Coaching: A Passion: Bringing Balance
Coaching: A Passion. Having recovered from the devastating illness of ME in 2008 by using an NLP process, I was triggered into spending a full 12 months training in the coaching disciplines. Life, business and executive coaching is a big field, and we each delved deep and learned some hard lessons along the way. I remain well to this day. I have worked in training and development for over 20 years and practised as a coach and clinical supervisor for the past fifteen years. I see the evidence over and over the potency of this work. Accompanying an individual for a time on their unique journey is a privilege.
Coaching: A Passion
“You’ll never plough a field by turning it over in your mind.”
Irish Proverb
Western society places greater emphasis on our cerebral skills over our intuitive expertise. I know that the coaching process can bring these two things back into balance.
I truly believe you already have your answers – if you learn to hear them. I also know from experience that your travels needn’t be taken alone. It’s so much easier and more enjoyable to explore with someone championing you, to tackle your challenges when someone is encouraging you, and it’s really valuable to have someone to hold you accountable kindly and to celebrate your achievements with you. I know how much courage it has taken for you to reach your goals. That is what this coach will do for you.
It’s also an ethical ‘Pay It Forward’ to do for others what has been done for me. In the past, highly qualified practitioners walked patiently alongside me whilst I pushed on through to solve my difficulties. If I can empower individuals to become clear about their values, beliefs, and career paths, then I am passing on the autonomy I was gifted. I am endlessly curious about the relationship between people’s beliefs about themselves as individuals and the consequences of these preconceptions. Raised expectations translate directly to increased achievement, well-being, and fulfilment. Add recognition of an individual’s strengths and life experiences to this mix, making a unique and potent recipe for success.
As the daughter of a Head Teacher, I recognise today that I spent much of my early life reading other people’s agendas and meeting external expectations. “Authority” figured heavily in my decisions. One cannot be all things to all people, and it took me until I was in my thirties to see that it was ‘me’ who needed to decide and define where I wanted to go and what I wanted to do.
What I do know is that it is never too late to change your tack.
When people do what they love, they do it well. When people do good work, they earn well. It is when you choose to set down ideas and perceptions that no longer serve you, your beliefs about yourself, your abilities, and your world line up. This is when the doors of opportunity open before you.
The Hawk
The goshawk is symbolic of my work. In my role, I hover, working hard to gain a good overview and understanding of the culture and the contexts within which you live, learn and work. Hawk-like, I hold the Meta-perspective. I have a clarity of sight that enables me to spot essential details from a great distance – be they dangerous or joyous information, it’s my responsibility to swoop down and hold these details up to the light, to help you ‘notice’ them too and decide what to do. As your coach, I am responsible for holding the space between us. This is familiar territory to me, and I am experienced in keeping this space free from intruders so that, as my client, you can explore and experiment and find your own way.
The Daemon®
Socrates claimed to have a daemon (literally, a “divine something”) that frequently warned him against mistakes in the form of a “voice” but never told him what to do. As a coach and a human, I believe we have our inner guidance if only we could learn to listen to it. My job is to help you hear your voice, to enable you to trust it and to empower you to identify what to do next.
“Possible Selves and Career Transition: It’s Who You Want to Be, Not What You Want to Do.”
Plimmer & Schmidt