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What Is Coaching?
Coaching is the process of helping people reach deeper levels of fulfillment and higher levels of success faster, more easily, and more enjoyably than they might on their own. The focus of the coaching may be career, business, relationships, money, life balance, spirituality or any area of life in which an individual is seeking change, growth, or new discoveries.
How is coaching different from therapy, consulting, mentoring, sports coaching, or a supportive friend?
Coaching draws from several disciplines, including consulting, psychotherapy, training, motivational science, athletic coaching and more. However, it is a distinct and independent discipline. Coaching is not to be seen as taking the place of these other professions, nor is it in conflict with them. In fact, coaching often complements these fields.
Psychotherapist – Psychotherapy is primarily for the purpose of diagnosing and healing mental illness. The therapist deals with emotional/behavioral issues and seeks to bring the client to normal function. Coaching, on the other hand, is designed as a catalyst to support fully functioning and capable individuals in making desired changes in their work and/or personal life.
Consultant – Consulting is about solving specific problems and providing expertise, information, direction and advice. Coaches, in contrast, use well crafted questions, as well as other techniques, to help clients tap into their own experience, knowledge and wisdom for answers. Once the client has identified his/her own “answers,” coaches play a very active and ongoing role as the client takes action and implements changes.
Mentor – A mentor is a person who serves as a role model and an advisor, and is chosen based on his/her direct experience in the mentee’s desired role. The role of a mentor is to set an example, make introductions, “open doors,” and guide the mentee. A coach may or may not have direct experience with what the client is focusing on. A coach is an equal partner who helps the client tap into their own wisdom and find their own way.
Close Friend – A friend can be loving and supportive as a sounding board and a cheerleader. Coaches may do this too, and they also bring skills, perspective and objectivity to the relationship without emotional attachment to the client’s choices.
How does the coach help?
Coaches work with people who are naturally whole, resourceful and fully capable of making changes independent of any help. However, a professional coach possesses talents, techniques, skills and tools that support the client in making the right changes, with greater ease and lasting effectiveness. The coach assists the client by helping them to:
- Discover what they really want
- Appreciate their own strengths and assets
- Discover what holds them back
- Gain different perspectives
- Identify goals and develop action plans to achieve them
- Gain clarity on values and life purpose
- Permanently end self-defeating habits and patterns
- Learn from mistakes and failures
- Celebrate successes
What does the coaching process look like?
- There are as many models as there are coaches. But typically, the coach starts the relationship with a detailed intake session to get acquainted quickly, accelerate the relationship, and set the intention and direction of the coaching.
- Typically coach and client meet privately, one-on-one, 2 to 4 times per month for up to an hour. Meetings may be held in person, by phone or by e-mail, although phone is by far the most common. There may be e-mails or short phone calls between sessions.
- Group Coaching is also a popular and effective approach, in which a coach works with more than one person simultaneously in a group setting. Again, models, methods, foci, and prices vary.
How long does a client typically work with a coach?
- According to the International Coach Federation survey, the duration of a coaching relationships average around 9 months.
- Some clients hire a coach to help them accomplish specific goals or projects. Often, they’ll keep working with the coach even after the goals have been accomplished, as they discover the value of coaching in other areas of life.
What does it cost to hire a coach?
- The cost of coaching varies according to the coach’s experience, credentials, and area of specialty. A coach may charge by the month, by the program, by the project, or by the hour.
- Some coaches offer sliding scales for clients who cannot afford the full fee.
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with Sahar click here or call: 925 315 8730
Source: Philadelphia Area Coaches Alliance, http://www.philadelphiacoaches.org |
