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What
is coaching?
Life Coaching is a continuing partnership
in which the coach provides support, asks
questions, and offers perspective to help
the client make the positive changes he or
she wants to make.
As your coach, I will ask well-placed,
focused questions. I will encourage,
challenge, empower, and support you in
uncovering your truth and getting what you
want. You set the agenda and ask for what
you want.
With patience, compassion, excitement,
and awe, I support your effort to improve
your life. I am curious, accepting, and
practice reflective listening. I celebrate
your wins.
Call me today at (608) 572-0084 or e-mail
me.
How do you coach?
Each coach has a
unique approach to coaching. Here are
some of my approaches.
1.
I love my
clients!
You honor me with the opportunity to coach
you. With patience, compassion,
excitement, and awe, I support your desire
and attempts to improve your life. I
listen deeply with acceptance and
curiosity, I practice reflective
listening, and celebrate your wins.
2.
I encourage and empower.
You have limitless potential and can
accomplish your dreams. Your dreams are
noble and exciting, and I will cheer you
on to victory.
3.
I ask tough questions.
One of the greatest tools of coaching is
the well-placed, focused question. These
questions bring out your truth about what
you want, how to get it, and what gets in
your way. You know what’s best for you.
4.
I offer suggestions.
From years of leadership trainings,
facilitating growth in others, and my own
personal growth work, I have a bag of
exercises and tools to share with you.
Some of these exercises or stretches
you will do between sessions. If you don’t
want to use my suggestion,
let me know! I prefer that you come up
with your own practices to improve
your life. You are responsible for your
decisions and the resulting setbacks or
successes.
5.
I challenge.
I want to bring out your best! Sometimes
that means challenging you with questions
or calling you out when you don’t do what
you say or when you appear to be stagnant.
I point out the big picture. I also
recognize that sometimes we need to pull
back to integrate learning or rest. Please
let me know when you need to rest or if
you think that I’m pushing too much.
6.
I sometimes seek advice.
Each life coach has her or his own life
coach. My coach helps me become a better
coach and will share his opinion about my
clients’ situations so that I can better
help you. I will not use your name.
7.
My clients set the agenda and ask for
what they want.
You decide what you will do and at what
pace you will do it. If you want to change
what we’re doing, let me know as soon as
possible. If you have ANY problem with me,
please let me know
as soon as possible so that we can have a
clean, unencumbered relationship. I will
do the same. If you want, I can coach you
on clean ways to clear up conflicts.
8.
I expect you to use me, not depend on
me.
Ultimately, I want my clients to learn to
coach themselves. Over time, you will
learn to ask yourself the tough questions,
know what you want, and achieve goals
without my help. You will build a network
of friends, experts, and support. Then,
you will seek my
help only on occasion.
9.
I am a resource.
I can coach you to improve virtually any
area of your life. I am not a therapist
nor an expert in health or investments. If
I think you need an expert in any area, or
you ask me, I will refer you to experts.
If you are addicted, I will recommend a
12-step group. If you need a therapist, I
will recommend one.
If you think I am not
holding to these approaches, please bring
it up with me. Also, please let me know if
you need something else from me.
How is coaching
different than therapy, career counseling,
mentoring, or consulting?
Therapists, career
counselors, mentors, and consultants all
provide important services. Here’s how
they differ from personal and business
coaches.
A THERAPIST heals
the past and helps people suffering from
depression, addiction, and mental
disorders. I am not a therapist. Coaching
is not therapy, nor a substitute for
therapy or a twelve-step program. During
our sessions, we may visit the past
briefly to understand where certain
patterns came from, but we will not spend
much time here. There may be some
similarity between coaching and cognitive
therapy,
which seeks to change behavior and
reaction to stressors. Coaching focuses
on improving your present and future, and
can delve into many areas that
therapy does not, such as career
development. If you are in therapy or
a twelve-step program, you should talk to
your therapist or sponsor about
being coached. If I think you are need of
these services, I will provide
you with references.
A CAREER COUNSELOR
provides suggestions about what
work you could do, with recommendations
about how to go about getting this
work. Both coach and counselor work with
you to create career goals and
steps, and keep you on track toward these
goals. Coaching differs in the
starting place of this process. We will
look at your long-term career as
an aspect of your overall life purpose and
mission, and look to balance career
with other parts of your life. What you
choose to do and how you go about
it is ultimately up to you. The coach acts
as a guide, and asks tough questions to
make sure that the road you go down is in
alignment with your values and mission.
A MENTOR and a CONSULTANT both
have expertise in a particular field and
offer advice and resources in the field.
The mentor teaches and provides support in
the field,
while the consultant provides a plan for
achieving goals. The coach’s
expertise is in asking great questions,
and bringing out your truth. A coach may
make recommendations, but your course is
your own choosing. The coach helps you
look at the broad spectrum of your life
and helps
you work through blocks to what you want.
As a CPA, I may provide consulting
in business and finance, when requested.
What qualifies you to
coach?
I received my training from Coach U, the
largest coaching institution in the world,
and I am a certified coach at the ACC level by the
International Coaching Federation.
I've received and continue to receive
expert mentoring, and I've been
coaching for over three years now.
I've faciliated personal growth work
for over seven years, having led workshops,
retreats, and other personal growth work.
Read about my Coach U training here.
See testimonials from those who
have benefited from my coaching here.
How
does group coaching work?
In group coaching, 3 to 8 people
commit to at least eight 90-minute sessions
of coaching together. Members commit
to confidentiality. Participants call
into a conference call line. Each
person has a chance to briefly check in with
where they are, then there is time for two
people to get coaching for about thirty
minutes each. While Steve leads the
coaching, other members are encouraged to
ask questions, use reflective
listening, and share their collective
wisdom. We end with a brief check-out
and commitments to action steps. In
addition, members are asked to pair up with
a buddy and to check in with that person
between sessions, to lend support and
accountability.
Groups can be formed around certain
commonalities, such as a career
development group or a nonprofit
professionals group, or the group can
be an open forum. Groups will be
formed when there is enough interest,
and times will be determined from a poll of
those interested. If you would
like to participate in group coaching,
please e-mail
me
with a description of your interest.
What
are the different coaching options and
prices?
The first 60-minute session is free.
Coaching can be done in-person at my
home or a place of your choosing, and can
be done by phone. My working hours
are between 9:30am and 5:00pm Monday
through Friday.
Coaching
During the HappinessScience.com
beta-testing, coaching sessions are 45
minutes, three times per month, for $290
per month, with a six-month commitment.
Positive
Practices Support
During the beta-testing, positive
practices support is ten minutes per
session, once per week, for $65 per month,
with a three-month commitment.
To discuss any of the above or schedule a
session, call me today at (608)
572-0084 or e-mail
me.
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“Steve is a meticulous and
compassionate listener. He has a
knack for asking enlightening
questions that reveal new
possibilities and help to draw out
authentic needs and wants.”
– Stephen
Wald, PhD
“Steve helped me to set better
boundaries, to
take responsibility for my own
actions rather than blaming, and
to lighten
up about other people’s reactions.
Now I’m feeling happier and
relieved,
like a weight is off my
shoulders.”
—Toran
McCoy, Personal Chef
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