Life Coaching and Mindfulness - A trendy fad?
People often come to life coaching wanting help to change. For example, to change habits they have or the way they usually tend to respond in particular situations. These changes are often hard to make because most of us operate on ‘autopilot’ or ‘muscle memory’. We respond without conscious thinking, to situations as they come up. We have habitual responses that are often quite deeply ingrained.
Henry Ford, the founder of Ford Motor Company famously said that if we always do what we’ve always done, we’ll always get what we’ve always got. To change we must turn off the autopilot and respond consciously or ‘mindfully’ to each particular situation rather than just ‘doing what we have always done’.
To ‘turn off the autopilot’ we must be able to recognise or notice the point where we would usually react automatically, so we can consciously modify our response in a way that will better move us towards our chosen goals. Mindfulness helps us ‘notice the gap’ that very brief interval just before making a habitual response where we can consciously choose a more positive response.
Following extensive research, mindfulness training has now been widely adopted in both coaching and counselling because it helps us be more aware of our thoughts and feelings, and therefore recognise when opportunities to make conscious change arise.
In a simple form of mindfulness, our coaching client sits quietly, often focusing on their breathing. They practice daily or weekly simply noticing their thoughts and feelings, not engaging with them or judging them.
If you would like to develop more mindfulness, here is a simple practice to start.
• Find a quiet space and sit comfortably.
• Close your eyes or soften your gaze.
• Focus on your breath, feeling the rise and fall of your chest or abdomen.
• When your mind wanders gently notice your thought and guide your attention back to your breath.
• Practice for just a few minutes each day, gradually increasing the duration as you become more comfortable.
Contact Steve to book a FREE initial coaching session 021 264 2506
Poll: Have you ever been bullied?
People associate bullying with children in schools, but it can actually stretch beyond childhood to workplaces or neighbourhoods.
This Friday is Pink Shirt Day, which began in Canada in 2007 when two students took a stand against homophobic bullying after a new student was harassed for wearing pink. People across the globe are now encouraged to wear pink on this day to take a stand against bullying and promote inclusivity.
Have you or your whānau ever experienced bullying? Share your thoughts on Pink Shirt Day below.
Type 'Not For Print' if you wish your comments to be excluded from the Conversations column of your local paper.
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79.7% Yes
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19.9% No
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0.4% Other - I'll share below
ONE DAY YOU WILL DIE
Life is short. What would you do if you had just one more year to live?
It’s a scary question for a Life Coach to ask, but it’s one that’s well worth considering every year or so to help check your life is on track. It’s not a morbid question, it's a life-affirming one because it helps focus on what really matters and what you should be doing with your life.
You might want to start doing something that you have been putting off for years. It might be something big, or something relatively small. For example, you might have wanted to take up painting portraits, buy a dog, hire a camper van and explore the USA, or reconnect with an old friend you have not seen for years. The question highlights what’s important to you.
Thinking it through, I realised that I’ve known for a while as l get older, I need to improve my flexibility and balance. I’d like to practice Yoga, but the trouble hasd been I’d always come up with reasons why not: ‘men don’t go to yoga’ ‘I don’t have the right clothes for it’ ‘too expensive’ etc. Recognising life is short, the good news is I’ve now enrolled in a yoga class and feel good about it.
You might want to stop doing something. We all have bad habits we’d like to change, little things like cutting back on TV, doughnuts or social media, or bigger things like improving difficult relationships.
One coaching client I worked with was a kind and gentle guy at home and with friends, but he told me that at work he was the opposite. He was rude to customers, unhelpful to other staff, and generally a prize-winning grump.
Considering life is short, he came to realise he was suffering from work ‘burnout’ and was not behaving like the person he wanted to be. He eventually found a new job. Although it did not pay as well, it was less stressful and gave him space to be kind and gentle. In that way it was more consistent with his overall values.
Let me know what answers you come up with. I’d love to hear from you.
I offer a free introductory life coaching session. Call me now to book Ph 021 264 2506
This is a regular life coaching blog from Steve Brown Hibiscus Life Coach – please share with anyone you think would be interested.
Auckland’s Long-term Plan strikes a balance on 10-year investment
Yesterday, we approved our proposed Long-term Plan 2024-2034 – including prioritised investment in transport and water, fairer funding for communities and an Auckland Future Fund.
Find out more details on what this plan includes by clicking on 'Read More'.
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