What does a life coach do exactly?
A coach is a partner in thought and process. One of my (brilliant) clients referred to me as her side-brain ( Love it. Want it on my business card). A coach will create a container for your process, listen, and ask you questions or offer observations that spark insight.
If your coach is accredited by the International Coaching Federation they’ll be held to a certain standard and ethical guidelines. The ICF defines coaching as: “partnering with clients in a thought-provoking and creative process that inspires them to maximize their personal and professional potential. The process of coaching often unlocks previously untapped sources of imagination, productivity, and leadership.”
All jargon aside, my favourite metaphor to explain coaching is a captain/navigator relationship. My client is the captain and chooses which star we are navigating towards. As the navigator, I use all of my tools to keep that star in sight, and plot our relationship to it. Flexibility is important. Sometimes, we discover that we actually need to go somewhere else. That’s why it’s important that we work together. Sometimes the captain/client doesn’t quite know where they want to go at the beginning of the session. That’s fine too! Gaining clarity is built into the process.
There are many tools, but the basics are pretty simple (It’s worth noting that simple doesn’t mean easy).
Some of the ingredients for good coaching are:
Seeing the client as they are: whole, creative, and capable.
Building trust and a safe container.
Deep listening.
Powerful questions.
The ability to flow with you but maintain a structure so you get where you want to go.
Partnership! Partnership! Partnership! A coach should be in service to your vision for yourself.
Those are the basics! The rest falls under “whatever resonates for you”. You might like a coach’s style or way of speaking. They might have a modality or program that appeals to you. Sometimes it’s more of a general-vibe-sorta-thing. Those are important things! Make sure you shop around and find the right fit for you. Many coaches offer a free or low-cost discovery call. We want to make sure you’re a good fit for us too!
Xo Annalee
If you’re curious about coaching, you can find out more here.