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When you are looking for the right coach, there is something important to consider. When you need support, whether it is for a flat tyre, to buy a special outfit, help for a worrying health condition, or if you want some coaching/therapy, I think it is safe to say we all want quick results. But I think the point is that we want ‘quick’ and we want ‘results’. But can we have them both?
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Coaching is a wonderful tool for those who care about getting results with more ease: it helps you achieve your goals by creating practical action plans, using tools and techniques to help achieve them and helping you to build skills to facilitate the change you seek.
Integrative Coaching does the same but it goes deeper, if required. Because sometimes there is a reason that goal achievement is elusive, or perhaps challenging. Integrative Coaching looks at what is blocking you. Unless the blocks are removed, problems will recur, especially in times of challenge. Integrative Coaching, a more sustainable approach, will look at the psychological blocks, the biological ones (tired all the time is a common factor), the emotional ones (stress and anxiety for example) plus more.
Author Philippe Rosinski says it is “… a holistic approach that calls upon multiple interconnected perspectives to facilitate the unleashing of human potential towards meaningful pursuits … from the physical to the spiritual.” In the A-HEAD for Success terms, spiritual is all about purpose and meaning. When you are aware of and completely aligned to that, everything else becomes easier and clearer.
Integrative Coaching is at the forefront of The A-HEAD for Success 5D Coaching Model ™ which helps provide three levels of integrative coaching through the 5 Dimensions (Clarity, Skillset, Mindset, Stress-Resilience, Health and Energy). Of course we only work at the level of need but the process helps identify the need which is different for everyone.
Conventional coaching tends to be somewhat formulaic and will not always address the finer details which can so impact on us. Integrative Coaching helps address the complexity of what it means to be a functioning person in a dynamic world.
Want to know how it might help you? Call me, Tricia Woolfrey, on 0345 130 0854 to find out more. Calls are no-obligation and completely confidential.
© Tricia Woolfrey
We all know that it’s tougher now than it’s ever been with more demands and fewer resources and with competition stronger* than it’s ever been.
This means that those at the top, under pressure to achieve, have bigger and bigger expectations of those they manage. If they don’t they’ll be out on their ear with the mortgage to pay and food to put on the table.
This in turn often means that people may be given more responsibility than their skills are equipped for. But if you too are in fear of losing your job, you just keep on keeping on, feeling less and less confident, with your results not matching your own expectations, never mind anyone else’s.
Now, if that doesn’t cause stress, I don’t know what does.
But what to do about it? It’s not the easiest one to manage but here are some ideas:
I hope this article has given you some options about bridging the gap between your role and your skills. As always, if you would like further help – whether it is identifying the skills you need or helping you build them – do feel free to call me on 0834 130 0854. You’ll be glad you did.
*By stronger I mean more prolific. Everyone has a similar struggle so it’s how you deal with it that really matters.
In a world of such complexity, competitiveness and relentless change, it can be tough just staying where you are. Blue Monday is said to be the most depressing date of the year. As well as the factors I have already mentioned, the cold weather, post-Christmas debt and failure to stick to New Year Resolutions can all lead to a significant drop in motivation and mood. The wish for things to be different are matched only by a lack of energy or ability to make it happen.
I recently watched a TED Talk which was about coaching called ‘Want to Get Good at Something? Get a Coach’. The speaker talks about how it was used to save lives in the third world and it got me thinking about all the ways that coaching can help people like you.
As you prepare to leave this year and start the next it is useful to reflect:
Given the above, to make 2018 a fantastic year for you,
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Most people want each new year to be their best. But with much less stress. And more fun. And bigger results. If possible. So, is it really possible? If we accept that we can only control the controllable and take response-ability for our results in a focussed way, I would say a resounding ‘yes’. But too often we give our power away to outside forces. So, the following keys will help you take charge and make it happen:
Become clear on what you want to achieve (your vision and goals) and why. The why is your motivation which carries you through the tough times so it needs to be big enough to do that. It makes all the difference between achievement and enrichment – two concepts which are not mutually exclusive unless you make them so. Clarity enables you to say ‘no’ to those things which are not ‘on-purpose’ so it frees up more time for you to do what’s needed to fulfil your goals.
Clarity around how you are going to achieve it is next. When you break things down into your priorities, the next step is easier to take. And the one after that. And the one after that.
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They say that all the best people get support to get them to the top and to keep them there. It is a sign of vision, strength, and drive to want to take your performance and productivity seriously enough to invest in yourself and your business in this way. But how do you know what kind of support you need?
In this A-Z of Business series, we have reached the letter Q. Now, I could have talked about quotas, quoting or questions if I was being a purist. But, if I look at the balance of what’s been written and what’s missing, I think that EQ (Emotional Intelligence) is far more important. Anything which omits this key area of business success is lacking. So I decided to break my own rule and hope that’s OK with you?
In case you haven’t come across this before you may be wondering why it’s called EQ when it refers to Emotional Intelligence (EI)? The Q refers to “quotient” which is the amount of a specific quality or characteristic, in this case, emotional intelligence. But, what does it mean? It is the capacity for self-insight, for understanding and managing your emotions and having empathy for others’. In this way you can better manage your relationships and your stress levels.
It is such an important skill that it is thought to be more important than IQ in helping to get you promoted, in creating sales and in building collaborative effort. Research suggests that it accounts for around 90% of managerial success as opposed to IQ which only accounts for 20%. Not that IQ is not important. Of course, it is. But you need both. The ability to put your knowledge, your expertise, your skills into effect in the most constructive way possible is said to be the difference which creates the successful business person whether you work for yourself of for an organisation.
So, ask yourself:
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Emotional intelligence is one of those concepts where you need a lot of it to know you have it. So if your EQ isn’t as high as you think it is, it will almost certainly be inhibiting your progress. To be sure what your level of EQ is, why not book an assessment? It’s well worth it and can put you on track for success like nothing else. Call me on 0845 130 0854.
© Tricia Woolfrey 2013
About Tricia Woolfrey – click HERE to find out about the author.
It is estimated that 15% of success is from your technical skills whereas 85% is through gaining trust and respect. So, what has knowledge to do with this? Plenty, as it happens. Knowledge covers the whole spectrum. Good technical skills are, of course, important. But not if the knowledge is out of date. Technology is changing all the time – as are trends – and it is essential to keep abreast of what’s going on in your market place and in your profession.
Solicitors and doctors go through years of training in their profession before they are able to practice. Yet, how much training have you had to run your own department, or your own business? How much knowledge have you acquired to help you be successful? Whether you are running a department or a business of your own, the knowledge you need to be effective is extremely broad and most people simply muddle through. In the meantime, what happens to the trust and respect essential to 85% of your success?
The following table helps you to understand some of the fundamentals for trust and respect and the kind of knowledge you need for them:
| TRUST AND RESPECT | KNOW-HOW |
| Good people and rapport skills | Influencing and leadership |
| Doing what you say you will do | Planning and organising |
| Doing an excellent job | Technical and delegation |
| Managing complaints effectively | Problem solving and conflict management |
| Meeting your obligations | Business acumen and resource management |
| Emotional intelligence | Understanding of people and yourself and how to manage yourself and your relationships in times of stress |
Business knowledge – such as sales, marketing, finance, operations – is important whether you run your own business or manage a department as you need to see how everything fits together. These will help you to exploit strengths, minimise weaknesses, seize opportunities and handle threats from a point of strength.
So, how can you increase your knowledge? Through coaching, training, reflective learning and study. Often, you don’t know what you don’t know (in the case of business, ignorance is not bliss) and it is helpful to have someone there who can help you see your blind-spot. Having your own coach and mentor is an excellent step to take to help you stay on top of your game. For more information call 0845 130 0854 for a no obligation chat.
© Tricia Woolfrey 2012
About Tricia Woolfrey – click HERE to find out about the author.
The ability to positively influence others with integrity is a key skill in business. It affects your ability to have people buy into you, your business, your product and your ideas. It impacts your leadership style and your ability to build constructive relationships. It can also be incredibly stressful if you are unable to influence people constructively, impacting your productivity, your sales and even your profitability.
Influence is about your ability to have a positive effect on someone. It differs from manipulation in that it is undertaken with integrity and regard to the interest of the other party. It’s about having people buy in to your ideas and perspectives, so that they say ‘yes’ to you more.
The talent for influence requires flexibility in style, clarity of outcome, the ability to understand a situation from several perspectives, and creating and maintaining a resourceful state, particularly during times of conflict, or when the stakes are high.
It is not about imposing but inspiring someone to take a particular action, while maintaining strong rapport and building positive relationships.
There are numerous language patterns which enhance your capacity to increase your powers of influence which are too numerous to go into in this short article but which I teach to many of my clients and which I include on my Influencing Skills training course. The issue, though, is not what the skills are, but the effect that they can have on your success. They can help you deal with objections and concerns so that you are able to transform potentially negative situations elegantly. It’s the YES factor!
Whether your intention is to create change, elicit support or diffuse potentially contentious situations, influencing skills can be a real boon to you in your business.
For further details, please contact Tricia Woolfrey on 0345 130 0854.
© Tricia Woolfrey 2012
About Tricia Woolfrey – click HERE to find out about the author.
