Do you have New Year’s resolutions? You want to quit a habit, live healthier, start a new career, improve your finances or heal a relationship in your life? Does it feel like you have tried for a long time but just can’t make the changes you say you want?
The reason that you can’t seem to make any progress is that your powerful subconscious is not working with you but rather operating on beliefs which are holding you back from making changes.
Our approach to getting coaching or counselling sessions is often similar to the approach we have to our physical health.
In Ancient China, a doctor was paid for keeping a person healthy. The moment somebody got sick the payments to the doctor stopped. Yet, today in the West, we don’t go to the doctor until we have a physical issue. The doctor has become the one who has to “fix” our health because we usually wait until it is undeniable that we are sick.
We tend to do the same when it comes to seeing a therapist or a life coach. We go when we have a serious problem, when we are very depressed or anxious, or when a relationship is about to fail.
What if we didn’t wait until we have acute anxiety, fear or depression? What if we didn’t wait until our marriage is at a severe risk of ending? What if we worked on ourselves and our relationships from the first day on? What if we used the skills of a life coach to live our life to the fullest?
Ideally, you should see a life couch, therapist, or marriage counsellor as soon as you realize it might be wise to invest in professional guidance to improve your life and your relationships, or to reach your goals. Don’t wait until it feels like your entire life is falling apart, you are unable to cope, or your marriage is beyond repair.
Who should you see? What are the differences between a life coach and a therapist?
There are a few differences that you should keep in mind when deciding which structure will offer most support to you. Therapy diagnoses and treats, coaching does not. A therapist analyzes and treats origins and historical roots of negative self-beliefs, fears and issues. A coach sees negative self-beliefs as saboteurs or temporary obstacles which are being changed through the coaching techniques.
The emphasis in therapy is on the past and present; coaching is oriented towards the present and future. The goal of a therapy session is insights; the goal of a coaching session is to make lasting changes. Coaching is proactive, so there will always be invitations to take action.
In the coaching sessions, there will be much less time spent exploring and analyzing the past than in a therapy session. The focus lies on how the lessons from our past will be applied to make positive changes in our life moving forward. The more inner work on yourself you have already done with a therapist, the faster you can make changes with the guidance of your coach and take actions to moving forward into a healthier and happier future.
Typical situations in which a life coach can help
– You feel stuck in a certain area of your life. You have perhaps noticed that you are sabotaging yourself due to your beliefs and fears.
– You are ready to take your life to the next level; make big changes that you’ve been considering. Maybe you want to let the past go, figure out your life purpose, start a new career, improve old relationships, or begin a new relationship.
Typical situations when therapy is the better option for you
– You have suicidal thoughts.
– You are in an abusive relationship.
– You are battling with a serious addiction.
– You have unresolved childhood traumas, like abuse, which you have not worked on yet in therapy.
For Life Coaching and Belief Change Work contact
Angelika
905-286-9466