During my experience as a life coach for women, I have asked my clients why they have chosen coaching to help them address issues and achieve goals. Although I have received a myriad of answers, they all boil down to three things – Faith, Hope and Insanity.
People who fall into the Faith category tend to have lost faith in themselves. They believe they cannot make self-assured choices or decisions about their lives, which impacts on their self esteem and confidence. To restore their self conviction, they come to coaching to help them through this low point in their lives. Therefore, it is vital that as a life coach I show to the women I work with that they were right to put their faith in me and the coaching profession by showing I am qualified to coach and abide by a code of conduct and ethics. This continues throughout our coaching relationship until a client is faith full, brimming with confidence and excited about the opportunities in their lives.
Hope is another reason people come to coaching. Women I have worked with who fall into this group often have tried different methods to achieve their goal but with limited or no success. They turn to coaching in the hope that it will help them achieve what has previously been unattainable. They hope the involvement of a life coach will give them the tools, support and motivation to achieve their previously elusive goal. A coach should empower this particular client with a renewed sense of hope that they will succeed with their goals and focus upon motivation, which can often be an issue with a client who has tried to achieve their goal in the past and not succeeded.
And what about the Insanity clan? These clients are the ones who come to me and say, “Everybody thinks I am mad but I want to...”, or “I know it’s crazy but...”. They have this belief that their goal is so ridiculous that they won’t achieve it – but cannot let it go. They come to coaching to use a life coach as a sounding board, as a neutral third party to discuss their “insane” idea. A couple of women I have coached have been taken aback when I have told them their idea is completely normal, and most importantly, achievable! Their previously “pie in the sky” thinking now has clarity and the impossible now possible. A coach needs the ability to identify the insane ideas (I normally use the SMART model with a client for this) and if their goal is impossible, look a little deeper as to what motivates this goal to find the true desire of the client.
Whatever the issue or goal that a client brings to coaching, it will fall into one of these categories. A good coach will be able to restore one’s faith in themselves. They will give a client hope that their goals can be reached and positive outcomes achieved as a result. A coach will also be able to embrace the insane ideas and help turn them into sane steps to success.
So, if you are considering coaching, I hope you put your faith in me and tell me your insane idea!
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