Life coaching

Every sportsperson recognises the need to train regularly to stay at his or her peak performance and yet most of us don't apply the same logic to our lives. Life coaching provides a supportive, caring and inspirational environment. It is a way to realise your true potential by uncovering and then eliminating destructive behaviour and thinking. Life coaching uses a solution-focused approach to personal development that can assist you in making lasting change in your personal life or at work, or both.

Life coaching focuses entirely on you - on what you want in your life and on what is going to help you achieve it. The coach listens not only to your words and what's behind them - he or she even listens to the spaces between your words. Your coach is someone who is in tune with the nuances of what you are saying plus your emotion and your energy. Did you know that less than 10% of what we communicate is the words themselves? Your coach actively listens to the very best in you. They can hear it even when you can't hear it yourself.

Your life coach is someone who holds you accountable and keeps you moving forward to help you achieve your goals to make your dreams a reality. Without this type of intervention your dreams remain just that - dreams. Life coaching explores what you value and what you are most passionate about in your life. The process clarifies and updates your current values and beliefs without changing your identity. It provides practical tools for action and learning that lead to the results you want.

Can you visualise a relationship in which you finally break free of those self-limiting conversations you've been having with yourself over the years - where the voices of sabotage are simply noticed for what they are and the powerful parts of you are encouraged? Think who you really are. You're more than this, aren't you?

Common reasons for selecting life coaching include:

• Limiting self-beliefs undermining performance and happiness.
• Insecurity with certain types of people or situations.
• Poor organisation and/or time keeping resulting in others feeling let down.
• Failing to control emotions and projecting these on to others.
• Repetitive criticism of others that unwittingly alienates friends and colleagues.
• Aggression that is interpreted as intimidation or bullying.
• Lack of love of oneself that distracts one from leading a happy life.
• Depression that undermines self confidence and wellbeing.
• Abuse of alcohol or drugs inside or outside the home or workplace.
• Debilitating lack of energy that can undermine one's ability to think and act normally.
• Boredom from which one cannot escape.
• Your new strengths and abilities
• Increased self awareness of the damaging or limiting behaviours and the behaviours confronted.
• Use of objective and constructive feedback has increased self-motivation.
• Emotional intelligence.
• Exploration of alternative appropriate behaviours.
• A plan created to provide work-life balance.
• Consciously practicing the new skills or behaviours.
• Integration of new behaviours.
• Progress reviewed and changes monitored.
• Happiness and self worth have returned.

Did you know?

Life coaching statistics state that over two thirds of the people who use a life coach are women. This is probably to be expected, as it's commonly known that women are more likely to seek help to solve their problems than men are. The figures are changing slowly as more men recognise the benefits and that women have overtaken men at performance in schools and universities. It's also a fact that many people who decide to see a life coach are in their early 40s when they make this decision. Could this be evidence of the mid-life crisis that is supposed to hit us when we reach this age? If it is, at least many of us are sensible enough to seek help to overcome the feelings and life changes that can happen around this time.

Who would benefit?

Anyone entering a period of constructive change in their lives.