisher, I’d offer one of the following, depending on which I thought would serve the most value to the client; “I wonder what message the kingfisher has for you?” or “What do you associate kingfishers with? and in what way is that relevant?” or “Did you know that kingfishers symbolise beauty, speed, success and serenity? I wonder how or if, any of that relates to your situation?”
Sometimes we meet animals when we are just out for a walk minding our own business - I came across a fox the other day while on a walk across the fields, I’ve lived in the area for 12 years and not encountered one so I was both delighted and curious about what message Fox may have for me. Fox is cunning and clever, using its big ears to know when to stay hidden, moves with stealth and is adaptable. It gave me pause for thought, in what way would those traits serve me well with my current problem? Thank you Fox for superb stimulus.
Two final offerings with animals; I like the question “Which animal could help you with this?” it invites creativity and offers a metaphor to explore. And, while out with a client, animals are great for offering perspective; “What advice would the blackbird offer you?” or “What does the horse notice about your situation?”
Plants and Trees
Woodlands are amazing ecosystems with their biodiversity and interconnectedness. The relationships and roles in the woods provide superb metaphoric material for groups and systemic representations. Experience has also taught me that people easily connect with trees, finding real insight in the simple metaphor of tree roots being their values, identity and purpose that help to keep them anchored and weather any storm. That they can select a tree to represent themselves or others - this is a story from one of my clients, we always meet and walk in the same place;
NG wanted to explore his style of leadership, saying he didn’t know what type of leader he was. I invited him to look around us at all the trees, both near and far, and to pick one that he was drawn to. I then asked him to describe what he saw when he looked at the tree.
“It’s next to the water, standing alone from the other larger trees but near some little trees.” “And what else?” “It’s enjoying the view, being able to see all around.” “Anything else?” “It’s providing shelter for the smaller trees.” “And in what way does that relate to your leadership?” “I’m not with the crowd of other leaders. I’m standing alone, a bit different. I like to stay connected to the people that are coming up, to help and support them. That interests me far more than all the politics and meetings of senior leaders. It’s the people beneath me that are important.”
NG kept being drawn back to the tree metaphor. The conversation expanded from him as a leader to the system (the landscape around) and the challenges he might face (fierce sun, hard frost, flooding). We have been able to come back to this tree as an anchor. It gives us a short cut to that moment and a rich language. We’ve also visited the tree through the seasons and considered whether what the tree is experiencing at the time is mirrored in NG’s present experience.
The last story I’d like to share with you is a wonderful example of Nature as coach from Miranda Hart. You can find this in her book; ‘I Haven’t been Entirely Honest with You’. Describing old and unhelpful patters re-appearing. Miranda was lying on the grass in her garden and noticed a bamboo plant…
There was a dying brown branch and leaf entangled within a clump of fresh, green, healthy leaves. The dying branch was pulling them one way and they wanted to go another. It was a tug. I thought to myself, ‘What a horrible deathly grip that brown leaf has on those fresh green leaves that want to freely dance in the wind.’ I was being shown a beautiful and natural image of what the raging mind does. The raging, worried mind (the brown leaf) attacks healthy thoughts and values and pulls us away from freedom and ability to be who we want to be in that moment. I walked over to pull the long, thin, dying branch away. It had wound round and choked the bamboo. I slowly unraveled it and pulled it up from its root. The healthy leaves separated from their entwining, seemingly exhaling, and moved to their natural position and settled…. A tiny miracle in my tiny garden.
(Hart, 2024, p.353.)
Metaphor for the Coach
And what is Nature offering you as you coach? Either on your personal time in Nature (remember Fox!) or while with your clients. She’s a great partner in the relationship resourcing the coach too - notice what your attention is drawn to as you coach. Here’s a lovely example;
An experience I had just last week that I shared with my client, where nature offered a parallel process. We were walking through a patch of woodland next to the water’s edge. The client was talking about the impact that their line manager’s behaviour was having on them. I had a hunch that they were reading into the situation something that wasn’t there but wasn’t sure whether to offer it or not as I didn’t want to appear dismissive of their feelings and I could well have been wrong. Walking side by side, I was enjoying the view out over the water. I knew that the client was looking at the woodland with its dappled shade and carpet of bluebells. I became aware that the experience we were having mirrored my intuition – there being more than one view and him not having that perspective. I offered, “Let’s stop a moment, there’s something I’d like to show you”. We talked about the two views and he shared that he hadn’t considered an alternative reason for his line manager’s behaviour.
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Mastering Metaphor
Natural metaphors offer coaches and clients powerful tools for reflection, creativity and insight. The use of metaphors rooted in Nature not only facilitates cognitive change but also provide a means to reconnect with our innate capacity for growth and transformation removing, our human imposed, self-limiting beliefs in the process.
Our opportunity as coaches is to observe and sometimes offer these metaphorical opportunities when they present themselves. Knowing when they add value and when they might be a distraction, or not resonate, is a bit of trial and error, but, with practice and listening to your intuition, it gets easier and contracting to do it smooths the path.
Through collaborating with Nature both coach and client are able to access a richness beyond what is already known to them. When coaches collaborate with Nature in their coaching relationships, Nature supports the evolution of the coach, the client and their relationship. She becomes a valued partner offering support and insight, for all, that cannot be found indoors.
So, I urge you to frolic with metaphorical tools in Nature and enjoy what blossoms.
Lesley
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