July 2020 – 4PositiveGrowth

Coaching is a tool that is used to empower individuals and help them reach their goals; it is a structured conversation between the Coach (me) and the Client (you). During a coaching session your coach will walk by your side to help you to reach your ultimate goal and aspirations. They will listen to you, ask questions, find out what your challenges are and inspire you to reach that end goal.

You will be encouraged to make decisions and take responsibility for these decisions.

What coaching is not

Coaching is not about your coach giving you suggestions or advice. They are not mentoring or counselling you. If you commence a series of coaching sessions and it is deemed that coaching is not the correct support mechanism for you at this moment in time this will be discussed with you directly to find a suitable solution to support your onward journey.

How does coaching work?

Different coaches use different models to structure their sessions. A popular model is the GROW model which is an acronym for the areas explored, Goals, Reality, Options and Way forward. This model keeps you moving forward towards your goal. Your coach will be asking you questions, listening to your responses, challenging you whilst all the time remaining non-judgemental regarding the details and not offering you any advice.

How do I know if coaching is right for me?

Do you feel that currently you aren’t reaching your potential and feeling fulfilled?

Is there a gap of where you are now to where you want to be?

Do you sometimes feel you don’t have the skills, resources or confidence to get something complete?

Do you feel stuck and put off making decisions or fail to stick to those decisions you have made?

Are you ready to entertain new and fresh ideas?

Are you willing to be accountable for what you desire?

If you answer yes to any of these questions then coaching can most definitely support you to be the best that you can be.

What will happen during a typical coaching session?

Coaching is predominantly carried out over the telephone, zoom or face to face. The usual procedure is that the client will contact the coach after arranging a convenient time and date.

The duration, content and process for the coaching session is entirely flexible. We are working together to meet your needs and desired outcomes.

Typically however, you will be guided through a 6 point process:

1. Review the previous session and the actions that you completed

2. Set the goal for that session

3. Consider where you are at the present moment with this goal

4. Consider your options in meeting this goal

5. Agree on some actions

6. Summarise the session before completing the session.

Each session will be for 60 minutes unless a longer session has been agreed. The coach will manage the timing of the session and ensure you gain full value from the session.

Who else will know what has been said?

A coaching session is completely confidential. I agree and comply to the Coaching Code of Conduct which you can also access on my website. Only in extreme circumstances will this confidence be breached. This includes the intent to cause harm to yourself or others or criminal acts.

What does the coach need from me during a session?

To make sure that your time is being well spent with your coach you are expected to come to the session fully prepared and with a goal or aspiration in mind that you would like to work towards.

Preparation is very important for the coaching session so you are encouraged to spend 15 minutes prior to the session taking yourself to an environment where you will not be disturbed, with a drink and feeling refreshed to relax prior to the start of the session. You will also need to ensure that you have a pen and paper to hand and any other items that you may think will be useful such as a diary.

I want to start coaching now. What do I do?

You just need to contact me by phone or email to arrange our first session, when we will discuss your requirements in a little more depth and find out how you would like to be coached.

We will focus on talking about you and your aspirations, where you are now and, what you would like to get out of our coaching sessions. We will then agree a time and date for your first coaching session!

I recently delivered a webinar on Procrastination for the Institute of Leadership & Management. The title of the session was ‘Stop sabotaging your success and get on with what is good for you’. In the session, I shared a number of tools and processes to help reduce and manage procrastination including; awareness, knowledge, and perspective.

You can read the full article that supports this session here, or you can watch the session, which is just 30 minutes long, here.

The session generated a huge number of questions from the audience and a number of these questions focused on perspective and beliefs.

Are your beliefs helping or hindering you?

Our beliefs have a direct impact on how we think and act. Beliefs can be helpful to us but they can also hinder us in life. So, what better reflection for 3-2-1 today than beliefs and in this case, positive, resourceful ones!

3 Ideas – Trying on new beliefs

ONLY – There is no such thing as failure, only feedback.

FLEXIBLE – If what you do doesn’t work, be flexible, and try something different.

RESOURCES – People have all the resources they need to succeed.

2 Learnings – Adopting resourceful beliefs

The above beliefs are all NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) Presuppositions. They are not necessarily true, but they can produce useful results for us.

Beliefs are usually self-fulfilling.

‘What you think, you are.’

What we believe is what we think and, how we think impacts how we feel and in turn, how we act.

So by changing what we believe, this can have an immediate and positive impact on our emotions and behaviours.

The second belief ‘If what you do doesn’t work, be flexible, and try something different’ is a great place to start.

This is based on the Law of Requisite Variety. It states that the person with the most flexibility of behaviour will control the system. That basically means that the more choices you have, the more freedom you will feel, and the better a quality of life you can have.

This is a resourceful belief on a personal as well as an organisational level. An organisation that is flexible will respond to changes by evolving. The most flexible organization does not fight change; a flexible organization accepts change as an inevitable part of the business environment, so it learns to maximize its opportunities whenever change comes along.

Similarly, as individuals, if we are able to respond to any situation in a variety of ways, we are more likely to achieve our desired outcome.

Life is 10% what is happening to you and 90% how you react to it.

And in thinking about the outcome or goals you want to achieve, the belief that ‘People have all the resources they need to succeed’ can also be very empowering.

People have all the resources that they need to make the changes that they want or, they can create them.

There are no unresourceful people, only unresourceful states*.

Whenever we do not achieve our desired outcome, we tend to blame other people, external circumstances, our ill-luck, or even our own selves. We either fail to realize that we possess the resources to attain the achievements we aim for or we do not make efficient use of the resources.

It is for us to recognize them and access them.

Resources are both external to us and internal within us.

What resources do you have available to you?

What assumptions are you making that are limiting your resources?

What resources will you build on to achieve your desired outcome?

1 Positive Action – Embrace feedback

‘There is no such thing as failure. Only feedback exists.’

All experiences are an opportunity for reflection, learning, and growth.

Whether this is success or failure, it is always valuable to ask, what did I learn from the experience?

What went well?

What can I improve on?

What and how will I change?

What and how will I do things differently?

My own experience of embracing this belief is that I have been able to reduce or eliminate many fears that would have stopped me from taking action in life.

“Better to have tried and failed than to have never tried at all.”

And also ‘better to have tried and failed than to live a life wondering what would’ve happened if you had tried’ – Alfred Lord Tennyson

What positive action will you take?

* States in this context are emotional states of being.

What is Coaching?

Resourceful Beliefs

3 Ideas – Trying on new beliefs

2 Learnings – Adopting resourceful beliefs

1 Positive Action – Embrace feedback

What positive action will you take?

Let’s explore how we can help you –

Choose what works for you – schedule a FREE DISCOVERY CALL using our Calendly link, OR contact us on the details below, OR send us your details – it would be our pleasure to give you a call.