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Tag: self development

3 reasons to hire a professional coach

A good coach can help you level up, get inspired, and set goals you’ve been putting off for way too long. Yet “coaching” has become a saturated industry with a range of providers, from academically-trained professionals to Instagram influencers charging fees anywhere between $40 to $3,500 per session. How can you determine if a coach can help you and what should you be prepared for when you begin?

I’ve listed three ways in which the right coach can add value to your work and life:

  1. Confidence. A focused coach-client relationship can build confidence over time through task achievement, heightened goal setting behaviors, and improved self awareness. Confidence comes through accomplishment; the simple act of showing up to a coach session can boost esteem and feelings of productivity.
  2. Performance. Targeted questions can encourage even the most experienced professionals to measure and analyze their own performance. This, in turn, can maximize professional development and catalyze personal growth. Just as sports coaches help players succeed, business coaches can help clients “see the field” within specific industries and relevant verticals.
  3. Progress. From business to personal settings, stagnation can occur for a variety of reasons — boredom, lack of inspiration, the absence of motivation, ineffective routine. A coach can motivate clients to set and change patterns so progress can take place. Whether you’re trying to write a book or grow your business, use a coach to help you identify areas of opportunity and make plans to stay on track.

I take on a limited number of coaching clients. Send a message if you’d like to learn more.

Promise of a new year

A quick post to remind you that it’s never “too late” to reinvent, create, or switch gears. But you must do so with intention. Start by asking yourself questions about what it is you want to build:

What are you curious about?

What brings you joy?

Which conversations give you energy?

Is there an unfinished dream you keep coming back to?

Who do you admire?

If I can help you sort through any of these questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

I love the promise and hopefulness of a new year. You never know what is around the corner…

Embrace mess

Side steps. Mistakes. A missed call. Broken code. Messes are often where innovation is found; the places we release control and let go of perfection is the space the unexpected is allowed room to breathe.

Julia Margaret Cameron’s smudgy photographs became her hallmark. Navajo rug weavers intentionally left imperfections in their work. Wabi sabi ceramics celebrate imperfections. Silly Putty wasn’t meant to be entertainment, and Potato Chips were the result of a complaining customer.

The next time you feel like you’ve made a horrible decision or dropped the ball, see if you can reframe the moment as an opportunity.

Have any of your mistakes worked in your favor? Tell me @redheadlefthand.

The miracle question

The miracle question is my favorite kind of question.

These question types can reveal what you really want — what you wish you could do if fear and risk weren’t in the equation.

If I cut you a check for one million dollars, what would you do?

What would change? What is your first decision, your first action, your quickest impulse?

Write it down.

The true obstacle is rarely money or resources or time.

Be honest about your focus and intention.

Now go, set audacious goals, and make something happen.

brown canoe in the body of water near mountain

Not everyone wants passion

They might say they want passion, that excitement and energy is magnetic and alluring. But they don’t really want it.

Stability is comfortable, and safety is reliable. Passion inserts question marks into shadows and corners. It’s the same with knowledge and education, opportunity and progress; publicly, someone might say they want these things, but do they?

What if progress means stepping away from the known, and opportunity means walking away from those you hold close? What if education creates a gap between you and your tribe? What if knowledge brands you — and not in a positive way: A tree standing too tall, asking to be cut.

Which direction do you choose? What do you chase?