When I tell people that I am a Life Coach I get puzzled looks. Then I get questions. Then I start the process of explaining what I do. Simply put, I help people become better versions of themselves. Who doesn’t want that right? As humans we like more, we like better, we like having a path to follow. The easier it is to get to success and wealth the better. But that is not coaching. That is a pyramid scheme. Sure Coaches have tools, tricks, and tips to help make this path easier but coaching is not do this and you’ll get that.
Coaching is a profession based on service. It takes a genuine interest in helping others work through challenges and set goals. I may not have the answers that you want to hear, or I might not have the answers at all. My job as a coach is to stay on top of the curve if not ahead of it. Coaching is as introspective as it is extrospective. A coach would try to draw out the reason behind a goal and break it down. The process of making the goal as easy to follow and getting the desired result. It doesn’t end there though.
Having action steps and a method of accountability increases your success. If you complete your steps without fail, we would check to see if we set the bar to low, or if you encounter inspiration what ways we can trigger it more frequently and amplify your progress. It works the other way as well if we missed days or ran into complications. What tools can we implement? What happened in our environment this week? How can I help you fine tune your process to hit your goals on the next week?
After seeing the results where else do you want to go with that goal? Where did it take you internally? Coaching becomes so much more, the more you use it. The title may come from sports and every team may have one, but think about what that coach is to their team. A great coach makes a great team better. They push them to their limits not only to test them but to prove that they are growing. Why wouldn’t you want one for yourself? For your business? For your health?
Yes, there is an element of leadership that is required while coaching, but a coach is not your boss. A coach helps you find the aspects of yourself that serve you at the highest level. It would be like handing you your keys to your fully tuned up properly fueled vehicle with preprogrammed destinations on the dashboard screen. Reminding you that you were the one that made those discernments and then inviting you to come back soon to share your story again next time.
For those of you keeping score at home here is a list of reasons that you or anyone should have a coach.
1. Focused Goal Formation: What is your most important goal? The one you are thinking of right now. What does your life look like when you complete it? Is it a goal that completes you and has a finite end, or does it simply move you closer to a theme or value in your life? What is the first step that you need to take to realize your goal? Think of some action steps that can make this goal into a plan. Now we find a way to fit it into your daily life and make it as easy to achieve as possible.
2. How to overcome a challenge or puzzle: What is in your way? How does it complicate your progress? Do you have all the pieces? What have you tried to do to overcome this obstacle? Is there a skill you could learn to help? Do you know anyone that has overcome this issue before? There are even a few exercises that a coach could bring you through to help find new motivation or try to change the way you have worked through it until now.
3. Mindset training: How do you view the events of your life unfolding? Does it happen to you or do you make it happen? Do you live are reactively, or proactively? Can you change your circumstances or are they what they are? This is a huge area that I love to help with and I have seen leaps and bounds of improvement in my own life by increasing my mindfulness practices. Becoming self-aware, creating, finding, and exploring personal values. Having the ability to be mindfully present as you go through the day is akin to having superpowers in my opinion.
4. Experience and insight: The Coaches that I have trained with, talk to, or read about all have a few things in common. They have gone through a period of personal development that changed them so significantly that they are now inspired to do the same with others. They have taken the time to learn about why our minds work the way they work. The Coaching world is constantly evolving based on studies of neuroscience, psychology, and the integration of eastern spirituality practices. All of this information is mixed into an individual that is uniquely designed to assist anyone develop along a path of their choosing. Coaching is Coachee driven after all.
Now a lot of the confusion around what Coaching is would be that a Life Coach or Personal Development Coach sounds a lot like what we expect from a Therapist or Psychologist (yes those are two different things too). Therapists and Psychologists are degree-based occupations that require licensing to practice and are heavily regulated. They tend to be past-focused and focus on healing traumas or creating an extensive evaluation for medical reasons. Coaches are based in the present and creating a clear path to the future. While we may draw attention to an issue that may be a persistent block of progress, we only use it as an introspective tool instead of a focus.
Another confusing factor is the number of niches that a Coach could focus on. In addition to the fact that most Coaches will broaden their focus as their career and practice evolve. How do you know what kind of Coach you need? Well that one is more simple than you would think. What is your greatest need right now to make your life complete? What made you look into Coaching in the first place? If you do not know where your challenges lay, or you just want to develop all areas of life try looking toward a Life Coach that targets everything. Looking to take your business to the next level? Look towards a Business Coach or a Consultant. Want to level up your athletic capabilities? Find a Personal Trainer or a Health Coach.
For the record, I am a Life Coach that focuses on the areas of Business, Entrepreneurship, Leadership, Mindset, Meditation, and Habit Formation.
So what brought you here? Did you just want to see what Coaching is? Are you looking for a coach? Whatever the reason I hope you gained some insight on how I or another Coach could help you. My goal here is to be able to help as many people as possible, even if that means that I don’t work with you directly. Any positive impact that I can bring into this world makes it just a little bit better place for those that come after us.
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