What is a Coach and do I need One?
Written by Kendall Bergman
I imagine you’ve heard about coaching…through colleagues or friends or even family. You may be hearing things like:
“My coach asked me about the outcome I desire in this new job the other day.”
Or, “My business coach encouraged me to think more broadly about scaling the new product line.”
Or, “This leadership coach I’m working with asked what I believe my subordinates might think of me.”
And the whole time these folks are talking about their various coaches, you smile and nod your head but have no idea what they’re talking about. Aren’t coaches for the football and soccer fields? What are these other coaches all about?
These folks aren’t talking about an athletic coach. They are talking about a life coach or a business coach or an executive coach. Like an athletic coach, a life coach sees the potential in a person that they can’t readily see in themselves. However, a good life coach is not just going to help you identify limiting beliefs and lies you believe about yourself. They will take it a step further so you can cut through the noise, gain clarity and live into the fullness of your potential.
A life coach is a type of wellness professional and thought partner who walks alongside people to help them better understand their internal motivations and intentions, identify their external goals and integrate their internal and external worlds in order to live with purpose and meaning. Life coaches help their clients live with more fulfillment in their relationships, careers, and day-to-day lives.
Now, what happens when you begin working with a coach, and you initially walk away from each session more confused and frustrated than when you started? My advice would be–Don’t give up! You simply might need to find a different coach.
There are a lot of variables to consider when choosing the best life coach for you. Make a list of what you found most frustrating about that original coach, qualities you are looking for in an ideal coach and begin shopping around. The following questions are a great place to start.
What is the coaches’ life experience?
What credentials and training does the coach have?
What is their area of expertise?
Does it seem like their personality is going to be a good fit for you?
Remember your coach works for you. You need to have the most optimal experience possible, and the research you do and decisions you make on the front end are going to serve you throughout your work with the coach you ultimately select.
There are a lot of great coaches out there! If you’re interested in learning more about what a coach can do for you, you can reach out to me directly at kendall@thediscoverywell.com. Or feel free to drop a meeting on my calendar for a free discovery session here.