How can wellbeing coaching help you or your employees?
If working with a well-being coach is something that you’ve been considering, you may have a few questions about how the process works and what exactly is involved. If you’ve never worked with a coach before, it can feel a little bit daunting, but it doesn’t have to be scary, a conversation is where it always starts.
What’s the first step?
Before anyone makes any decisions, a conversation is key for me. We need to understand if I’m the right coach for you, or your business, and if you’re the right client for me. When it comes to wellbeing there are many areas you can work on, my area of expertise is in habit/ mindset change, especially with a link to stress or burnout.
In general, many of the clients I work with are feeling the pressure of their circumstances and want to manage stresses and strains so that they have more energy, sleep better and just feel more in control of the daily decisions that they are making.
An initial conversation to understand the situation, where you want to be (whether that be for you or your employees), and what’s the challenge can enable us to identify quickly if this is the right thing at this time. This is really, really, key – the basis of any coaching relationship is trust and openness, and we can’t start that way unless we speak to each other.
How do I know if it’s the right time?
If you know what you need to do (even if it’s a rough idea) but don’t know how to get there, then coaching is a good option to help. There must be some motivation to make change, usually you’re starting to feel in yourself or see it in your employees, things are starting to suffer, or you are not working at your best. Most of my clients are about to embark on some element of change or are experiencing it (new role/ job/ change in family situation/ work structure etc), and need to be at their best to navigate this – having some time and space to plan for and build those habits early means that change is embraced and embarked upon in a positive mindset.
What’s involved in working with a coach?
There are ultimately some goals involved, but that’s not always where we start, because you might not be clear on what they are. My approach is always to get to know you, what matters to you, where you want to get to and what maybe is getting in the way. Its my role to listen to you, challenge you, question you, encourage you and give you the time and the space to talk things through – its amazing what can be achieved with some time to really think and consider. Each coach is different, and some will have a package or group programmes – think about where you will feel most at home. I take each client on what they want so I’ve never found a package works – some need more, some less so we work to your support needs rather than a pre-defined number of sessions.
It’s for individuals and businesses
The main difference between my one-to-one clients and my business clients is that one-to-one clients are often self-funding, whereas business clients will have their sessions covered by the company that they work for. The conversations and approach is the same regardless. Its about supporting individuals to navigate change in a healthy way, feel empowered, have more clarity and feel better. I also run workshops and talks for companies regarding stress, sleep, burnout – the areas I’m most passionate about. If we are working 121, we will always have check in points to see if the relationship is still working and how goals are progressing.
What will coaching give me/ my employees?
- Clarity of goals and actions – this is really key. Having someone external who can help you get to the bottom of this will give real focus to the changes you make.
- Accountability – life gets in the way, business demands and pressures add to the challenge to embed new things. Having some accountability with the changes you are trying to embed will get focus high and also the ability to flex and amend as required, rather than giving up!
- Time for planning and space to move forwards – real time to focus on what is going to work in your unique situation rather than a one-size fits all approach.
- Challenge and questioning – to ensure that you think through what you are planning and therefore approach habit change with clarity and confidence.
- Confidence to try a different approach – creating the right environment and conditions is important so that you start any change with a clear idea of what, how, and why.
What should I look for in a coach?
A coach that’s accredited is a good start – when I changed career from HR Director to Coach, I invested a fair amount of £££ and 8 months of study. My coaching qualification was also accredited to a professional body (the UK Health Coaching Association). Rapport is also important, and therefore having a conversation and asking questions is key – coaching is an investment in time and money so getting the right person will ensure you get the most out of that investment.
So, what’s next?
If you think working with a well-being coach is something you’d like to explore in more detail, drop me an email or a message and lets have a chat.
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