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Values are the building blocks of coaching. Generally, if we are dissatisfied with aspects of our life it is due to not honoring our values. Identify and live your values, and you strengthen the foundation from which everything else is built.
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. II): G = Generosity
Earlier this year I completed my doctoral dissertation on The Psychology of Hospitality: Creating Welcoming and Inclusive Environments. Throughout the 273-page document I explore hospitality through its ancient origins in Greek myth and tradition, its cultural and...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. II): F = Fun
Is it really worth reading a column on how FUN can make our lives more FUN? It seems like a no-brainer, yet, our schedules are so filled with maintaining our businesses, homes, health, and families, that we can go days, weeks or sometimes months without any real sense...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. II): E = Engagement
In working with private individuals on general health, wellness, and life balance, as well as with corporate clients on cultural change and organizational effectiveness, engagement is a popular 'buzz' word. Tied into the concepts of mindfulness and empowerment,...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. II): D = Delight
The Coach's Alphabet is a dictionary of values, as I believe that living our values is the key to living a life of value. Can we include delight as value? It is a feeling, a mood, an experience...but a value, I don't know for sure. What I do know is that I want more...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. II): C = Celebration
Often, when you see a list of values, celebration is not traditionally included. But as I am not a traditional coach, I thought that I would feature it in this holiday edition of The Coach's Alphabet. The way I use values with my clients is to identify and integrate...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol II): B = Benevolence
Confucius taught that benevolence is the highest virtue, ranking above righteousness, honesty, loyalty, etiquette, and love for family. Without a kind disposition, the inclination of good will, and the sincere desire to be of service, the other virtues will not come...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. II): A = Alignment
Five Secrets to Achieving Alignment The Coach’s Alphabet is a tool designed to draw attention to the values in your life that give your life value. It is intended to stimulate reflection on how well your thoughts and behaviors align with your priorities and...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. I): Z = Zeal
Please don't let the limited options for values that begin with the letter Z make you think that I write about Zeal with anything less than the intense enthusiasm, fervor, or devotion it deserves. I don't know if I can say that The Coach's Alphabet has been a noble...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. I): Y = Youthful
George Bernard Shaw quipped that, "Youth is wasted on the young," but I disagree. I think the young utilize youth quite well. Can you imagine navigating all of the new and difficult challenges of childhood (let alone adolescence) without the tools of youthful...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. I): X = eXtraordinary
A therapist once told me that I have an extremely low tolerance for mediocrity and an aversion to people who are not very self-aware. I believe I said something to the effect of, “Doesn’t everybody?” He simply replied, “No.” My chosen vocation is to help people lead...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. I): W = Wonder
When was the last time you experienced WONDER? When you were able to be with the unknown in a state of astonishment or awe without feeling compelled to find the answer, figure out the solution or resolve the mystery? We live in such a fact-oriented results-driven...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. I): V = Variety
The coach's alphabet is a tool I use to help my clients reflect upon their values in different ways to expand perspective and increase possibilities. This VARIETY is important because thoughts follow actions and actions lead to accomplishments. If our thoughts are...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. I): U = Understanding
Transitioning to a New Year is both simple and significant. Simple in that it happens like clockwork without any effort on our part. Significant...well, that is subjective. It depends on what you UNDERSTAND it to mean in your life. As the door to 2013 closes and...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. I): T = Truth
In October's Good Housekeeping magazine Michael J. Fox was interviewed about his new TV show and the criticism it has received from people who think he shouldn't be working so hard nor using Parkinson's Disease as a catalyst for entertainment. He responded by...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. I): S = Stress
We all know about the negative effects of stress on our physical and emotional well-being such as high blood pressure, poor sleep and reactionary mood swings. If you Google 'stress management' you'll find many theories and techniques to alleviate stress such as: The...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. I): R = Recognition
Through the Coach’s Alphabet I examine values one letter at a time. For this installment we look at RECOGNITION, a value that people are often hesitant to admit is important, fearing it signifies narcissism. Yet according to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, after our...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. I): Q = Quality
A big part of the American Dream is to achieve a certain 'quality of life,' yet many of us spend a great deal of time and expend a large amount of energy pursuing the dream without contemplating exactly what we are chasing and how we'll know when we've caught it....
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. I): P = Passion
Today's installment of the Coach's Alphabet is P is for Passion, a word that is quite popular in my field of Life Coaching but one whose subjective meaning and its role in one's life is rarely contemplated. Passion is commonly understood to be 'an extreme compelling...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. I): O = Opportunity
The word "coach" comes from Kocs, Hungary where they developed a carriage for transporting people from where they are to where they want to be. I use this journey metaphor with clients who are experiencing a transition in life. Such movement or progression is...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. I): N = Nourish
“How are you nourished?” In this health-conscious age we tend to think of nourishment in terms of diet and supplements. Although providing the physical body with healthy food and vitamins is extremely important, over 70% of a person’s total energy is related to...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. I): M = Meaning
“To be or not to be? What is the meaning of this question?” To live or die? To take decisive action or to passively do nothing? To be who you’ve always been, who you’re expected to be, or to embrace an inner-you that has yet to be realized. The meaning of anything, of...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. I): L = Love
The Coach's Alphabet is a tool I designed to encourage reflection on different values from A-Z (Accountability to Zeal). Values are beliefs that carry with them an emotional investment, and if we neglect to take time to identify what those values mean in our lives, we...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. I): K = Knowing
“Knowledge is power,” said Sir Francis Bacon in 1597. But, what is knowledge and what type of power does it wield in your life? Have you consciously thought about the things you “know” and where that knowledge comes from? There are things we are told, taught and read...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. I): J = Joy
What comes to mind when you contemplate joy? Do you reflect upon personal moments where you experienced great delight? Do you fantasize about specific milestone events that are still yet to come? Are you reminded of a time when you were stopped in your tracks by a...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. I): I = Integrity
Integrity is one of those concepts whose depth of meaning sometimes gets diminished in the commonality of its usage. Integrity is most often associated with honesty, fairness and morality, yet if we reflect on its etymological origins (Latin - integritās) of...
The Coach’s Alphabet (vol. I): H = Humor
The current election cycle aside, most of us do not find enough to laugh at throughout the day. Laughter decreases stress, increases endorphins and has a positive effect on our organs and immune system. Humor can serve as a defense mechanism to deflect tension, deal...