Posts Tagged ‘Life Coaching’
Age and Coaching: Can you teach an old dog new tricks?
A Life and Career Coach works with clients to remove the obstacles that get in the way of what they want to achieve. Age happens to be one of those obstacles that come up during a coaching session. The conversations with clients become analogous to the endless debate whether you can teach an old dog new tricks. As coach, I am here to share with you that age does not matter when it comes to achieving happiness and fulfillment in life. It does a fine job of fooling people into believing they are too old to have a better life.
A prime example of how age does not matter is in the movie ‘The Bucket List’ where two men fighting terminal cancer decide to fulfill on their long forgotten wish lists. They take on skydiving and do all the things that young people would dare to do. The inspiring story is bittersweet in the end. However, in real life most individuals never fulfill on their dreams and desires.
Why? Maybe because life gets busy and before a person realizes, they feel that the opportunity is no longer available. Ironically, the opportunity is always there. Life is full of opportunities, and it can be as simple as a choice all the way to the very last breath of your life. Just as the two men in the movie decided it was a choice.
Another example of age and its effects on achieving life’s dreams is when I had a conversation with a woman friend of mine in her late 50’s. She shared with me that she feels old because she uses the phrase “hubby” to refer to her husband. I mentioned that I also refer to my husband as “hubby,” and I am in my 30’s. She felt a sense of relief when I shared this because her 20 year old son refers to her as an “old person.” When she proved to him that she is capable of phone text, he was shocked and dismayed. I suggested to my friend that she may want to share with her son that age is not an obstacle for anything.
Life is stacked with obstacles. When age happens to relate to work, the most common mistake a person can make is to think they are too old for a certain occupation. The most important thing to remember is the level of skill and experience you have. If you are not skilled in the field you are entering, note that it is learnable. There is nothing stopping you from going back to college and to learn new skill sets that would support you in the work field. It is only your fears that get in the way of your potential. I invite you to take what matters most, and by having a leap of faith, take a dive into the world of possibilities. What if you do not have to wait until you are diagnosed with a terminal illness to do what is on your bucket list? What if you could pursue your dreams and passions and age was irrelevant?
How would your life go if age were not an issue?
February 19, 2010, Irvine, CA, International Coaching Week: Embrace the Power of Coaching and Unlock your Potential!
I am very excited about this years’ International Coaching Week. Please join me on February 19th, 2010 at Brandman University to learn more about coaching and what coaches do as a profession. The power of coaching is profound and for those that seek coaching or thought about coaching, this is an event you will want to attend. Step into 2010 with a solid plan!
This week the ICF Orange County chapter brings coaching awareness to the Orange County community as part of the global International Coaching Week. You’ve heard of coaching, you’ve thought about hiring a coach, but you’re not sure what it’s about or what it can do for you. This is a great opportunity to experience coaching from 15 of Orange County’s top coaches with presentations focused on business, life and career. Seating is limited to 100 so register early and secure your seat.
Last year’s International Coaching Week (ICW) for our local Orange County chapter of ICF was an amazing event with big-draw names like John Gray and Jim Cathcart.
As being one of several presenters for the day, I highly encourage you to take advantage of this opportunity. Because this event is hosted by ICF, a nonprofit organization, it is intended to bring awareness and education to those who want to learn more about coaching and what it can offer in your life. Register now for $19.95, and it gets you into this FULL DAY event to experience coaching and make 2010 the year to unlock your potential! Plus, you will receive FREE one-on-one laser coaching from the top coaches. Seating is limited so register early to secure your seat and schedule your laser coaching session with one of our coaches.
To register, please click on this link:
http://www.icforangecounty.com/events/international-coaching-week-2010/
For the full line-up of presenters and their topics, go to http://www.icforangecounty.com/events/international-coaching-week-2010/
For the speaker schedule, go to http://www.icforangecounty.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/ICWPresentersschedule2010B.pdf
Sessions will include how to build your business through your own published book, transform organizational cultures, find the career of your dreams, envision the future with vision boards, and more!
To learn more about ICF – Orange County Chapter, please click here:
http://www.icforangecounty.com/
New Year’s Resolutions: How will YOU finish the year?
Have you ever wondered why some people reach their goals and others don’t? What is their secret to success?
A study led by John C. Norcross reported that after 6 months only 46% of people are successful at their New Year resolutions when it comes to mostly three things: weight loss, an exercise program, or quitting smoking.* Another study led by psychologist Richard Wiseman from the University of Hertfordshire and his team asked 700 people about their goals and found that 78% of the people failed in their new year resolutions.** These statistics are substantially alarming. I can only imagine how many people right now in this moment are feeling a bit discouraged and asking themselves, “Now that I’ve made these resolutions, how in the world will I achieve them, and where do I begin?”
And there it is – the moment when doubt and fears show up, and the person is feeling at a loss. Does that sound familiar?
The new year has emerged and the New Year Resolutions have once again been declared by millions of people across the globe – for some it may be past resolutions unfulfilled and rolled over into another year in hopes that this is the year it will happen. As a coach I am here to say that there is no longer the need to say, “I don’t know how,” or “I made a resolution that I’m not sure will happen,” because there is another option. I will share with you two tips on how to finish the year and not become a statistic.
What story are you telling yourself?
If you look back at past resolutions from previous years, think about the resolutions you made and never fulfilled on. What mindset or story did you hold onto that didn’t align with the outcome you wanted? Telling yourself that you don’t know how or that you are unsure it will happen are obstacles that in fact holding you back. I invite you to first begin with considering what story or mindset you have around a situation. Before going the gym, before quitting smoking, or before setting out to lose weight, begin to think about and determine how you want to be around a specific situation. Do you tell yourself that you will reach your goal or that you are not sure if you can do it? Are you worried about what others may think? What kind of expectations are you setting for yourself? Are they high or low? How about ‘can’ versus ‘can’t’? These small subtle but very important distinctions can make a world of difference when it comes to reaching your goal. You may have discovered the perfect program or the perfect plan, but no matter how wonderful the resource or tool, the results will not happen unless your story supports what you intend to achieve. At any given moment you have the choice to BE a certain way when DOing an activity, so choose wisely. Really, the secret to success is to have the proper mindset. If fears and doubt continue to find a home in your mind, then it will eventually hold you back. Begin telling yourself a story that is empowering you, not setting yourself up for failure.
Biting more than you can chew
Sometimes we get excited about the new year and we begin to take on more than we can chew. How often have you made large promises and wasn’t able to keep them? Sudden changes in life can be challenging when an existing long-term habit has strong roots. Do you think you would be more successful if you start out with smaller sub-goals that lead to the bigger goal? Breaking down the large goal into smaller more manageable steps will increase the likelihood of reaching the final outcome you desire. For example, if you are looking to exercise 5 times per week when you are currently not on an exercise program, begin by making small changes in your habits and gradually increase the duration. Start the first 3 weeks with exercising 2 times per week, the fourth and fifth week increase to 3 times, and continue this sequence until you are successfully exercising 5 times per week. The key here is to make changes in your habits gradually until you meet the promise you made to yourself on a consistent basis to prevent set-backs.
How will YOU finish?
Begin today to shift the way you are viewing a situation and take small steps so that you finish the new year with a greater sense of accomplishment.
What would become available to you if you have a coach by your side? I coach people to get past their fears so that it no longer has a grip on them and we co-create a project design that will support their life goals. You are invited to schedule a 45-minute complimentary strategy session with me to learn more. Click here to schedule your session.
Sources:
*Auld Lang Syne: Success predictors, change processes, and self-reported outcomes of New Year’s resolvers and nonresolvers, by John C. Norcross, Marci S. Mrykalo, Matthew D. Blagys , University of Scranton. Journal of Clinical Psychology, Volume 58, Issue 4 (2002)
** “ New year’s resolutions doomed to failure, say psychologists,” written by Guardian, UK correspondent: Ian Sample, December 28, 2009
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Game Plan
Living Your Dream: If Not Now, Then When?
By Nancy Colasurdo, Life Coach
FOXBusiness, http://www.foxbusiness.com/story/personal-finance/living-dream/
Sometimes it’s the seemingly innocuous invitations that turn out to be zingers.
Last weekend, I was invited to sit in on a training session for about 15 people at the Grand Hyatt in Manhattan. These people were well into a yearlong program to become professional coaches through a company called Accomplishment Coaching.
Those taking the program sat in a square-shaped table configuration, while those invited to witness sat around the perimeter. We were welcomed by CEO Christopher McAuliffe and then “ignored” once the training began, so as to let the classroom setting unfold and allow us to be observers.
What set the tone for the nearly two hours that followed was one student, let’s call her Carolyn, who shared that she was choosing to put aside some potentially debilitating health problems in order to be effective as a coach. Her classmates, one by one, challenged whether she was indeed putting them aside and carefully probed. At one point, McAuliffe asked Carolyn what really living life would mean to her and part of her response was “traveling around the world.” He then drew her out for specifics.
Carolyn continued to be coached by her peers and the instructors. At times it felt like we were eavesdropping rather than just observing, such was the power of the exchange taking place. As it wound down, McAuliffe asked the coach trainees what “project” Carolyn should take on. She had previously revealed ongoing projects in building her coaching practice and writing books. Two students took a crack at it and whiffed.
“Traveling around the world,” McAuliffe said.
But of course. (Did I gasp out loud?)
As a professional coach, I should not have been surprised and yet sometimes it takes someone else to say it. If a client, or in this case Carolyn, just finished saying that to her “really living life” involves traveling around the world, then setting a goal in that is part of what we do as coaches. We make real to them what they’ve only imagined might be possible.
Now of course, in a situation outside this classroom, suggesting this goal to a client would likely produce responses like, “In this economy? Yeah, right” or “When will I ever have the time to do that?”
As a coach, I say, if not now, when?
Even the most optimistic experts tell us we’re going to be dealing with this grim economy for years. Are we going to start “really living” in four, eight, 10 years? By now I’ve written a few columns talking about using this time to assess your attachments to material goods and to really examine your relationships. Here, I am suggesting a no-holds-barred answer to the question, what does really living life mean to you?
Last week a former client wrote me for advice because he doesn’t know what he wants his next career path to be. He has done assessments, introspection, networking, you name it, but he is temping at the moment. Here’s what I wrote: “I know this isn’t really an answer, but I feel you have a lot to offer. Maybe life is telling you to go out on a crazy limb right now. What might that look like?” His response included some thoughts of a geographical move.
Just days later, I was reading the Style section of The New York Times and a bit in the “Vows” column (on the wedding announcements page) caught my eye. The bride, in her 40s, was the type who lived her own life and wasn’t sitting around waiting for Mr. Right. In 2006 she decided to put 20 years of New York living behind her and move to Dublin for a job with a three-year commitment. While there, she booked a weekend getaway to Glasgow, “which is where she crossed paths with a frisky cocker spaniel dragging a buff Scottish policeman behind it.”
I think you know where the story goes. And for that matter, where this column is going. In keeping with the travel theme, I have a friend in the South of France who’s invited me to visit. Before I could even voice an objection about money or time, he said this, “All you have to pay for is the airline ticket. You have a place to stay. And you’d have to buy food whether you came to France or not.”
Sometimes really living life is that simple. Give your goals some wings.
