Coaching

Do Stress, Conflict And Other Challenges Leave You Feeling Trapped And Unfulfilled?

Have you ever ended the work week feeling drained and frustrated? If so, you’re not alone. Reliable surveys indicate that up to 70 percent of Americans are not happy in their work. Lots of factors could account for this state of affairs: the work itself is unrewarding or boring; you feel unappreciated because of poor compensation or little, if any, chance for advancement; the unpleasant behavior of co-workers and bosses; and the list goes on. To add to the frustration, it just doesn’t seem like any good options are presenting themselves. You feel stuck in your life, but don’t know what steps you can take to feel better and more in control.

Or have you found yourself at a crossroads in life, not sure which choice to make or direction to follow? You may be a student in high school or college, and you have a passion in life. Your parents urge you to follow a practical course of education so you have something “to fall back on” in case your dream career doesn’t work out. You want to follow your dream, but you don’t want to disappoint your parents. And a part of you might be lacking the confidence required to take action. This conflict can quickly leave you feeling stuck or incapable of making a change. Do you need help finding an effective, lasting solution, but you don’t want or need therapy?

What is Coaching?

Imagine you are lost in a maze and you can’t find the way out. The coach’s job is to give you a lift upward. With help, when you can see the maze from a bird’s-eye view, the way out becomes clear.

A good coach will help you see what stands in your way and set appropriate goals.  Maybe you’ve become too emotionally invested in the problem and you’ve lost perspective; you’re missing “the big picture.” One common challenge many of us struggle with at some point is being unable to see the forest, because of all the trees in the way. The experienced outside eye of a coach can help you regain your perspective in order to find solutions.

Coaching Can Help You Learn to Manage and Overcome Your Personal Challenges

“Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.”
– Abraham Lincoln

We live in an instant-gratification society; we want answers, and we want them now! We are not encouraged to sit quietly, ponder, meditate, analyze and prepare before we take action.

In my view coaching has to do with helping people to know themselves – their strengths and weaknesses – and to learn to identify risks and opportunities, so that they become efficient problem-solvers. Overcoming personal challenges is often a question of preparation.

Coaching can help you find effective solutions to a variety of challenges.

Stress Management: Stress impacts physical as well as emotional well-being, and it has been estimated that 75 to 90 percent of all visits to primary care physicians are for stress-related problems. I’ve found that treating stressed-out individuals holistically, not just as clients, allows me to help them find their own custom-made solutions. I’ll ask about life style: diet, exercise, sleep, general enjoyment of life, your work situation and so on. My approach to helping you cope with and manage stress involves encouraging you to accept the fact that we can’t control everything outside us. But we can control our own responses. Once you realize how powerful you really are, you can gain the confidence to make it through stressful situations and relationships.

Conflict Resolution and Problem-Solving: Is it true that everything we need to know we learned in kindergarten? Well, almost. But we learned some pretty bad habits back then, too. Habits like name-calling, bullying, gossip and manipulation. Learning to resolve conflict and to solve problems together is largely a matter of un-learning bad habits. The real test is the temptation to give up when changes don’t happen fast enough, or when others don’t cooperate. If you are committed to helping yourself and others, I can help you handle these challenges.

Improved Communication: It’s not always easy to express your needs and feelings, or to understand the feelings, needs and motives of other people. Nearly every relationship in any setting will at some point suffer from poor communication. Fortunately, learning to communicate effectively is not as hard as you may think. With my help you will learn valuable skills and gain new understanding into how to improve your communication.

Overcome Bad Memories: Many of us have had to face distressing events, leaving us with memories we can’t seem to avoid. Fortunately, you can change the way unpleasant memories affect you and maintain the positive emotions from the original experiences.

Transform Negative Feelings: You will learn a revolutionary yet practical approach to help you resolve excessive worry, stress and other negative feelings. Your body, mind and heart will thank you; moreover the people you care about – and those who care about you – will notice the difference. 

Overcome Procrastination: Procrastination is a problem that, unsolved, builds on itself, creating more problems. You will learn what underlies procrastination as well as strategies that can help you become both proactive and motivated.

In my 12 years of coaching experience, I have helped countless individuals learn to manage and overcome their personal challenges. With help, you can transform negative emotions and replace harmful thoughts and behaviors with healthier, more productive alternatives.

But, you may still have questions about coaching for personal development…

How is Coaching different from Therapy?

In my view, therapy is the appropriate approach when there is a clear need for healing. For example, if you were told by your parents, since early childhood, that you are worthless, and as a result, you have always felt unloved, you may have developed chronic depression. This requires healing; you need a therapist, not a coach.

Should I use a licensed therapist for coaching, or can I feel safe trusting someone called a Life Coach?

If you believe you would benefit from hiring a coach, please investigate the credentials of that individual. Find out how life coaches are certified and what they must accomplish before claiming that title. Trust your gut; the working relationship and rapport with your coach or therapist is of primary importance. But remember: simply having a friendly relationship with the coach may not be enough. The coach’s job is to help you achieve your goals.

Are there specific risks to using a Life Coach?

Yes. The training and education required to become a licensed therapist far exceeds the training and education for life coaching. The work of licensed therapists is strictly regulated; that is not true of life coaches. Furthermore, life coaches are not bound by a code of ethics, as are licensed therapists. If you are considering using a life coach, be sure you know what your state allows life coaches to do, and be sure that the coach has liability insurance, as every licensed therapist must have.

You Can Feel Better

To schedule an appointment or to discuss any questions you may have about coaching for personal development or to manage stress, I invite you to call (219) 309-3928 for a free 15-minute phone consultation.