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What is coaching?
In sports, a coach keeps you focused on your game. In life, a coach helps you to expand your thinking when you’re stuck, to clarify your focus when you are confused, to set and meet goals when you’d rather let your life slide on by. A coach is someone who makes the journey with you, helps you get clear about exactly what you’d like to have happen, and points out how to take advantage of the opportunities that come your way.
You may want to work with a coach when you are planning a large project or change in your life, such as a career change, or to get extra clarity during a difficult time, or just to come up with an overall life plan.
Group coaching provides long-term, affordable support through a community of people with similar interests.
How can coaching help me?
When you’re stuck, a coach asks questions that provide you with a bigger perspective, with more options and possibilities, and helps you decide how best to move forward. A coach helps you set goals, and also understand the challenges involved in meeting them, and provides tools to make sure that you meet your goals.
Coaches are specially trained in seeing into the heart of matters, and bringing forth your best self, while providing compassionate understanding and a firm commitment to your progress. Having a coach keeps you on track, moving toward your dreams, and making them into reality.
Getting coaching is not a lifetime commitment! Ideally, you get coaching of a project, work the project for a few months or years, and come back for more coaching when you are ready to tackle a new project. You can get coaching when you need clarity or support, slow down or take a respite from coaching, and return when you need more support. I believe that coaching is an open relationship where you get help and support only when you need it.
What areas do you offer coaching in?
The techniques coaches have to offer apply to any situation where people are stuck or struggling, or just wanting to play a bigger game. Areas where I have received special training, and have special interest are in Creativity and Life Transitions.
Creativity coaching includes everything from helping professional writers through a tough spot in their career, to showing people how to incorporate creativity into their daily lives, to setting goals and creating accountability for someone who’s “always wanted to write a book,” to using art to make meaning of life’s events and adventures.
My Life Transitions coaching involves using nature’s wisdom to understand where you are in your particular life transition, and what are the best tools to use to move into your next phase, or “season.” Examples of transitions include moving into a new career, ending a relationship, losing a job, having a baby, losing a loved one. Anything which brings change into our life in a big way is a life transition. Each season of the year has wisdom to help creatures survive that season and move to the next. We can borrow that wisdom to help us navigate our own transitions: Fall brings the understanding that life is going to be changing; Winter is a time of retreat, and considering what our options are; Spring is a time to begin moving into action; Summer is a time when things are going smoothly and life is abundant. When we’re entering Fall or Winter, it’s sometimes hard to believe we will ever make it back to summer. A coach not only helps you to remember that, but provides you with tools to keep moving gracefully through that change.
What is the difference between individual and group coaching?
Group coaching is when a group of people interested in the same general topic get together to share wisdom, expand their thinking, and learn from each other and from the coach, who facilitates this experience. Groups can be very action oriented, such as being focused on providing support for members around accomplishing specific goals within a specific time frame, or can be a more casual adventure, such as exploring information around a particular topic. Group coaching is fun, supportive, and economical.
If you prefer one-on-one attention and support, then individual coaching is the best option for you. Individual coaching assures that the coach is focused entirely on you and your issues, challenges, and goals; there is greater privacy, and more time each week is spent on you! With individual coaching you can make faster, more individualized progress.
What is the difference between coaching and talking to a friend?
Like a coach, your friend may be a really good listener.
But coaches are also specially trained to keep their agenda out of the conversation, and to ask the hard questions that a friend might not want to ask, rather than just agreeing with you. Coaches are able to expand possibilities, listen without judging, and keep your confidentiality. Coaches set up a space where you can play with ideas for your life. Coaches hold the bigger picture, so that you can sort out the details. Coaches provide support for you to put things in action. Coaches don’t let anything come between you and your highest good! Even when we have wonderful friends who have all those qualities, they don’t always have time to stick with us on a project for a few months. That’s where coaches really make the difference!
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