Scott Mills, Ph.D.
People ask me all the time what life coaching can do from them. Through work with many clients, professional life coaches around the world have seen transformations in our clients lives. A recent IFC survey reported that clients most commonly reported "increased self-awareness, setting better goals, a more balanced life and lower stress levels as the most common benefits of working with a coach (Clare Marshall Wood 2002)."
Chances are you have tried to create change in your life and aren't getting the results you want. You are the expert on your life. You have more experience and know more about who you are than anyone else. But you might be trying everything you know how and still not getting great results. Life coaching offers ways to maximize your experience and insight to get greater results in your life. Here are some of my favorite reasons that life coaching might be the right option for you.
1. Life coaching can offer perspective. Sometimes when you step outside the box with a life coach, you are able to see things from a different angle. Albert Einstein once said, ""We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them." It is often a different perspective that allows us to see things in a new way. This may just be the lever that a person needs to create change in their lives.
2. Life coaching offers space to explore. Many people in the middle of a life transition are not sure how their family and friends will react to the ideas that are creeping into their heads. Perhaps you are afraid that you will not be supported or that people don't really see enough of who you are. Coaching provides an amazing sounding board for you to share ideas and get honest feedback. This can allow you to decide what is true for you and what directions and goals in your life make the most sense.
3. Life coaching builds upon your strengths. We all carry our past experiences wherever we go, life coaching is primarily interested in the present. Coaches seek to tap your potential and help you see the possibilities in your life. In practical terms this means we work from the places of strength in you. The goal is to help you use the strengths that you have to carry you to the realization of your goals as well as to identify places you might need to build more skills to get where you want to go.
4. Life coaching can create greater simplicity and peace in your life. Unless we take the time to figure out if the ideas that we are carrying really suit us, we often end up carrying around old tools, techniques and ideas that do nothing but weigh us down. One of the most amazing things about coaching is that it allows clients to focus in on what's really important to them. This often allows clients to let go of the things that aren't really important to them, simplify their lives and enjoy living.
5. Life coaching offers support. While new ideas often get introduced in the coaching relationships, the most important element for achieving your goals is that coaches provide ongoing support. Whether it be through phone calls, emails or personal meetings, having someone who is on your side unconditionally in the process of making changes in your life can make all the difference in the world. A good coach will also help you build supportive networks in your life that can sustain you in the process but the ongoing support from a coach is often the difference between success and failure in your efforts to change your life.
For more information on Dr. Scott Mills, Ph.D. and his work as a professional life coach, consultant and workshop leader, please visit his website at www.JoyandBalance.com or you may email him at scott@JoyandBalance.com
Recent Comments