‘My goal is not to be better than anyone else, but to be better than I used to be.’ Quote by Dr Wayne Dyer (1940-2015) American self-help author and motivational speaker.
Following on from my last two blogs which focused on finding a work-life balance, I am today going to explore the feelings many people experience of feeling that they are ‘in a rut’. They feel ‘stuck’ and although they have an idea of what they want their future to look like, they feel that they are ‘failing’ and not as successful as their friends and colleagues. If you feel like this I can help you to find your way to feeling more confident, setting a realistic plan and generally feeling more positive about yourself.
Idea for today: Dream, plan, do, review.
Over the years I have researched many types of coaching styles, accessed the support of a coach myself and analysed evidence based approaches. This has been time well spent to provide me with a range of strategies and tools to support others when they are feeling at a low point, perhaps feeling that their colleagues are overtaking them in promotions. Maybe at a point in time when an opportunity to change job or career presents itself or they believe they have a great idea but not yet the courage to move forward with it.
So how do we move forward? One of the approaches I use is based on ‘Appreciative Inquiry’ and used by Dr Chris Johnstone, a positive psychology practitioner and author of ‘The Happiness Plan’ and ‘Find Your Power’. This process begins with the client thinking specifically about their goal.
They ‘dream’ about what their destination will look like.
Next they spend time looking for different ways forward until they are able to ‘plan’ the first step towards their goal.
Then they need to take that step and take steps each day toward their goal. They can be tiny steps but now they are in the ‘do’ stage.
Once they have taken some steps they can stop and ‘review’ how far they have come.
I use this process myself to work towards my own goals. I find it helps me to think deeply about what I really want from my life and enables me to prioritise my next steps. Even if I go ‘off course’ sometimes or find I have to put the process ‘on hold’ because other priorities in my life take precedence, I am learning to be more accepting of these situations and be kinder to myself. I remind myself of a key motto in my life…’Everything happens for a reason’. We may not realise it at the time, but when we look back we notice that that ‘wrong turning’ actually took us to a more effective place or meant that we met some different people, or learned a new skill.
Want to Explore this Further?
Learn more about ‘Appreciative Inquiry’ by watching this video
Take Action
If you want to work with me to find your path to your dream contact me on isabel@norfolklifecoach.co.uk
Or visit my website https://www.norfolklifecoach.co.uk
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