Help your clients expand their selves concept

Below is part of an occasional blog series highlighting the Catalysts and sessions of ICF Global 2012. I do not believe in the concept of having one authentic self. Your clients have a core seed of self that doesn't change, yet they can adapt to circumstances by intentionally bringing forth different aspects of their broader self for better results.

Marcia Reynolds, MCC

With this in mind, you can coach your clients to cultivate their "selves concept."

One way of making this process more tangible is to work with archetypes. Archetypes are patterns of energy and behaviors. A few patterns are wired into the brain at birth. The other patterns take shape as you learn how to deal with difficulties and are rewarded for specific behaviors.

The names given to the archetypes, such as Queen, Warrior, Detective and Companion, are designed to help you identify what patterns might serve you or hurt you in a situation. For example, calling on your Queen archetype can be useful if you need to stand your ground when negotiating for resources for your team. These same behaviors can be harmful when arguing with your spouse.

Pad Bray

Some patterns naturally shift with maturity. For example, I called on my Warrior early in my career as I fought my way up the corporate ladder. Now I am more effective giving voice to my Collaborator and Inspirer. All three are aspects of who I am but the balance has changed.

Also, if you help your clients identify their dominant and secondary archetypes, they might better understand the motivations for their actions. The next time they face a difficult situation, they might choose a different archetype to change the dynamics.

This process of identifying, expanding and decreasing behavioral patterns is how your clients expand who they think they are. This is a great coaching tool you can use with people in all walks of life.

Marcia Reynolds, MCC, and Pad Bray are Catalysts at ICF Global 2012, October 3-6 in London, UK, where they will be presenting “Using Archetypes to Expand the Concept of Self". Register today!

Simplify your life

The first week of August is known as Simplify Your Life week.
Even if you aren’t making huge strides in simplification this week, there is at least one way you can simplify your life—be it through method (freeing up your calendar) or in physical space (cleaning out a closet).

Need motivation to get started? Here are some questions to get you thinking about how you can streamline your life this week and moving forward.

• Where do you see excess in your life?
• Do you have too many things you don’t need or use?
• Is your schedule always booked?
• Do you have time in your schedule for yourself and the things you enjoy doing?
• What are the most important tasks in your day-to-day life (home and/work)? Which tasks can be easily delegated, automated, or eliminated?

These questions will get you started on your path toward simplicity! What ways do you make your life simpler?

How to end your fear of marketing – 6 secrets for success!

If the truth be told, most coaches say they hate marketing. 
They just want to coach.

Does it sound familiar?

I can't tell you how many coaches I've met that tell me that they adore coaching but just wish that someone else would take care of the marketing and selling part of their business.

Is this what you would secretly, or not so secretly, prefer?

Do you think that if you could just schedule your clients and have someone else chase after clients, it would be perfect?

Do you worry that when you start talking about what you do it sounds like someone else talking and you don't feel comfortable?  That everything that you've been taught about marketing makes you feel a fake?  It's the furthest thing away from what you really stand for in your coaching brilliance.

Well, here are 6 secrets that could seriously transform your fear of marketing!

1. No one is going to do it for you, so start dealing with it.
2. It's not that hard!
3. You already have everything you need.
4. You don't need other people's ideas, words or tactics.
5. Your story is the key to fabulous, successful marketing
6. Yes, it really is that easy.

So, you might be asking, what do you mean "my story"? 

You might be thinking, but I don't even know what my story is?

Or perhaps, my story is not that interesting anyway, who would want to hear it?

Well, here's the thing.  People love stories.  We are hard-wired for story.  When you tell a story, people remember and engage.  They are motivated and inspired.

And you do have a great story, we all do.

Think about it, what has been your journey?  What have been your greatest challenges and struggles?  What are the exceptional transformations you have made in your life and business?

Lisa Bloom, PCC

Answer these key questions and you've found your story.  Nobody else has a story like it and it's what will attract lots more clients.

Go on – try it!!!

Lisa Bloom, PCC is founder of Story Coach Inc. and the Certified Story Coach Program.  Download her ebook ‘Using Stories to Get Great Clients’ at http://www.story-coach.com.

What are your favorite powerful kick-off questions?

We all know that a strong opening question at the beginning of a coaching session can really help set the tone for a productive and insight-full meeting.  How do you go beyond “What’s gone well since the last time we met?” and “What have been your biggest challenges?” 

Below are just a few opening questions I’ve used over the years in my executive coaching practice.  Let’s share! What other powerful questions have you used to kick off sessions?

• Since the last time we met, if I were to interview your colleagues at work and ask them what changes they’ve seen in your behaviors, what would they say?
• Consider what has happened to you in your life and work since the last time we met… If you were going to write a book about it, what would the title be?
• On a scale of 1 to 10 -- 1 representing where you were during our last session and 10 representing where you would like to have been by today -- where are you now?
• Part of your goal is [insert the goal here … e.g., being more succinct… speaking more confidently, etc.] Please demonstrate that goal while summarizing the progress you‘ve made since the last time we met.
• What have you learned about yourself [professionally, personally] since our last meeting?
• How have you brought out the best of you in the time since we last connected?

Brenda Bence is an experienced senior executive coach, dynamic trainer and speaker, internationally-recognized branding expert, and author of four award-winning corporate and personal branding books.

Brenda Bence

With an MBA from Harvard Business School, Brenda spent the first 20 years of her career building mega brands for Fortune 100 companies, where she was a senior executive responsible for billion-dollar businesses across four continents and 50 countries.

In 2002, Brenda left the corporate world and founded BDA International. Now, with clients that span the globe and with offices in both the U.S. and Asia, Brenda travels the world speaking, training, and coaching individuals, entrepreneurs, and corporations to greater success through creative yet practical brand development.

Yesterday's success was my life?

Up gradation is a continual process. Regardless of what I possess and what I use, the world upgrades its software  & tools relentlessly.
I either catch up or get left behind. Success, in that sense, is defined by the notion of remaining relevant. The extremely successful are those who offer new relevance to others.

Organisations focused on maintenance management, top down hierarchical structures, command and control modes are Pentium486 processers competing in a world embracing the 8-core processer.

For individuals too, cultural, philosophical perceptions provided each one of us with a set of behavioural competencies, which worked as long as those perceptions were relevant.

Many of our behavioural competencies though, while it brought us success previously are akin now to the Pentium486, functioning in the multi processor world.

We have the ability to upgrade ourselves internally; to embrace multi core processing. To remain relevant and more provide relevance to others.

Conversely, we also have the ability to embrace the status quo. To stop and say: “Yesterdays success was my life”

87% of the companies in the Fortune 500 list of 1955 no longer exist in the Fortune 500 list of 2011.  Perhaps they yearn for the good old days?

What are you doing to ensure that, that won’t be your refrain?

Where you are today is the lowest rung of your personal ladder of growth. Don’t be deceived into believing it is the highest. A baby might well as believe that exiting the womb is the pinnacles of its success!

Changing the way we behave is one lucid way of up gradation. Not because something is wrong with the way we behave today, but that it will be wrong tomorrow.

Because the context within which we have learnt to behave is changing, and tomorrow’s context may not served by today’s behaviour.

Coaches are trained to help you deal with change. Coaches are trained and skilled at reflecting who you are in the context of your situation.

Any good driver knows that different traffic situations need different driving behaviours. I simply cannot continue driving the same way regardless of what’s happening around me.

Get a coach, because contexts are not as visible as traffic. Not to help you drive, because you are the expert, but to help you see.

Joseph Thevercad

A Certified Coach, Coach U alumni, and ICF member, Joseph has been the HR Director heading both Organisation Development and Human Resources in two different industries – Hospitality and Media. In 2011 he founded his firm called “The You Tomorrow” ( URL http://theyoutomorrow.com/ ) and offers Coaching for Businesses, Executives and Life. He may be contacted at joseph@TheYouTomorrow.com.