What is coaching?

A lot of people are hesitant about coaching because they think it will be like therapy. Whilst both therapy and coaching use dialogue as the primary tool for growth and discovery, coaching focuses on the present and future, whereas therapy focuses on the past, and is designed to help you work through deeper issues such as depression or trauma. 

Coaching is a partnership between you, the client, and a coach. A partnership that is meant to inspire you to make important choices that lead to a more balanced, fulfilled and authentic life. Coaching changed my life and if you’re considering working with a coach my advice is to commit fully: be willing to work, grow and step out of your comfort zone. 

I remember the first time I stepped into the coaching arena. I was intrigued and even though I had no idea what I was getting myself into I knew I needed a change. I remember feeling unhappy, stressed, anxious and frustrated with life. I had a flourishing career, in fact many would have called it a dream job. I had a great title, I was traveling to interesting places, meeting fascinating people–essentially, I was doing what I always wanted to do professionally. But, I also wanted a family and the lifestyle I was leading didn’t allow any time for that. 

Eventually, I had to make a choice: pursue my dream career or start a family. Not an easy choice considering some of my top values included family and belonging, as well as professional success that I built on my own. I had to make a decision. I chose a family. 

After some years, and even though I knew I had made the right decision choosing to start a family over pursuing my career; I felt the dissatisfaction with my professional life growing. I knew I needed to do something about it. I tried different things–explored various career options, counselling and therapy. Nothing seemed to do the trick. So, I enrolled in coaching, figuring it couldn’t hurt to try. Looking back now I can see it’s a choice that influenced the trajectory of my life. 

Coaching changed me. It allowed me to find my true path, my calling, my purpose.

It allowed me to heal old wounds that therapy could not. It allowed me to better understand myself, to better understand my relationships and to take ownership and responsibility of my life. It took a while for me to get to where I am now, but every moment was worth it because it helped me discover my passion for helping people navigate through life. I am grateful to now have a career where I am constantly growing and learning personally and professionally. 

Coaching is a process. It takes a lot of time and investment. My philosophy has always been to just keep moving and growing forward. Through the coaching process, everything was challenged; my behaviours, my perspectives, my thinking patterns, ultimately helping me identify and celebrate my strengths, while also focusing on the areas I needed to improve to achieve my goals. My coaches held me accountable to do what I said I would do which empowered and motivated me to keep going and reaching for the stars. 

What I love about coaching is that it focuses on the present moment and the dream for the future, rather than on trying to figure out what went wrong in the past.

Coaching is a safe space to open up and share some of your most intimate thoughts and feelings with someone who you trust, who understands and will not judge you. One of my favourite principles of coaching is that the coach always holds you as naturally creative, resourceful, and whole. My coach always trusted that I had all the answers deep down inside. Through the use of assessments, metaphor, imagination and visualisation, coaching allowed me to improve my productivity, fulfillment, and unlock a unique and confident voice that empowered my leadership. 

We all have hopes, dreams and goals we want to achieve, but those don’t often come without hurdles and challenges that we need to overcome–challenges that can leave us feeling lonely, hopeless and stuck. As social beings we need strong and supportive relationships that will help us persevere and overcome. Partnering with a trusted coach will help you on this path to fulfillment and achieving your goals. 

An intogreat coach is a personal and professional coach, who will provide you with a coaching plan and strategy to help you achieve your goals. A coach cannot guarantee results, it’s up to you to create powerful results by bringing the learnings from your coaching session into your life through meaningful and intentional actions. 

I hope that by sharing my experience, you are inspired to explore further. Get to know our intogreat coaches, and schedule a free 15 minute consultation with one of them, to find out how coaching can transform your life. 

If you want to learn more about Jela and her story, watch her podcast episode - Redefining Success.