How Can Coaching Help?
The most common reasons people get a personal coach
What are the most common reasons for coaching?
These are the most common reasons behind my clients’ requests for personal coaching:
Learning mindfulness. Building and boosting appreciation, awareness and mental control.
Developing a goal-oriented attitude (identifying, setting and achieving important goals).
Expediting the recovery for patients who suffer from physical or mental illnesses. Coaching helps patients adhere to their treatment plan, learn new skills and habits, and see their health problems as challenges to overcome.
Mental health conditions that benefit most from supplementary or adjunct coaching may include:
Anxiety (including generalised anxiety disorder, social anxiety, and panic attacks),
Depression (including seasonal depression, situational depression, and major depressive disorder),
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), including hoarding and messiness.
Emotional and Psychological Trauma (including PTSD, and traumas induced by violent accidents, life-threatening illnesses, domestic abuse, bullying, death of a loved one, breakups, and rejection).
Stress management, dealing with the major change:
Death of a loved one (grief).
Significant illnesses or debilitating accidents.
Relationship issues (divorce, abuse, etc.).
Work-related issues (job loss, bullying, etc.).
Financial problems.
Retirement.
etc., which may also include the following.
Handling criticisms.
Body image satisfaction.
Learning to be assertive.
Dealing with perfectionism.
Learning to relax (self-soothing).
Seeking true happiness and contentment.
Boosting self-esteem and self-confidence.
Overcoming common phobias (e.g. public speaking).
Overcoming performance anxieties (stage fright).
Discovering the meaning and purpose of their life.
Developing self-discipline and time management.
Learning interpersonal communication (social skills).
Getting excited and motivated (overcoming procrastination).
Building or enhancing personal and professional relationships.
Dealing with the consequences of disability (following an accident or surgery),
Should I continue with self-help techniques or seek professional help?
A long-term member of IAC.
If you’re thinking about continuing with self-help strategies from books, online or by seeking help from a professional coach, you may find the following checklist useful. Answering “yes” to some of these questions suggests that it would be helpful for you to talk to a professional/life coach.
Do you continue to struggle with stress, anxiety and negative feelings that impact your daily life?
Can you step back and examine your own thoughts, perceptions and assumptions, or would it help to have professional support you through such reflections?
Have your attempts to make the desired change in your thinking, attitude and behaviour been ineffective so far?
Do you find it difficult to make changes independently, or do you have difficulty sticking with such changes?
Does worrying make it difficult for you to sleep or function effectively during the day?
Are you avoiding essential, constructive and uplifting situations because of anxiety, fear of rejection, or lack of confidence?
Do your coping strategies affect your personal and professional relationships in negative ways?
Would you like to feel stronger, happier and healthier?
Deciding to seek help is not always easy. The fear of being criticised or stigmatised could lead people to avoid getting the help they need. However, seeking support is a sign of strength and the first step to a better life.
Contrary to some false beliefs, you don’t have to be desperate or on the brink of a meltdown to see a personal coach. Most people, at least at some point in their lives, can benefit from personal coaching. Sometimes the signs are obvious, but at other times, something may feel slightly off, and you’re not sure why. So you soldier on, trying to sustain your busy life until it becomes unsustainable and unmanageable.
Don’t hesitate. If you are not feeling “yourself” or feeling unreasonably sad, angry or anxious, you need to seek help. If you find yourself abusing drugs, alcohol, food or sex to muddle through, you need to seek help. If something traumatic has happened to you and you find it difficult to continue your normal life, you need help.