About Coaching
The word coaching literally means "to transport someone from one place to another". This can apply to physical transportation by bus or coach, but also to mental transportation: coaching empowers you to move forward from where you are now, to where you want to be in life and business, faster and more efficient than if you had to do it on your own.
Coaching originates from the world of sport, but is equally powerful and successful when applied to people's personal and professional lives.
A sports coach will support you to improve your sporting performance and get better results - depending on what you want to achieve. A business coach will help you set exciting goals, support and encourage you to achieve them and be the best you can be.
They do this by giving you their undivided attention and focus 100% on you.
Coaching is about:
- Being accountable
- Believing in possibilities
- Having a sounding board
- Challenging and inspiring
- Being a catalyst for change
- Motivation
- Being action orientated
- Devising strategies
- Clarity about goals & motivation
- Being open to different options
- Unleashing your full potential
- Turning your wish list into achievable goals
Coaching doesn't change people, but it powerfully allows you to see more choices and options so that you can change yourself.
Therapist, consultant or mentor?
A coach is neither a therapist nor a consultant or mentor. When a client has deeper psychological problems, they should see a psychologist or therapist, who helps them deal with the past and provides support to contain and move out of a crisis situation. A coach will come in after that, when the client has come to a point in their life where they know they want to change, but want help and support to realise this. The coach will focus on the whole person, rather than on one specific issue.
Consultants and mentors generally operate on work-related topics. A consultant will analyse the situation, make a report and give recommendations as to what to do. A mentor will generally guide and teach someone in a specific task or job. They will share their knowledge of a certain matter with the client and pass on "tricks of the trade".
A coach on the other hand, will empower the client to come up with their own solutions, thus giving the client ownership and control of their life and business. With their breadth and depth of understanding about attitude and results, a coach will often achieve benefits that are realised faster and will last longer than those resulting from a mentoring or consultancy approach.
Who can benefit from having a business coach?
Coaching is for people who want to improve their situation and achieve goals. They have realised that they want to make a change, are keen to be coached and have a desire, motivation and readiness to make those changes and achieve their goals.
Some people need a dramatic event (such as a credit crisis) to make changes in their business. Other people may be reasonably satisfied and successful but believe that you "do not have to be sick to get better". It doesn't matter which category you fall into, coaching is a great way to make lasting positive changes in your life and business.
It is for people who want to take (back) control of their business, who want to feel empowered and positive about the direction their life is taking and who are willing to take action to get what they want.
Remember: you can be anything you want to be, do anything you want to do and create a life for yourself where anything is possible. It takes hard work and commitment on your part to make things happen, but a coach will be there to support you and encourage you along the way.
Typical areas for business coaching are:
- leadership
- systems and organisation
- wanting a better work/life balance
- exit strategy
- time management
- staff motivation
- change of direction
- team performance
- grooming for promotion
Polyglot Coaching | 10 Herald Close | Bristol | BS9 1DF
Tel: +44 (0)117 370 4204 | Skype: CoachInge
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