What Does A Life Coach Really Do?

As we come to the end of the summer and begin a new school year, now is a good time to take stock of where you are and set new goals.

In recent times there has been a lot of mention about Coaches: Life Coaches, Wellness Coaches, Performance Coaches, Motivational Coaches and many more. So what do these people do and how can they help you?

In essence their main purpose is to work with you to help you be the best you can be. It is about helping people to reach their full potential, in any area of their life.

A Life Coach can:

• Help you gain better focus on your goals and development for the future.
• Help you explore alternative ideas, evaluate options and make decisions.
• Challenge your assumptions and perspectives to provoke new ideas, stretch goals, and stimulate action.
• Provide encouragement and moral support for immediate action.
• Establish an action plan with results that are attainable, measurable and specific.

Coaching helps people explore their motivation, and overcome the blockers that hold them back. It’s about offering both support and challenge. It’s particularly useful for the following:

• Career or life planning – People who have clear plans and goals are more likely to be successful in the long term. This can also happen during or after life transitions.
>Navigating career transitions – An example of a career transition could be moving from being primarily seen as a manager to being seen as a leader. Another example of career transition is where someone is returning to work after a career break and may need some time and support to readjust to the workplace. Coaching can help people navigate these transitions more successfully.
• Making changes to performance or behaviour – This could involve identifying and breaking bad habits, and relearning skills the right way in order to improve your quality of life.
• Handling major life setbacks – Coaching can help people recover from major personal setbacks. In particular, it can help people address work-life imbalances, or deal with major episodes of stress or burnout.

Coaches come in many different shapes and sizes and employ a variety of methodologies.
It is important to find a Coach that specializes in a particular kind of coaching or approach that suits your needs; business, career, performance coaching, leadership coaching, life coaching, etc. It would be advisable to talk with the Coach to ensure that they are the right fit. Consider the coach’s personality, professional background, coaching experience, training etc.

Consider your own motivation and commitment to the process too; change can take time and effort, are you willing to commit the time and energy to invest in yourself? Just think about all the potential you have and how it is right there ready to be used to your advantage.

“Great things never came from comfort zones”