Tuesday 25 July 2017

Would you benefit from coaching?

If you are wondering whether professional coaching could help you to move forwards in your career perhaps more quickly than you are currently this blog is for you.

Like any investment of time and money I think it best that you consider the benefits of coaching to you before embarking on a series of coaching sessions or coaching programme.

I have developed a 10 point checklist for you to work through to this end. If you answer no to 2 or more of these statements then you will need to make adjustments for the coaching to be effective.

1. There is a gap between where I am and where I want to be

2. I have some time to invest in myself

3. I can keep appointments with myself to work with my coach and on homework

4. I am willing to do they work required to get me to where I want to be

5. I am willing to change or stop any limiting beliefs and self defeating behaviours that limit my performance and results

6. I am willing to give new things ago even if I am not convinced that they will work

7. Coaching is the appropriate intervention for the changes that I want to make

8. I have the patience to take consistent action towards my goals and drive for results

9. I have the desire to continually improve my performance

10. I have the support I need to make significant changes.

If you answered yes to 9 or all 10 questions and would like to discuss coaching benefits and approach, please get in touch via 01761 237400 or e mail pam@westofenglandcoachingandcounselling.co.uk

Wednesday 19 July 2017

Building your self-esteem

If you are someone who wants to build your self esteem then you are not alone.

Most of us can identify times in our lives when we have felt low self-esteem and confidence.

Whilst confidence is contextual, I think that we can say that when life is going well we feel confident even though there will of course be contexts where we are not. When life hits us hard our overall feeling of confidence often drops too.

I think that self-esteem is somewhat different. This is how we feel about ourselves often regardless of how our life is going. This might stem from childhood experiences and memories when we were told we were not good enough or were hopeless at some things. In youth we are highly emotionally imprintable so we believe what we hear and carry this with us often into adulthood.

So how do you go about building your self-esteem? Here are my ten short top tips for you.

1. Have 'good enough' thoughts about yourself, avoiding the drive to be perfect that's impossible.
2. Help and support others, always aiming to do the right thing.
3. Do daily self-esteem habits, namely eat healthily (low sugar!), exercise and sleep well.
4. Remind yourself why? For health and happiness.
5. Ask people you care about what you are good at and note these down in a journal.
6. Write 3 things in your journal each day that you did well
7. Think about 'failures' as learning
8. Set small goals to achieve each week or month
9. Spend most of your time with supportive people and ask for what you need from them.
10. Remember that comparing yourself with others is the death of joy.

Often self-esteem issues rooted in our past can be hard to shift. Research shows that hypnotherapy can be effective in resolving subconscious dysfunctions such as low self esteem that are holding us back. If you would like help in this area please get in touch by e mailing me: pam@westofenglandcoachingandcounselling.co.uk





Tuesday 11 July 2017

Your Career Mindset

If you are wanting to transition careers or even improve your career prospects in your current role please read on.

Looking back at my school years I realised that school success was as much if not more about mental strength as it was about learning and remembering for exams. I remember one friend who worked hard at school but was so worried about exams she left school with no qualifications.

I think that I will go as far as saying that for me mental strength including qualities such as assertive, confident, calm and positive, is key to success at school and at work and ultimately drives individual happiness.

What I am suggesting is that to progress in your career, whether into something new or improve in your current role or to be promoted, you really need to work on your psychology. Some might call this character or attitude or personality.

What I have found is that mental strength must become a daily habit reinforced by certain contributory daily habits such as eating healthily most of the time, doing some exercise and getting the right amount of sleep for you.

I also find that daily affirmations work well such as 'just for today I will remember that I have mind strength and focus'. Repeating such affirmations first thing to yourself or aloud alone or with others helps set you up for the day. You will more likely do those actions that you identify as needed to move careers or up skill in your current career, for example. Compare that with 'I will do something tomorrow'. Let me remind you that neuroscience tells us that what we focus on now, today, is what we get.

Let me know how you get on. If you would like help in your quest, please contact me through
01761 237400 or by e mail, enquiries@westofenglandcoachingandcounselling.co.uk.