How many of us grow as fast and as deep as we'd like? Very few of us. Why is that? We all would like to be more mature. Why do we grow so slowly and so little (apart of crisis, anyway?) We'd propose that the answer is this: Rarely do we human beings reach the potential God has for us by ourselves. It seems that He most often creates the "aha! s" in our lives ... the insights ... by speaking to us through pastors, teachers, mentors, disciplers, close friends and other brothers and sisters in Christ. Psychologists might say that's because it's difficult to maintain an accurate perspective when we are INSIDE the skin of the one doing the examining! (Example: We can often see things in others that they are not aware of themselves.) Multiple perspectives bring wisdom and maturity and growth. Coaching is a merely slightly more formalized venue for perspective and challenge than, for example, friends helping us work through a decision. Coaching is ... a coach ... assisting ... a person ... to grow (in whatever areas the person tells the coach he/she wants to grow in.) Examples: Athletes hire coaches in order to improve / excel in their sport. Business professionals hire coaches in order to become superior executives or managers. Sales professionals hire coaches to become more effective (and successful) in assisting their customers. Christians hire coaches to identify areas in their lives in which they might follow Christ more closely. Couples hire coaches to facilitate enhanced "performance" in their relationship (and identify potentially ineffective ways they may be relating with their partners currently.) Single adults hire coaches to develop or fine-tune their path to finding and building a successful relationship. Coaching is defined as ... " . . . an ongoing partnership that facilitates a clients' producing of fulfilling results in their personal and professional lives. Through the process of coaching, clients deepen their learning, improve their performance and enhance their quality of life."   - The International Coach Federation Therapy is for unhealthy people who want to get healthy. Coaching is for healthy people who want to excel in the areas God puts on their hearts. Consulting is telling. (The consultant is the source of all the answers.) Coaching is inviting. (The client is the source of the (usually hidden) answers.) Coaching is a regular (usually weekly) telephone dialogue between coach and client within a productive, results-oriented context. A conversation whereby relevant questions at critical points can encourage and support the client to look at different angles, strategies and, therefore, solutions. The coach acts as guide and resource partner. Coaching is infinitely more about asking the right questions than it is about providing answers. An underlying assumption within most coaching contexts is that the client has the answer ... it's just that the answer is "hiding" below the conscious level. The coach's job is to "shine a light" on the answer such that the client discovers, accesses and acts on it. (If you and I are told something (by another person,) we may or may not believe it deeply enough to act on it. If we are led to a personal discovery of our own, however, an "aha!," we believe it so deeply that we are much more likely to act on it. After all, we were the authors of the very personal discovery, right?) If you are interested in finding out more about how the coaching process may benefit you, (or even a coaching call at no charge whatsoever to confirm its effectiveness for you,) click here. And may today be for you the astonishing day God has had planned for you since the foundation of the world!