Wisdom Coaching

Do you want to be wise and enjoy a peaceful life?

Earlier this week I was helping a client to set her goals for 2012 and my client said one goal she wanted to achieve was to be 'more wise in 2012'.

We went on to explore what this meant for her in specific terms as 'being more wise' means different things to different people.

My client explained that she wanted to 'live more peacefully in her own mind' and 'be able to share this way of being with her family and friends'.

My client wanted us to come up with a list of things she could actually do to achieve this.

We achieved her outcome for the session and my client was happy for me to share her 'Wisdom List' with you.

This may not resonate with you at all - so no promises - but if it does please leave a comment. So here's wishing you more wisdom in 2012:

1. Let Go of The Past - Perhaps by practising literally letting go of in your hands whenever you think of something which has happened in the past that provokes negative thinking or feelings.
   
   
2. Relax to Stay In Control of Things - Breathe in deeply into your tummy - like inflating a balloon - and then breathe out slowly as though deflating your balloon.
   
   
3. Live In The Now - Practise seeing, hearing, feeling, touching and smelling what is happening around you right now, clearly using all of your senses preferably.
   
   
4. Be Positive and Optimistic - Rather than negatively forecasting the day (the presentation won't go well, for instance) say to yourself 'I wonder what will happen today and I am curious to find out'.
   
   
5. Be Kind to Yourself and Others
   
   
6. Be Enlightened - Be grateful for what you have that is truly important to you.

For all of your coaching and counselling support needs please get in touch via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Focusing On What Matters To You

I think you could convincingly agrue that the economy mirrors the human drive for material gain and spending money which we do not have.

Something similar happens in our personal lives when we put our own material success before other more important values.

"Too much and too long, we seem to have surrendered community excellence and community values in the mere accumulation of material things,’ said Robert Kennedy during his 1968 election campaign and a few months before he was assassinated in Los Angeles.

"Gross national product counts air pollution and cigarette advertising and ambulances to clear our highways of carnage… yet the gross national product does not allow for the health of our children, the quality of their education or the joy of their play.

"It measures neither our wit nor our courage, neither our wisdom nor our learning, neither our compassion nor our devotion to our country, it measures everything, in short, except that which makes life worthwhile."

Today, a group of Anglo-American economists together with French economist Patrick Viveret are urging that the success of our societies should be measured by the well-being of their citizens rather than by their production of weapons or construction of prisons.

In studying what really makes people happy, they have come up with the following precise recommendations – daily behaviours and activities which do not consume material goods and are pretty recession-proof.

1. Connect with Others – Invest in human relationships. Look on them as the foundations of your life. They will enrich and support you more and more every day.
2. Be Active – Find a way to move your body that’s fun and feels good. When the body is active it manufactures happiness through feel-good chemicals including serotonin.
3. Sharpen Your Awareness of the Present Moment – Be curious. Observe what is beautiful or unusual. Savour the moment that you are living in right now.
4. Keep Learning – Try something new. Take up singing lessons, dancing, playing an instrument, cooking, drawing. Set yourself a goal which you would like to meet. Then take the first step in getting there.
5. Do Something to Help Someone - Imagine your personal happiness is inextricably linked to the happiness of your community and activate the pleasure zones in your brain.

Good luck with this and if you have a success to report from using the advice in this blog then please let leave a comment.

If you would like to learn more about the life coaching services which we provide them please get in touch via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Do You Want To Be Happier?

If you want to be happier then you may be interested to hear what the Greek philosophers thought on this subject.

Without complicating things and going into detail about the thoughts of individual Greek philosophers, I think there is some general agreement from these early thinkers about the factors which contribute to human happiness.

Their thoughts on the subject are outlined and listed below for you to reflect on in relation to your own life:

• See Your Friends Regularly - Those who love you for who and what you are and those who you feel good around
• Freedom - Do you feel free in your life for example to pursue the things that you want in your life such as working at what you enjoy?
• Wisdom - Do you reflect on and deal with your problems and anxieties, have realistic expectations and consider the consequences of big decisions?
• Flexible Beliefs and Behaviour - For example, do you accept pain, loss, hurt and that you can carry on and live your life in a meaningful way achieving fulfilment?
• Confidence - Are you able to stand by your beliefs and not be too influenced by the masses? Do you accept yourself for who and what you are?

A way forward would be to think about whether you agree with their conclusions or not.

If you agree, the next step is to think about whether the factor features strongly in your life.

If it does feature then this is an area to be grateful for and to continue to nourish.

If it does not feature then this may be an area in which you want to develop.

Your options for development include self-development and working with a coach to achieve your development objectives.

If this blog post has helped you in any way let us know how it helped you increase your happiness by leaving a comment.

Alternatively, if you would like support in your goal to be happier then please get in touch via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Solving The January Blues By Setting New Goals

January is a bleak time of year for many people, driven by factors such as the weather, the post Christmas credit card statement and returning to work after the festive break.

For others, January signals a new year and a time to set goals for the year ahead.

As human beings we're naturally goal-driven and setting and achieving goals is motivational.

But some of us struggle with setting goals because we feel life we're in something of a rut come the start of a new year.

Before you give up, there are a few things you can do to get yourself in the mindset of wanting to set and achieve some goals in the 11 remaining months of 2012.

You can learn to see yourself in a more positive, balanced way by carrying out the following exercises:

• Listing your positive qualities - Brainstorm all the things you like about yourself. Are you smart? Kind? Creative? Loyal? Funny?
  
  What would others say are your good qualities? Include your talents, skills, and achievements.
  
  Also think about bad qualities you do not have and do not want.
• Focus on what you do like about your life - Appreciate the things you like about yourself and your life.
  
  What elements of your work, personal and social life are going well?
• Challenge negative self-talk - When you catch yourself being self-critical or pessimistic, stop and challenge the negative thought.
  
  Ask yourself - Is this helpful thinking? Does it make me feel good? What evidence is there for the thought?
  
  Then change the thought to something believable and positive, for example, 'I feel I am gradually learning about talking through how I feel'.
• Be kind to yourself - For example, have a massage, soak in a candlelit bath or do exercise you enjoy.
• Develop some healthy beliefs - For example, ‘I take care of myself by eating healthy food 75% of the time and by exercising 3times per week' or 'I make a written worry list with possible solutions before I go to bed so I can sleep'.
• Keep a gratitude and achievement diary - Use it daily to record the little things that bring you little bits of happiness each day such as accomplishing something at work, laughing with friends, eating a fresh meal or going for a walk.

Wishing you fulfilment in 2012.


If you find this blog to be useful please leave a comment and if you would like help and support in any area of your life please get in touch with me via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling. 

New Year Weight Loss Goal

The most common New Year's resolution is to lose weight and get healthy.

If this is you and this time you have 100% intent and you mean it then I think that you may want to try the following to set you on your way to achieving your goal.

Our beliefs and values drive our behaviours. Knowing this you can start to work on your weight loss goal.

1. Start by writing down all of the beliefs you currently have which are driving the old unwanted behaviour of eating too much and not exercising. For example:

• I won't be able to lose weight
• I don't have time to exercise
• When I feel bad I eat
• When I feel I deserve a reward I eat
• I need sugar to get through the day
• My boss drives me to eat a lot of chocolate

Keep brainstorming to identify the beliefs which you think have led to your being where you are.

2. Now write down some different beliefs that you are motivated by and which you think are realistic for you and will help you to achieve your goal. For example:

• Sugar is toxic and does not fuel my body so I eat little of it
• I eat to fuel my body with whole fresh foods including fruit, veg, fish, poultry, eggs, nuts and whole grains like seeded bread and porridge oats
• Eating healthy at least 75% of the time makes me feel energised so I can do want I want in the day
• I notice hunger as my tummy rumbles and I feel empty
• I always pause before I put something in my mouth and think about the consequences
• When I eat out I am happy to order 'off menu' at times so I feel in control

Keep brainstorming new, realistic, motivating beliefs that you personally can believe in.

Once your list is complete write them on a card for your purse or wallet and put another on the fridge or food cupboard.

Now, read your new beliefs each day for at least a couple of weeks to allow the new beliefs to become embedded in your subconscious mind.

These new beliefs will help to drive new behaviours which will assist you in achieving your weight loss goal.

Please do let us know if this blog has been useful by posting a comment and if you would like assistance with this or any other goal please consider us as your support resource and get in touch via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Health and Well-Being Coaching

Do you feel that you want to improve your health and well-being and want some simple strategy which works in a sustainable way?

I am Type 1 Diabetic and was diagnosed when I was 37 years old.

This life change forced me to look at food as fuel rather than anything else, such as, 'something to do when bored, stressed or celebrating'.

I wanted to know what foods would satisfy me and keep my blood sugars even rather than spiking up and down. I did a lot of research and self-experimenting to find out what foods made me feel good.

The Caveman Diet works well for fuel - if it walks, grows or swims you can eat it.

Fresh fruit, vegetables, lean protein, nuts and seeds, are all you need. Try just eating these foods for 5 days and notice how your stomach looks less bloated and how you feel more energised.

I learned that sugar - refined and processed - is poison to my body and mind with long-term toxic complications which could cause me blindness, loss of limbs, heart problems etc.

I learned that drinking more than one to two glasses of wine a couple of nights a week impacted my sleep, making me tired the next day and more likely to reach for something processed rather than whole perishable foods.

I learned that sugar is present in bread, cereals, wheat, rice, pasta, milk, dry beans, processed food and bought soups. Eating these foods caused blood sugar swings, mood swings, tiredness and sluggishness.

We are all different. You will want to set your own boundaries around food and alcohol. Do your own experimenting.

My own experience has taught me that we tend not to overindulge in whole healthy foods like fish, chicken, vegetables, salad and fresh fruit because these satisfy us and keep us full for longer.

We do tend to overindulge in breads and other carbs because they cause sugar dips and spikes encouraging us to eat more to get the next spike when in a dip. Removing them completely avoids this vicious circle.

My biggest tip is that since your beliefs drive your behaviour, believing the content of this blog will help you to do what you want and feel well.

Let me know if this simple strategy is helpful by leaving a comment perhaps after you have given the 5 day trial a go.

For all of your life changing goals we are totally committed to help you to get what you want.

Take your first step by contacting us through our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Visualisation Is Key To Making Your Changes Stick

Do you ever wonder why that despite your best intentions the changes you intended to make, started to make or made have not been sustained?


For example, changing a way of working, being a healthy weight or going to bed at a reasonable time.

This is such a common problem for a number of clients I have recently started working with, I decided to write a blog about a technique which I have found invaluable in helping make these kinds of changes stick.

That technique is Visualisation.

The idea is that you visualise what you do want - i.e. focus on what you want - and your subconscious mind then knows what you want and can help by coming up with ways to achieve your goal.

You can do this on your own or with help and you will know what you need and what works for you intuitively.

For example, if you have always tended to 'think in pictures' this may come easier for you and you may find that you can be self-sufficient in terms of visualisation.

On the other hand, you may be used to thinking in terms of words or feelings and may need some help with this technique.

Here is a practical exercise for you to try and something that I do very often at the start of each day - even before getting out of bed.

Close your eyes to help you to focus and imagine you are watching a film of you as you want to be - for example, at your target weight and size.

Watch the other you doing the things that you easily do in your daily life, such as, getting dressed, walking the children to school and so on.

Imagine this other you also doing the things you want to be able to do, such as, eating when hungry, enjoying moving around regularly and being in control of your emotions and press your mental pause button each time you start to feel upset.

Notice how this other you moves, carries themselves, looks and how other people respond.

Then step into the film taking the new behaviours into yourself.

Go through a typical day with the new thinking and behaviours and consider how things are going to be better now.

The key to successfully getting change to stick is to repeat this daily until you achieve your goal and then as often as you feel is necessary.

Each repetition of your visualisation creates a neural pathway in the brain with each further repetition reinforcing it.

In the previous example, as you think of yourself as a healthy weight and size you are sending signals to your unconscious mind to behave as a healthy person, with lots of new habits that help you to maintain that.

Visualisation of you having achieved your goals is very powerful in helping you to achieve them as well as sustaining them and this has to be a worthwhile exercise.

Please let me know how you get on by leaving a comment and get in touch if you would like help with achieving and maintaining those changes which are important to you via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Gearing up for Change in 2012

Do you like to set New Year's resolutions so that you have a good set of goals to motivate you for the year ahead? Even better - goals that contribute to your life aims.

Perhaps this year you did not set goals or set them only to abandon them part way through.

Perhaps you did set goals and have achieved them.

Now is the time to start taking stock of what went well for you in 2011 and what you want to achieve in the coming year.

To help you with this task I will draw on a client case study.

Start with a list of areas of your life that are important to you.

My client for this case study listed: Health, Work, Relationships, Finances, Hobbies and Community. You will make your own list which may be different.

I asked her then to think about what she had achieved in 2011 within each of these 'important' values areas.

Again she made a list. For example, against Health she wrote:

• Started working out 3 times per week
• Reduced drinking alcohol to 1-2 nights a week with no more than 2 standard glasses of wine
• Adhered to a healthy breakfast, lunch and dinner pattern without late-night eating

Once complete I asked her to scale each area from 0-10 with 10 representing the high strength end.

Then I asked her to think about what she would like to leave as her legacy and what she would aim to achieve in 2012 towards that end.

For example, within relationships she said her legacy would be to have been a wise counsel to her family and friends.

With this in mind her goal for Relationships for 2012 was to reach out to every family member and friend at least once a month - to ask them questions about them, provide a listening ear and support where she could help.

My client also reviews her goals every 2 months with my support, updating and amending them as required. She intends to continue with this approach in 2012.

I would like to invite you to have a go at this exercise yourself. If you find it helps you, please leave a comment.

If you would like help reviewing your last 12 months and planning 2012 please get in touch with via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Small Business Coaching - Improve Productivity and Morale

Are you interested in learning about one simple, easy-to-implement tool which will boost staff productivity and morale?

How much do you estimate that poor communication costs your business? How much do you estimate not using all of your staff's potential is costing your business?

The truth is that when your people are not managed well it costs your business - That's the impact plain and simple.

What issues are most often behind this?.... These most common issues include the following:

1. Individual X has a development need that is ignored
2. Individual Y is only told when they get things wrong and the individual spends much time at work complaining about their manager
3. Individual Z is a manager and avoids tackling conflict so performance issues are ignored

Using a good feedback model addresses all of these issues and builds your staff productivity as well as their morale.

Psychological research shows people respond best to feedback which is specific, timely and in the ratio of 3 positives to each development point.

So how would you go about this?

• Step 1: Start with 3 specific positive things that you have seen/heard/read about them – their strengths
• Step 2: Then focus on 1 specific thing that you would like them to do more/less of that would make them even more effective/develop further/able to positively influence you. 

Focus on what you want from them NOT what you DO NOT want from them.

Ask them how they think they can achieve that - i.e. let them come up with their solutions to get their commitment to change.

Feedback in your business needs to become part of your way of working - something everyone does to get the best from each other and avoid standing still or even regressing.

If you have found this blog to be useful please leave a comment or if you would like assistance implementing this way of working into your business please get in touch via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling - Team Development.

Small Business Coaching - Reducing Costs

There is an old adage - 'It's not what you earn but what you spend' - which tends to dictate your personal savings.

There are people who on the surface appear wealthy and have well paid jobs but actually carry a lot of debt -living pay cheque to pay cheque because of lifestyle factors such as a big mortgage, school fees, expensive cars, expensive and frequent holidays and the latest technology.

There are others on more modest incomes who have perhaps lower mortgages and more simple lifestyles.

These people have a budget, always compare the market when they do spend and think carefully before they spend money on non-essentials.

In running your small business - and especially in the current economic climate - your costs play a big part in your survival and if you can pare these down you will increase your bottom line.

I am working with one small business team currently identifying areas where they can reduce costs throughout their whole business model - from staff costs (often your biggest controllable cost whatever your business) through to marketing, rent and consumables.

This organisation is pleasantly surprised at the significant indicative cost-savings they are now working towards and all of the team have found the process to be fun and motivating.

It is easy to lose control on spend and not look for the best deals for your business in the same way as it is easy to lose control of your personal finances.

However, it is very satisfying to save money for your business and increase your bottom line - leaving you feeling in control - just as it is very satisfying to find a bargain during a personal purchase.

But how do you start saving money and where do you look?

First - go through all of your business expenses and make a list of your say Top 10 costs.

Then work out what is a realistic and specific goal that you want to set for your cost-savings? Perhaps start with 10% and then review this figure every 3 months when you may decide to adjust it.

Asking the following questions will help you to act.

• Which of your costs is ripe for a cost saving because it is currently high? 
• Have you compared the market in this area? 
• What options are there to reduce spend in this area? 
• What criteria will you assess these options against - for example, what will you gain / lose and what will the cost be? Then what will you do?

Once you have a focus on your costs this exercise will become a healthy habit and you are more likely to stay in control of your business and increase your likelihood of staying in business.

Of course, there is more to running a successful business than controlling costs and your focus will also need to be on generating top-line sales but I have no doubt that in any business the latter is often prioritised at the expense of the former.

Focusing on cost control as well as growing your business will help you to run an effective thriving business.

If you have found this blog to be useful please leave a comment and if you would like help in this or any other area of your business please get in touch via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Small Business Coaching - Dealing With Attendance Issues

Do you have a problem with staff attendance which is primarily short term?

Have you noticed patterns to attendance issues - for example, the individual who is often sick on a Monday or Friday?

I think the best tool to deal with attendance issues is the return-to-work meeting. Why?

1. It shows the individual that they have been missed
2. If the individual is a malingerer they will be less likely to call in sick in future
3. It sends a clear message to other staff that attendance issues will be managed
4. If there is an underlying problem you can find out - for example, the individual calls in sick but the issue is really a problem at work or home

So what do you say at this meeting..... Have a think about what your goal is? What are your options and what will you do?

Here's a suggested format:

• Welcome the individual back
• Tell them that they were missed
• Check they are ready to return and have not come back early for whatever reason
• Discuss any issues that may have contributed towards or caused their absence
• Where any causes are identified discuss what help you as the employer can offer to address them
• Discuss any further action that may be necessary

You will need to prepare for this meeting and ask yourself the following questions:

• What are the advantages of holding the meeting in a private place?
• What information will you need to have in front of you relating to recent absences?
• What about sensitivity and listening skills?

You will also need to carry out certain actions after the meeting including the following:

• What about note taking?
• What adjustments need to be made for the individual if any?
• Do you need to consider disciplinary action yet?
• How will you continue to monitor the attendance issues?
• What action does your policy say you can take if the non attendance issues persist?

If you have found this blog to be useful please leave a comment or if you require an small business support please visit our website West of England Coaching and Counselling - Business Coaching.

Small Business Coaching - Tackling Poor Performance

Are you interested in tackling poor performance before it becomes a formal disciplinary issue?

What do you think are the benefits of 'nipping an issue in the bud' before it escalates?

Where are you now with the performance issue? What is the impact on your business?

What is the impact on other staff? What are your options....ignore the issue and hope it will go away or tackle it?

A really good tool towards tackling poor performance -is the following 6-step coaching model:

1. Gaining Commitment: Open the discussion in a positive way. Discuss current level of performance, agree that a problem exists and the impact of this on the business, other staff and them. Discuss and agree the size of the performance gap. Do not move on until the individual recognises a performance gap exists and that it is significant enough to warrant change – Why?
   
2. Closing The Gap: Discuss options to reach the required performance level. Review the advantages and disadvantages of each option. Encourage the individual to come up with ideas, prompting where you think necessary.
   
3. Develop The Strategy: Agree the best approach to close the performance gap. Identify performance measures that will show clearly when the new performance level has been reached. Explore any resources that may be required.
   
4. Agree The Action Plan: Who will do what and by when? Agree the time frames for when the new level of performance must be reached. Set review dates to monitor progress - including interim reviews if you think necessary. Express your confidence in the individual’s ability to deliver - keep it positive.
   
5. Action: Both of you agree to commit to the action plan. You discreetly monitor and guide 1:1 when necessary. Hold interim review sessions if required.
   
6. Review: Meet to review/measure progress towards targets. Recognise, communicate and record in writing achievements that have been made. If performance has not reached the required level go back to step 1 - make the targets more specific, the review periods shorter and be less tolerant of shortcomings e.g... ‘this is the third time we have spoken about this [specify performance gap].

If you have found this tool to be useful please leave a comment or if you would like assistance please contact us through our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling - Business Coaching.

Small Business Coaching - Managing People Tools

Do you have a small business and see that managing people is important to your profitability?

This is the first of a number of blogs which - actioned by you - will help you to increase your productivity, morale and profitability.

The first tool - I want to share with you is objective setting.

Be clear on your business plan then determine what objectives to set each of your employees which will help you to achieve your business plan - few businesses do this really well.

Make sure you avoid duplication of effort when you develop individual objectives for and with your team members.

Also, any training and development should only happen if it helps the individual or your team to achieve their objectives.

Individual objectives are important to ensure that individuals are accountable.

Clear alignment of team and individual objectives with your business plan will help to motivate staff and increase their productivity because they will see how they are adding value to the business.

All these objectives must be SMART - by that I mean:

• Specifically - What do you want them to do?
• Measurable - What will be the evidence of success? Aim to make this clear i.e. quantitative or qualitative and both if possible.
• Achievable - Do they have the resources - for example, skills, materials etc., to achieve it?
• Realistic - Is it challenging yet realistic - including the timescales involves?
• Time bound - When are they to complete it by?

Aim to review your staff objectives with individuals every 3 months and set new ones where appropriate.

Check how individuals are getting on a at least every month by asking the following questions:

• What is going well? 
• What is not going well? 
• What support can you give them?

You set the 'what' they are to achieve. Allow them to set the 'how' they are to achieve it.

With inexperienced staff you may need to help them with the 'how'.

People are naturally goal and objective driven and setting them objectives that contribute to the achievement of the company business plan will motivate your people.

Future blogs will provide advice on other people management areas including:

• How to nip poor performance in the bud early on when you spot a problem
• How to address non-attendance
• How to massively improve the way you communicate with your staff and develop them into the bargain

If you have found this blog to be useful please do leave me a comment or visit our website West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Executive Coaching: Acquiring New Skills For New Roles and Challenges

I was inspired to write this blog post after a session with an executive client today who is in a new role with fresh challenges and needs to develop their skills to make the most out of this opportunity.

My client wanted to work on acquiring these new skills one-to-one because:

1. There was no training course that offered her the specific skills she wanted in one programme
   
2. She wanted an 'expert' to focus solely on her to speed up results

We discussed how we would use our 2 hours together by first focusing on what she would leave our session with for it to have been considered a success.

We developed a goal and objectives for the session which focused on skills for developing a productive team and addressing current conflicts.

For example, I shared with my client a tool for providing feedback which builds motivation, helps to develop staff and improve their performance.

We then chose to role-play using the tool in practice. First, I acted out her role for demonstration purposes and then she followed by acting out her own role.

This reminded me how well one-on-one coaching works for executives who acquiring new skills which are not always easily labelled or neatly boxed into a traditional training course.

Perhaps you can use this blog to practice new skills with a trusted colleague. Please let me know how you get on.

If you would like support in this or any other area of personal and career development please get in touch via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling - Executive Coaching.

How To Be Happy: Enjoy The Simple Things In Life...

So you have set some goals and you are working on them but there is something missing...what happened to enjoying today, now, this moment?

So I am writing this blog to remind you to keep a list of the things that make you happy now - just ordinary everyday things which you may have overlooked for a period like the view from one of your rooms, sunshine, a great meal...

Think about what you already have - Even better list these things in a journal and keep going until you have a full list of all of your blessings.

If you find this hard, think about what you do not have and do not want. Add these to your blessings list.

You may notice that the acquisition of things brings happiness but this is ephemeral. Numerous studies have shown there is nothing sustainable about acquisition - even for high winning Lottery individuals.

There is also something researchers call the Hedonic Treadmill which is when you say "I will be happy when...I have lost weight / got married / started a family / got my face lift etc".

The trouble with this outlook is that once you get used to the next level of status you reach a new norm which in itself becomes unsatisfying - in essence more wants more.

Happiness is not a destination... it's a state of mind. So recognise what you have, smile, enjoy what you are doing today and at the end of the day write down what has gone well in your journal - small things do count.

After all, big events and achievements happen less often.

And remember that whilst it is great to have goals and action plans, it is most important to live in the moment as this is all we have. Life is fragile and short.

If you have found this blog to be useful please let me know and/or get in touch via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Goal Setting, Goal Action and Goal Achievement

Have you set yourself a goal recently or some time ago but are struggling to achieve it? If so then this blog is for you.

If you have got as far as setting a goal then good for you as most people don't set goals - professional or personal.

However, a goal without action is more of a dream that you may or may not achieve.

A good starting point is to review your goal and check it is specific (i.e. it is what you want), measurable (otherwise how will you know when you have achieved it) achievable and realistic to you (be honest and challenge yourself on this one) as well as time-framed (when do you want it by).

The next step is taking action - this puts you in control of the outcome. So what is a good process for taking action?

The following is a good exercise which suits most people:

1. Using Post-it notes brainstorm all the things that need to happen for you to achieve your goal with each separate action outlined on a different Post-it
   
2. Put the Post-it notes into order - what needs to be done first, second and so on
   
3. Date when each element is to be completed by
   
4. You now have your key milestones. If you need to take further actions to achieve an action, take each of the milestones and start again i.e. brainstorm all the actions you need to carry out to achieve the first milestone and repeat the above 4 steps
   
5. Put all dates and actions into your diary - aim to achieve a mini-goal every week
   
6. Take action each day. Ask yourself: "What action could I do today that will help in some small way towards my goal?"

Taking action is a discipline or habit that you will quickly get used to if you follow this type of exercise.

You will also notice by being proactive you achieve your goals quicker than you otherwise would and you are  more likely to achieve your goal than by not taking action.

Let me know how you get on by writing a comment on this blog and - if you want to - please get in touch via our website West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Designing Your Preferred Future

Do you feel motivated by the prospect of designing your preferred future and want help to achieve this?

The starting point is conceiving your preferred future in a way which drives you to achieve it but how do you achieve this first step?

The answer is to transport yourself into your preferred future and see what you notice first.

This involves envisioning specific details - often small and sensory based - such as what you will see,  what you will feel and what you will hear when you get where you want to be.

You also want to design the following specifics at a number of levels:

• At a behavioural level - What are you doing in your preferred future? Who will be there?
• At a competence level - What skills, knowledge and experience will you have? (Yes - this can relate to personal stuff as well)
• At an achievement level - What will your results be? Who will be benefiting from what you are doing?

As well as designing your future from your perspective, you can also shift your perspective to that of another - What would other people notice was different about the future you?

Ask yourself questions - such as 'What else?' - until you have exhausted the details and come up with alternatives which build upon your design for your future.

When you cannot think of any other questions you will know that you have exhausted your future design.

Now you get to the fun part......

Close your eyes and imagine you in your future design which you have just created.

Use all of your senses - if you can - and turn them up. Make the colours brighter and richer, the sounds more audible, the feelings stronger.

Why? For what purpose?

Using your senses builds your motivation. Imaging your future helps your mind to focus on its target and quite literally come up with ideas and options to help you to take steps to move towards your future design.

How did you get on? Please let me know or if you would like to book your complimentary 'Better Results Today' Session or visit our West of England Coaching and Counselling website.

Lose Weight And Keep It Off With Hypnotherapy

The most common personal goal I have come across professionally and personally is weight loss.

Losing weight is cognitively very hard with powerful 'feel good' food memories residing in your hippocampus.

Does your weight yo-yo, do you have 'good' weeks and 'bad' weeks and find you are either treating yourself or on a strict regime?

I use hypnotherapy to help clients travel an easier and more balanced journey towards their weight goals.

Contrary to popular belief hypnosis (trance) is not a sleep state and hypnotherapy is used to help you to make changes at a sub-conscious level - including how you see food and what it means to you.

We go into trance many times a day. For example, when we are focusing on a task and whilst relaxing.
Trance is a state of focused attention and is actually very pleasant.

For weight loss hypnotherapy I retrain your mind to create permanent maintainable healthy eating patterns.

We help you put an end to your battling in the war zone between 'good' and 'bad' food and make new associations to emotional triggers.

For example, one client now 'rewards' herself with non-food related treats which she enjoys and gets a serotonin (happy, coping chemical) high from without weight issues.

Typically it takes just 3-4 sessions to reprogramme eating habits - although some people need more than this if there are deeper issues.

In trance I help you to visualise your success - a technique which works very well for goal achievement including weight loss.

On top of this, I provide healthy directives which your subconscious has somehow lost the will to act upon for some time.

Ultimately your success will depend on practising the techniques which I share with you.

Experience also shows that a well-kept food diary works well for most people as do daily meditations and focusing on what you do want - to be healthy and well.

Please let me have your views on this blog and if you would like our help please get in touch via West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Starting Up A Small Business Using Business Coaching

Starting up in business tends to generate both positive and negative emotions.

On the one hand you feel excited, enthused, passionate and positive about making it happen. On the other you feel daunted, overwhelmed by the amount of work involved and lonely if you are on your own in your venture.

What can you do to best manage yourself and your resources when setting up a small business?

I think the first thing is to remember why you are doing this - What is driving you to set up your small business?

Hopefully, you have conceived ideas about a service or services which you can provide to customers.

Next, I think you need to get organised, realistic and think about the costs involved in setting up your business.

Developing a business plan with support and guidance from an established and successful small business owner would be a good place to start - even better if their business is similar to yours.

Writing a business plan will help you to do your research and ensure you have a viable business proposition.

If you are on your own the next thing to do is to think about your network and resources which will help you to set up your business and get you through the challenging first few months.

It's a good idea to brainstorm and then prioritise all the tasks you need to do in order to set up your business, allocating realistic time-scales for completion.

Perhaps most important of all is to ensure you don't get completely taken over by your new venture.

How will you ensure that you have time to relax, time with your family and time with your friends?

Successful business owners tend to have some boundaries around their work since it is all too easy to get sucked in to working 24-7.

Many successful business owners I know agree that if work is all you do you will never be really good at it.

I have helped many small business owners - particularly in the early days - to build their confidence, get their services clear, market their services and secure paying clients.

If you have found this blog useful please do leave a comment or if you feel alone and want support with your business please get in touch via West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Are You Ready, Willing and Able To Be Coached?

In the last blog post I wrote about the fact that coaching may not be what you need right now. 

How do you establish if this is the case? This blog is devoted to a short questionnaire which I use with clients and you can use to find out whether coaching is for you right now by simple answering YES or NO to each of the following questions.

Are you Ready?

1. There is a gap between where I am and where I want to be     YES…..NO…..
2. I have some time to invest in myself     YES…..NO…..
3. I can keep appointments with myself to work on this material     YES…..NO…..

Are you Willing?

1. I am fully willing to do the work required to get me where I want to go     YES…..NO…..
2. I am willing to stop or change any limiting beliefs and self-defeating behaviours that limit my performance and result     YES…..NO…..
3. I am willing to give new things a go even if I am not 100% convinced that they will work     YES…..NO…..

Are you Able?

1. Coaching is the appropriate intervention for the changes that I want to make     YES…..NO…..
2. I have the patience to take consistent action towards my goal and drive for results     YES…..NO…..
3. I have the desire to continually improve my performance     YES…..NO…..
4. I have the support I need to make significant changes (e.g. organisation structure)     YES…..NO…..

If you answered No to 2 or more of these questions, you will need to make adjustments before any coaching you undertake can be effective.

However, if you are ready, willing and able and would like to achieve change quicker and more effectively than you think possible on your own, I would very much like to work alongside you.

To get in touch please visit our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.