A common question raised by new coaches is: When can I share my experience and expertise with teachers I am coaching to help them improve? It is a logical question. Many coaches know that they were chosen for the role in part because their peers respect them as a teacher. They know the instructional strategies they have used give them credibility with other teachers at their school, and their training as a coach helped them develop more expertise. Naturally, the coach may wonder, why not take on the role of expert? While coaches understand that their peers need a colleague who provides a safety net and the kind of support that encourages innovation, they remind themselves that successful coaches call on strategies that ensure that their peers develop the capacity to improve their practice. To avoid taking ownership of the learning, successful coaches discuss and develop the roles they will play with their peers and school leadership. Coaches need to understand that their learning partners, like rock climbers, need to be able to act on their own when they reach the crux of the problem. Coaches use a variety of communication skills to make inquiry work. Coaches who know how to shape strong collaborative norms and use inquiry effectively will be most successful at helping their colleagues develop the capacity to improve teaching and learning. Effective coaches remember that taking on the role of expert can help create learned helplessness. but using inquiry helps teachers build the capacity to improve teaching and learning.