How A Personal Development Coach Helps His Clients Grow

By William Hughes


People used to want only to be safe, to be fed and to be comfortable. Millions of people have long ago achieved those goals. Now they want more out of life. Hey think there is more to life than they can see. They want to experience meaning and purpose. They want to be happier and they want to know what their place in the bigger scheme of things is. With a personal development coach many people do discover deeper meaning in life.

Most people that experience a need for a higher level of self actualization do not know how to approach the issue. As a consequence, they may stumble from religious teachings to a wide variety of philosophies, searching for something they cannot clearly define. Others think that they will find happiness and fulfilment in doing community work or by bettering their qualifications. In such cases, coaches can be of great value.

Hiring a mentor is not a guarantee that one will suddenly experience enlightenment or private growth. Coaches are not wizards. They are there to help there clients to express their needs and wants. They are sounding boards, motivators and often even friends that aim to motivate their clients to be steadfast in their quest to achieve a better level of fulfilment and happiness.

Very few people ever take a hard, brutally honest look at themselves and professional coaches know this. Their first priority is therefore to help their clients to examine themselves honestly, warts and all. They know that it is almost impossible to achieve self fulfilment without self knowledge. Clients often find this process of discovering themselves painful, but it is necessary in order to allow for future growth.

Once one know which area of life one wants to improve, it is necessary to set some specific goals. Goals need to be measurable. For example, it is not good enough to say that one needs to lose weight. It would be better to resolve to lose twenty kilograms by 1 June. In this way progress van be measured and one would have a very specific target to try and achieve.

When people give up on their initial goals it is often because they become disheartened. They do not perceive progress. That is why experienced coaches will help their clients to divide their bigger goals into small steps that for part of an action plan. Achieving each small step can be highly motivating, clearly showing that progress is being made. The role of the mentor is to keep motivating the client.

Coaching can only be effective if their is a bond between the mentor and the client. It is often difficult to find a mentor that instils confidence and that is why it may be a good idea to try a few before settling on a specific professional. If there is not a close bond of confidentiality and confidence in each other the relationship will not work.

It is only natural for people to discover meaning and to feel self fulfilled. People that are happy and content are more productive and they can make a real contribution to society. Coaches can play a valuable role in helping people discover themselves and to grow in those areas that will lead to higher levels of self actualization.




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