Good Question!!
Let’s start with what life coaching is not.
Although life coaching and counseling both happen in a supportive, one-on-one conversation, life coaching is not counseling. Counseling is helpful for addressing problem areas where healing is needed. Coaching is helpful for pursuing goals, getting unstuck and realizing potential.
While life coaching and consulting both provide people with helpful information, life coaching is not consulting. Consulting is a beneficial way of getting some external information. Coaching is a beneficial way of exploring and harnessing your own insight and expertise.
Even though life coaching and mentoring both offer opportunities to develop personally and professionally, life coaching is not mentoring. Mentoring is an effective process for gaining information from someone else’s experience. Coaching is an effective process for applying what you have gained from your own experience (and the experience of others) to your life.
And life coaching is definitely not the talking helmet in the Subway commercial!
Life coaching is a powerful process that facilitates your own discovery, growth and change.
Life coaching is a safe space to be authentically you.
You have freedom to explore without judgement or the expectations of others. It gives you a chance to set your own agenda, define your own goals, make your own decisions, and create your own plan.
Life coaching is rooted in listening - listening to your words and your heart.
Coaching involves capturing your thoughts and reflecting them back to you so that you can really hear yourself. You may be surprised by the insight you gain from listening to your own words.
Life coaching includes exploring.
Exploring your unique gifts, passions, purpose, and calling; exploring the underlying factors impacting your choices; exploring your motivations; and exploring your vision for your future. You are a wealth of ideas, experiences, and potential. Life coaching enables you to tap into these great resources and engage them in moving forward in a way that is authentically you.
Life coaching involves change.
Change in the way you look at an issue; change in the way you see yourself in your situations; change in unproductive thought and behavior patterns; and change in your choices. Life coaching allows you to see the same old issue or pattern from different perspectives so that you can not only get “unstuck” in your thinking, but also make great progress toward your goals.
Life coaching is about creating.
Creating awareness, insight, and learning; creating options; creating new connections with old information; creating action steps that utilize your strengths; and creating energy and momentum to make significant changes.
Life coaching involves believing.
Believing in you today and believing in your ability to reach your potential tomorrow. Life coaches are committed to partnering with you on your journey by providing feedback, encouragement, challenge, and accountability.
Life coaching equips you to DISCOVER your uniqueness, EMBRACE your potential, GROW in your effectiveness, and THRIVE in your life.