Why am I telling you all this? The answer is after years of being steeped in pensions, thinking I would be best sticking to what I knew, I suddenly had found something new that engaged me. It got me reading, inquisitive and I wanted to keep finding out more. Learning coachingt heory while at the same time being coached was very powerful. It made me wantto explore what had pushed me on or held me back in the past and new ways ofthinking to move to where I wanted to see my future self. People who have caringresponsibilities of whatever form (who tend to be women, though notexclusively) are very poor at prioritising their needs and ambitions. Then asyou do reach a place where the kids are self-sufficient or that relative nolonger needs care your mindset may become a little fixed. The only thing that is actually holding you back is you and some of the limiting self-beliefs thatyou have engrained over the years.
There are a multitude of definitions of coaching but the one that resonates with me most is that set out by Zoe Hawkins and Jo Wheatley of In Good Company. https://www.igcompany.co.uk/
To be honest, before I did my training, I didn’t even know the difference between coaching and mentoring. Mentoring tends to involve a subject matter expert who provides guidance and advice while coaching uses curious questions and reflecting back to help people find their own solutions.
Exploration of values, beliefs and goals isnever too late. Instead of “aucht I am too old to change”, why not switch it round to “I have so much life experience to draw on and I want to keep growing”. Having a coach will help you to be clear about where you want to spend your effort and which actions will move you nearer your future self. It’s your space to focus on you.
Coaching is an amazing process for anyone, but I am particularly enthusiastic about supporting people who are in midlife, looking to set a different path. It doesn’t need to be a huge problem to solve or a massive career shift, though coaching can support that too. For me its resulted in knowing that actually I am enough and making sure that I get what I need from my professional career while making time for other things that fulfil me including developing my coaching skills. Am really excited to be doing a group and team coaching course this summer. I also resolved to say yes to new things and be better to saying no where it means giving up something I really want to do. Hello wild water swimming, floral wreath making, a long weekend away with an old pal, singing in a choir and embracing my other half’s dream of setting up his own business. It’s all in the art of the possible. It’s all partof your own wellbeing and fulfilment.
If you would like to have a chat to explore if coaching could be for you, please contact me via the MAC Counselling & Wellbeing site.
