Since the advent of coaching, there have been many areas of its application. One of the most original and controversial - life coaching. Helping a person in solving everyday problems can drastically change his life. But, in the case of the amateurish approach, life coach can only worsen the situation, directing the person to a completely inappropriate direction. A reasonable question arises, do you need live coaching? Can it be easier to do without it? Why then do tens of thousands of people hire a life coach? How to choose a specialist? Answer these questions in order.
Who is a life coach?
Life coach is a person who helps the client to harmonize life, fill it with meaning and joy, understand their goals and desires. The dynamic rhythm of life very often distracts us from knowing our inner world. Even harder to develop harmoniously, and not only in those areas that seem important. Sometimes it turns out that a person in his development resembles a giant with huge hands, but on very thin legs. This is a figurative comparison, but indicative.
Life coaching is aimed atso that people develop diversely. Otherwise it will be the same as with the specified giant - giant biceps, and walking almost does not work. Sense then from strong hands? Lag in separate spheres of life and pushes a person to appeal to life coach. After pursuing material wealth and recognition, a person can forget about his personal life, family, and friends. It is even worse when it is not even his conscious choice, but a lifestyle imposed by others. Gradually, he is so discouraged from all human, that it turns out, as if on a desert island.
Life Coach simply "opens his eyes" to the real world and makes "humanize." After all, you will not earn all the money. Health, family and good mood should be no less a priority than career and finances.
What is life coaching?
Life coaching is a type of coaching designed to fill a client's life with joy, fullness and harmony. Do not confuse life coach with a psychologist. The fundamental differences between them - the direction of work. If the psychologist is trying to find out the cause of the problem, going deep into the person’s past, then the life coach should help achieve the goal, working with the present and future. In this, he reminds of a fitness trainer who doesn’t have to know why the client is fat and weak. It is important for him to make the visitor strong and muscular.
Do not confuse life coaching with consulting, mentoring or training. In contrast, the life coach must realize the latent potential of the client, and not pass on his experience and knowledge. This is the "highlight" of coaching - in collaboration, not in mentoring or training.
But this does not mean that life coach should not have the same qualifications as a psychologist or business consultant. He may need even a larger arsenal of skills or knowledge in order to provide qualified support. Therefore, life coaching implies training, the duration of which exceeds many other coaching courses.
Specialists in this area should not be self-taught. Their preparation and certification is handled by the ICF - International Coaching Federation. It brings together thousands of followers from 50 countries. Learning coaching life takes from 60 to 200 hours of theoretical program and at least 100 hours of practical training. Only after passing this training, the applicant is allowed to call himself a coach and give him a certificate.
Otherwise, a person may not have the necessary level of training and he simply will not be able to provide quality assistance. It is even worse if such an amator hurts a client. When choosing a life coach, you should carefully consider his education and track record.
When should I contact a life coach?
The dynamic rhythm of life very often leads a person to a dead end. Daily depression and fatigue, failures at work or in personal life sometimes become such a serious problem that one cannot do without help. The main thing to remember is that life coach is not a psychologist, and, moreover, not a psychiatrist. Shame on his help is not worth it. Indeed, without support, there may be clinical conditions that only specialists from the mental hospital can cope with.
When it is worth deciding on such a step:
- Loss of meaning and orientation of life;
- Nothing happens, the days turn gray and monotonous;
- Can not reach the goals;
- Something is missing, but what exactly is not clear;
- Lost a feeling of happiness and joy;
- The person is constantly in a state of stress;
- Problems in your personal life or at work;
- Difficult to communicate with other people;
- Unfulfilled desire to become more efficient;
- The futility of the existing work.
Someone can parry that such services are not cheap. What about the treatment of diseases caused by permanent depression? And alcohol and other bad habits, which are trying to overcome stress? And lost income, due to "low hands" and work without dedication? Has anyone ever considered how much money is being lost because of all this?
Perhaps a small contribution to your success and well-being will pay off in the future? So, it is not necessary to regard the help of a life coach in terms of cash costs. It is better to interpret such a step as a necessary investment in your self-development and well-being. Especially, if one cannot understand oneself in oneself.
Thus, life coaching - The direction is unusual, but very promising. It requires no less training and dedication than other professional fields, such as psychology or consulting. Life coach is able to change a person's life for the better, but subject to the competence of the performer. In order to master life coaching, learning it will take a lot of time. But the result will be a sought-after and very useful profession.
