What is Coaching?

I coach people by working with you to identify your desired outcomes for the coaching engagement and for each session; asking questions to identify your core values, strengths, and goals; identifying your available resources (experiences and qualities) that will help you to address your goals; partnering with you to create personalized strategies to achieve your desired outcomes; helping you overcome blocks to your success; jointly developing relevant homework and action plans; creating accountability for your action plans, and supporting changes to your goals and vision as needed.

A key aspect of the coaching relationship is developing appropriate action steps to help you move toward your goals. Although there are no guarantees on the outcomes from coaching, most people report significant progress on their goals when they are able to commit to following through on these steps. If you enter into a coaching relationship with me, you should be committed to following through on assigned, mutually agreed-to “homework” and be committed to taking action/making changes in your life outside of the duration of our actual coaching sessions. Growth often happens in the places of discomfort, outside of your usual comfort zone.

Coaching requires an ongoing relationship between a coach and a client. The opportunity for success for the coaching client dramatically increases as the duration of the engagement increases, because identifying deep goals, changing habits, and creating possibilities is a process.

Coaching is for individuals who are emotionally and psychologically healthy and who want to make changes and move forward in their lives. Coaching is not advice, therapy or counseling. Therapy often deals with addressing the past, while coaching is primarily concerned with processing the present and planning for the future (though excursions to the past for context are certainly appropriate). If issues arise that are best dealt with in a therapeutic context, I will refer you to an appropriately trained licensed therapist.

Logistics

We will agree on a time for our virtual sessions. Once that time is established, it will be reserved for you. If you need to cancel an appointment, please provide at least 24-hours notice. Missing more than one appointment without notice may result in termination of the coaching relationship.

The information you share with me will remain confidential unless you give specific permission to release the information or if I am required to release the information by law; for example: threats of harm to self or others, subpoena under a valid court order, or other situations as required by state or federal law.

Each party will agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless the other party, its agents, officers and employees from and against any and all liability expense including defense costs and legal fees incurred in connection with claims for damages of any nature whatsoever, including but not limited to, bodily injury, death, personal injury or property damage arising from such party’s performance or failure to perform its obligations hereunder.

Once we have an initial consultation and agree to embark upon a coaching relationship, we will sign several documents: 1) a coaching agreement covering the above-mentioned points and 2) a client questionnaire that starts to outline what you are interested in exploring in our coaching work. I will also provide you with the International Coaching Federation’s code of ethics in coaching for reference.

I look forward to partnering with you!