Coach Approach

My first mistake was moving to a place that has winter. After several months of cold, dark, gray, drizzly weather, my self-talk turns distinctly negative. 

It tells me things like:

• What was I THINKING, trying to run a business? I have no clue what I'm doing.
• How did I get so fat, old, creaky, and tired?
• Why should I coach people when I'm so morose all the time?

Hmmmmm. Surprisingly enough, that kind of talk doesn't help my mood. At all.

However, very smart people, like Ethan Cross in t…

Have you ever had a moment in coaching (or in any conversation) where you feel something before you can explain it? A shift in your conversation partner’s tone. A slight pause. A tightening in your own chest. All of these are data points, and learning to trust them can transform your coaching.

A hunch, a sensation in your body, a whisper of insight that turned out to be exactly what the client needed? That’s intuition at work. And in coaching, intuition is not just a nice-to-have; it’s essentia…

So many people ask me,  "If you could recommend ONE top coaching book, what would it be?" But I'm just not that kind of girl. One book could never be enough. I love so many of them - book recommendations is my love language.

The following books aren't all exactly, strictly coaching books - but they are all marvelous reads chock full of insights that serve humans and coaches very well. Best, of all, I actually know and trust several of the authors in real life, and they're wonderful people.

Thi…

In the Awaken Coaches Community, we hold events called "Coaching Supervision" which is one of the most richly intimate and insightful kinds of conversations coaches can be part of. 

It's so important to create a felt sense of safety and bravery in these spaces, because we're bringing up the kinds of issues we often would rather hide - our biggest OOPS moments, and also the moments we're terribly proud of but can never share outside of such a confidential setting.

We're there to offer one anoth…

The warm Indian Ocean embraced me as I slipped into its waters, my friend's snorkel snug around my head. Below me, a kaleidoscope of life unfolded, a living tapestry of color and movement. I giant sea turtle glided just below me, in a world I never would have imagined if I had kept my face above water. Schools of fish darted like liquid rainbows, weaving through coral gardens that pulsed with life. Nearby, a ray fluttered like a celestial dancer, its wings rippling effortlessly. And a dark (harm…

When I think of conflict, I feel my stomach tighten and I see images and hear sounds of heated arguments. It doesn't feel good. 

That's probably because a lot of the time, we don't fight very well. 

The Destructive Path of Conflict

When conflict is hurtful, it's because it usually includes these traits:

• Personal Attacks: Instead of focusing on what needs to change, people start attacking other's characters, using blame and shame to dominate.
• Lack of Empathy: we stop getting curious to und…

In coaching, powerful questions can shape the conversation, deepen insights, and create transformative shifts for clients. These kinds of questions can't be planned because they're in direct response to what the client is bringing in each moment. However, we can certainly explore the kinds of questions that are most likely to be powerful. 

At the Master Certified Coach (MCC) level, the art of questioning is about:

• tuning into the client with complete presence and awareness
• following the cli…

At Awaken Coach Institute, we believe that reaching the level of mastery in coaching is about more than just techniques and credentials—it’s about fully integrating who we are as humans into our coaching practice.

In fact, we teach with the MCC (Master Certified Coach) level in mind from the very first day of our Level 1 course. There's a vast difference between transactional, behavioral, performance, and achievement-based coaching and the transformational depths that we enter as senior coaches…

Friendships have been tricky for me. When I was a kid, I often felt awkward and I experienced being ostracized. When I was a young adult, I made great friendships, but often felt I was masking myself to appear more extroverted, fun, and interesting. I never really liked partying and being in loud crowds, and I didn't even consider work friendships. 

Now that I've been coaching for a loooooong time (wow -time flies!), most of my deepest adult friendships are thoroughly supported by being excelle…

I had a coaching conversation recently that I left feeling "ick" about. Something in me knew I hadn't served my client well. This was an amazing person with so many clear strengths, and they were in pain because of really difficult situation.

I focused on the person's qualities and the choices before them, and after I hung up the call, I thought, "Shoot. I totally missed it. This person needed me to just stay with them in the pain a little longer. They don't need fixing or changing or even empo…