FAQ, What is a life coach?

Because life coaching and business coaching are relatively new professions, and many people haven’t had any direct experience with them, the question of why coaching works is something we frequently hear.

One of the biggest misconceptions is that coaching is about giving advice.

Coaching – whether you work with a life coach or a business coach – asserts that all of the answers we seek are inside of ourselves. A good coach will not tell you what to do. The reason to work with a coach is to empower yourself to listen to your own inner voice. Seeking outside help can be beneficial to your development or it can be an escape. Pushing the responsibility away from your self, from your own truth, and going with someone else’s view is only a short-term solution.

Life and business coaching are about permanent and fundamental shifts in your view of yourself and your business.

Who is the type of person that gets a life coach?

Are you the type person that believes in self improvement? Do you enjoy reading different books that will add value to your life? Have you regularly invested in self improvement seminars? do you regularly buy audio CD’s? Are you the type of person that looks for solutions to issues in your life from different books, CD’s, seminars and courses? Do you enjoy motivational speakers? Are you the type of person that believes in taking charge of your life? Are you the type of person that generally keeps their own counsel but needs a sounding board for your ideas and direction? have you ever gotten stuck at certain times or in certain areas of your life but have no one that can be a sounding board for your ideas? If you answered yes to any of these questions you are they type of person that will benefit from coaching. You already invest in yourself and your life development.

Have you purchased books, that you have not yet read? How about audio CD’s that still have the wrapper on them? Gone to seminars but did not really apply the knowledge?

You are the type of person that has reached a level of success but strives for more. You are the type of person that understands that a life balance is important. You have invested more than likely thousands of dollars in your development because you believe you can be more and have more in life. However, maybe you have not quite gotten the results that you have wanted. You can use an objective caring eye that can peer into a window of your life and shine a light on the magnificent diamond that is you. Someone that can bring the true you into the light.

On the personal and life coaching side each year individuals spend hundreds of millions of dollars on books they never read and workshops whose content they quickly forget.

I like to use an analogy of an Olympic athlete. An Olympic athlete has talent, they have skills, They also have coaches that help them to focus and move in the direction that their talents will take them. A coach can know when the athlete is not reaching their full potential chalenge and motivate the athlete to do more.

Replace the Olympic athlete in the analogy with yourself and the event as the game of life and you will know what a coach can do for you.

How others have seen the role of a coach

A study conducted by the International Coach Federation reported the following on why people work with coaches and what some of the benefits were:

By far, most coaching clients pay their coach to be a sounding board – to really listen to them and give honest feedback. Clients, who could select as many choices as were applicable, characterized the role of their coach as the following:

• · Sounding board: 84.8%
• · Motivator: 78.1%
• · Friend: 56.7%
• · Mentor: 50.5%
• · Business consultant: 46.7%
• · Teacher: 41.0%
• · Taskmaster: 30.5%
• · Spiritual guide: 29.5%
• · Other: 13.3%

Issues why others seek a coach

Most clients turn to their coach for help on time management as well as career guidance and business advice. To a lesser but still significant extent, they seek coaching on relationships, family, wellness and spirituality. Clients, who could select as many choices as were applicable, said they work with their coach on the following issues:

• · Time management: 80.5%
• · Career: 74.3%
• · Business: 73.8%
• · Relationships/Family: 58.6%
• · Physical/Wellness: 51.9%
• · Spiritual: 51.0%
• · Personal: 45.2%
• · Goal-setting: 39.5%
• · Financial: 38.1%
• · Creativity: 11.0%
• · Other: 01.4%

What does coaching provide?

This is different for each client. Most often I hear words like: challenge, accountability, direction, inspiration, focus, sounding board, support and validation. Some people want someone else to share the wins with. Others request a firm kick in the butt<grin>. But the bottom line is, we’re normally after a specific result that makes a ~difference~ in your life. And above all – let’s have fun with it!

Many of the traditional approaches of imparting new knowledge do not translate into changes in behavior.  Coaching is a far more effective solution.  Coaching engages the uniqueness of the individual. Coaching is an ongoing relationship that raises awareness, connects the client with their passions and deepest desires and holds them accountable to get the results they want. People grow and change with a coach.  Coaching doesn’t just get results; it gets the most meaningful results.

What type of person would enjoy me as a coach?

Whether you are seeking to attract your life partner, discover your life purpose,  launch a new business, make a crucial transition or evolve spiritually, working with a life coach will help you leverage your skills to achieve your goals easily, quickly and efficiently.

Clients that would benefit from my style of coaching are already on their spiritual path and have an inner knowing that they are responsible for their lives and their experiences. My clients take responsibility for what they attract and they also understand that anything is possible when they harness the power of their minds.

How does a coach differ from a therapist or counselor?

A therapist or counselor will focus on issues from the past.

A coach will guide you from this day to how you desire your future to be. A coach would be most beneficial to people that are ready to move forward in their lives and not dwell on the past. If the past is what one focuses on then universal laws will continue to bring you events that will validate that experience.

“When you change the way you look at things the things you look at change.” Wayne Dyer

Are you a Law of Attraction (LOA) coach?

Yes and no. Allow me to explain. I am a big believer in the concept called Law of Attraction. I teach techniques that many may call Law of Attraction. However, my expertise in metaphysical knowledge (which is at the root of what is termed LOA) has a much broader application in the lives of my clients. The Concept of what is called LOA affects every single aspect of our existence. The concept of LOA is in actuality a repackaging of ancient teachings on universal laws. We exist in more than the physical. I feel LOA is a great marketing technique and has brought many people to the understanding of metaphysical (means beyond the physical) knowledge and that is wonderful. But it has also been so simplified and trivialized by people that do not understand the depths of the laws that compose the LOA. So many people only look at the LOA in terms of how much abundance can we attract, which usually means money. Our lives are not just about money, its right up there with oxygen<grin> but its not the only thing we desire in abundance.

LOA is so much more than advertised in many cases. Believe me when I say there are some very good teachers of LOA and metaphysical knowledge. But if you asked the general public what LOA means to them they will say “positive thinking.” Many will tell you LOA doesn’t work, not understanding that it is much deeper than simply thinking positive. I have written a number of articles on the subject of LOA but giving more depth to what it is, here are a couple:

If science says that opposites attract how can the Law of Attraction Work?

The greatest law of the universe.

To sum it up is to say that to call me a Law of attraction teacher would be limiting what I do for my clients and limiting beliefs. I want people to know that they are limitless! as I said there are many many LOA coaches, my depth of metaphysical knowledge and expertise goes well beyond just the law of attraction.

I teach people to recognize their true power and that comes from more than just LOA.

“When the student is ready the teacher will appear.” An ancient Kemetic axiom from the Kybalion.

What are the areas that you coach?

The areas that I coach in are areas that I do have life experience. I have listed a few. What you will find in the course of working with me is that many of these are areas will blend and bleed into the other. for example, to say I work on stress management would be very broad and general. There may be certain aspects of your life that are stessing you out. work may be stressing you out or maybe your children could be a source of stress when you are a newly divoreced father or maybe trying to balance relationships and your children after divorce. they all can be classifed under the heading of “stress” and other areas. You will find that I have wealth of life experiences that will of benefit to you when I coach.

My Coaching skills are in the areas of

People management skills for business

Midlife crisis management

Work life

Family life

Fatherhood

Relationship coaching

Getting back on track after divorce

Metaphysical coaching

Dream interpretation coaching

Athletic mental conditioning

Does the coaching have to be done in your office?

Absolutely not. Coaching has to be able to fit into the fabric of our lives. People are busy. Time is at a premium, especially for successful on the go people. Technology allows us to communicate with each other at the click of a mouse or the ring of our smartphones. I have coached people from Switzerland to Houston. We do so in a way that is not so intrusive in our lives. I coach by phone, email and Skype.

What I am not and what I am

I am not a guru or yogi. I am perfectly human, which means that I am fallible and not a perfect human being. I have a weakness for pizza and blue bell ice cream, just to name a couple of flaws. <grin>My Life is not perfect. I have life experiences that have developed me into the person I am today. I draw from those experiences in my coaching. Looking at me you may not realize it but I love to laugh. Some of my biggest laughs are about myself at times.  However, Coaching is my calling. I love to engage individuals in compelling conversations that inspire them to reach and stretch for the higher ideal of themselves and live more fuller, more meaningful and happier lives.  I believe engaged, fully expressed people leading purposeful lives have a big impact on the world.

If you have read this far make no mistake that you have attracted me into your experience. There are no such things as accidents, coincidence or luck. The universe is a wonderfully orchestrated symphony of melodious beings that come together based on the vibration emanating from their heart and mind. Thank you for allowing me into your experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience and I hope to get the opportunity to meet the extraordinary being you are that yearns to grow and expand its life and consciousness.