“Happiness comes from what we do. Fulfillment comes from why we do it.” writes Simon Sinek.
How great it is that I feel happy and fulfilled with coaching.
Why I chose coaching as my profession in the first place
The first time I took a coaching session I had a huge relief. I had a huge relief because I understood and accepted myself for wanting what I wanted even if it was not in line with what family, friends and society told me I should do. I got enormous life energy from our sessions and got the hunch that is something I could actually do as a profession. But I didn’t do it. I did not jump in the wagon right away. I had a job and no pressure for changing it.
I got the pressure after 6 years. At my job, I was doing things I was good at but I didn’t find meaningful and I didn’t quite like. I enjoyed the benefits of what I did but once my immediate needs (such as a place for living and money for my leisure) were satisfied, that was it. I felt empty. I wanted to do something meaningful.
So I started a journey of finding my passion and finding the work I loved. I gathered bits of information about myself which were as follows: I loved people, I loved to hear the life stories and I loved psychology and personal development. From my early years on I always noticed the talents of people and shared with them. I was very observant. I asked good questions and loved asking them. I was always a great listener.
And only then I remembered the feeling I had when I got my first coaching session. Coaching was actually the profession which was covering my interests and which would enable me to use my strengths. It all made sense. I made the choice to become a coach, I got my training, my certification and here I am today.
But that’s not the only choice I made. I am making a choice every day to continue coaching as my profession.
Why I choose coaching every day
1. Coaching matches with my beliefs: I believe in the uniqueness of everyone and coaching honors it. It honors the wisdom of people.
2. Coaching energizes me: There is something magical happening in the partnership of the two: the coach and coachee. The ideas come one after the other, and the energy coming out of the partnership of two for one is enormous.
3. Coaching is contagious: I love seeing how one person can affect everyone around them. We are interconnected, when we change, everyone changes.
4. Coaching is like life: You cannot plan the session in advance, it is all up to what the coachee brings to the session, you cannot foresee what will happen during the session and what can come out of it. You just have to be present, you should be open to not knowing, open to whatever comes, and able to work with it, you should understand the relationship of it with the goals and the life of the coachee and nurture the learning from it.
5. Coaching is giving: Coaching is giving your full attention, your understanding, and space to the coachee. And the magic fills that space: Unknown parts of the coachee; the beliefs, the patterns, the obstacles taking her away from being her true self comes to light. Awareness fills the space. Once we see, we cannot unsee.
6. Coaching is selflessness: It is just being there for my coachee. It is not about my opinions, it is not about my feelings, it is not about my experiences, it is not about what I know, it is all about the coachee.
7. I learn through Coaching: I learn persistence; I learn finding ways to work together, according to the style of the coachee, according to the emotional state the position, the sensitivity, the reluctance, the newness, the belief. I learn adaptation, rapport. I learn different ways of doing, feeling, being from my coachees.
Because of all these 7 reasons above I choose coaching every day as my profession. This is why I do what I do.
If you’ve ever thought of training as a professional coach, what is your why?
