of Coaching
Who is coached?
- People who want more of something in their lives.
- Clients who have projects that could use some extra support.
- Groups that are lacking clarity of their future.
- Individuals who want a more fulfilling career.
- People who want to become leaders.
- Organizations that lack direction.
- Families that lack fun and loving.
- Business owners who want more effectiveness without more stress.
- Professionals that want to expand their practice in a logical manner.
- Any human who wants to discover and leverage that 'special stuff' that each of us possess but rarely make the most of.
What is coaching?
Coaching is a dynamic process of individual growth in which you and your coach co-create the life you really want to live. You build a relationship with your coach in which the only agenda is your agenda. Your coach will accept you right where you are, give you honest feedback, brainstorm with you, encourage and support you as you make the changes you desire to enhance your work life, personal life and spiritual development.
Coaching is so complex and yet so simple that describing how it works is all but impossible to do. Some typical distinctions are:
coaching vs. counseling
Counseling tends to look to your past and focuses on understanding and resolving deeper emotional issues.
Coaching tends to look to your present and is very action oriented - "What can be done today to make life better now and in the future?"
coaching vs. consulting
A consultant typically assesses your situation, provide a solution to your problem, and then leaves.
A coach guides you through your own assessment, helps you identify your own best solution, and stays with you as you implement your own strategies.
coach vs. mentor
A mentor has become successful in the line of work you have chosen. S/he can guide you and assist you in learning from his/her mistakes and successes. Mentors typically do not charge for their services.
A coach needs to know very little about your job because we coach "who" the client is, not what s/he does. In addition to an excellent understanding of human nature, a professional coach has been trained to coach many different types of personalities engaged in an infinite variety of endeavors, both in their careers and in their personal lives. Coaches charge for their services.
coach vs. friend/loved one
A friend or loved one can have several agendas: "I'll help you if you help me." "I really want to prove I'm a better ________ than you are." "I really like you the way you are and I don't' want you to change." You get the idea.
A professional coach has only one agenda: your growth and development.
coaching is NOT therapy!
Counseling or psychotherapy is about resolving the past, where as coaching is looking forward at opportunities and the possibilities in one's future.
Therapy is about understanding; Coaching is about action
Therapy is about safety; Coaching is about momentum
Therapy is about progress; Coaching is about performance
Therapy is about protecting; Coaching is about attracting
Therapy is about resolving; Coaching is about creating
Therapy is about getting closure; Coaching is about creating new openings
coaching specialties: personal, business, etc.
There is very little difference in coaching specialties. The two most widely known "niches" are business and personal coaches. Business coaches may focus a little more on the "what," but since any business is a direct reflection of the person(s) running it, your work with a personal coach can still promote tremendous improvement in your business or career activity.
Coaches are always coming up with new ways to set themselves apart - creativity coach, strategy coach, life coach, spiritual coach, etc. It's just a way to let people know they are interested in a particular kind of situation, but good coaching is still always directed to who you are, not your line of work or a given situation. Ultimately, everything is personal!
Where does coaching takes place?
Any where you want it to? All my clients have special needs, so some work with me weekly in my office, some have weekly telephone sessions, and some like to mix the in-person with the telephone session, while also getting coached 'on-line'.
It is your life -- what fits best for you ?
When does coaching take place?
Coaching works best when regular contact is made -- usually weekly. What Olympic athlete hasn't used a coach to win the gold metal? They understand the measurable value of that 'extra something' that comes from having someone work directly with you, to point out stuff you can not see, to encourage and challenge you to go beyond your limits and perceived limitations. By having regular contact with a coach, corrections are easier to make, and new possibilities emerge.
Performers like dancers and singer usually use a coach to bring out their best. These professionals rely on the interdevelopmental relationship that coaching offers on a consistent basis. By having regular sessions, honest, no-holds-barred discussions help solve problems and develop strategies that can not be done alone.
How does coaching work?
Having a strong desire to achieve something, a willingness to learn, and an openness to include someone else in your process is essential to how this relationship evolves. That's all you need -- that is it!!! You do not even need to know exactly what your goals are, or have everything in order in your life. These issues will be part of the coaching process. Come as you are - it's the best place to start.
Coaching works by three basic reasons.
1) Collaborative partnership - having a coach is having someone who understands the creative and achievement process. The coach knows when to pull, when to push, and when to shut up -- is on your side and will help you focus on your strengths and not waste your time on your weaknesses,
2) Weekly sessions - keeps you connected frequently. By talking regularly each week via telephone or in-person, provides a supportive framework for whatever you are working on. You create a tighter focus, generate more commitment and take actions to fulfill your goals.
3) Personal focus - you focus on you, not just your goals. We say there are two parts to sustainable success -- the WHO (you) and the WHAT (the goal). To work exclusively on the goal (the WHAT) can make you one dimensional, thus limiting the opportunity you have to develop and evolve, which are key to long term fulfillment. After all, goals usually do not bring fulfillment. You bring fulfillment. Reaching goals, while very important, is only one aspect of living well.
An overview of typical client successes
- Increased ability to focus
- Greater clarity in one's thinking
- Spiritual growth
- Increased honesty with one's self
- More awareness of various options
- Better decisions, based on the truth
- More action
- Quicker results
- Less hard work - as in "effort"
- Achieve more goals
- Higher productivity
- Reduced stress
- Better health
- Improved relationships
- More time for family, leisure - more to life than just work
- Greater satisfaction in life
- More joy in life
Typical reasons to seek coaching
You are ready for coaching when something is missing in your life and you are ready to do something about it.
Or perhaps you are working too hard and accomplishing too little and are ready to do something about it.
Or you want to be "there" instead of "here" and you are ready to do something about it.
The key is that you are ready to do something about it, to take action, to make the changes you see as essential to having your life the way you want it to be. You may:
and tell you the truth in all things
In other words, regardless of the individual indicators you are seeing in your life, personal fulfillment and joy are still just out of reach. And if you want to design and build a life in which you can grow and evolve into the best person you can become, a life which reflects the values you hold dear - and you don't want to start back at "square one" to do it!
Who can benefit from coaching?
Almost anyone. The best candidates for coaching are people who are fed up with something in their lives and are ready to take action to make things better. You are most likely to achieve the results you want if you are willing and able to make the changes you identify in coaching as being of value to you.
Exceptions would include those who only want to talk about making changes, who truly don't have the necessary resources to make the desired changes, or who prefer the status quo despite its misery.
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Website created by Terry Schaefer, easy associates, Inc. and EASYlife Coaching®