One more time, in the same ICF survey as we have previously mentioned one additional topic was addressed we thought our readers would find of interest, why people employ a coach.

Most clients turn to their coach for help on time management as well as career guidance and business advice. To a lesser but still significant extent, they seek coaching on relationships, family, wellness and spirituality. Clients, who could select as many choices as were applicable, said they work with their coach on the following issues:

• Time management: 80.5%
• Career: 74.3%
• Business: 73.8%
• Relationships/Family: 58.6%
• Physical/Wellness: 51.9%
• Spiritual: 51.0%
• Personal: 45.2%
• Goal-setting: 39.5%
• Financial: 38.1%
• Creativity: 11.0%
• Other: 01.4%

In the same ICF survey previously mentioned participants were asked the most frequent outcomes they attributed to their coaching experience, these included a higher level of self-awareness and self-confidence, a more balanced life, smarter goal-setting and lower stress levels. Specific results were as follows:

• Self-awareness: 67.6%
• Setting better goals: 62.4%
• More balanced life: 60.5%
• Lower stress levels: 57.1%
• Self-discovery: 52.9%
• Self-confidence: 52.4%
• Improvement in quality of life: 43.3%
• Enhanced communication skills: 39.5%
• Project completion: 35.7%
• Health or fitness improvement: 33.8%
• Better relationship w/ boss, co-workers: 33.3%
• Better family relationship(s): 33.3%
• Increased energy: 31.9%
• More fun: 31.9%
• More income: 25.7%
• Stopped a bad habit: 25.7%
• Change in career: 24.3%
• More free time: 22.9%
• Increased profitability of business: 17.1%
• Other: 15.3%
• Started new business: 12.9%
• Empowered employees: 11.0%
• Business turn around: 09.0%
• Change in residential location: 05.7%

The same International Coaching Federation study previously mentioned asked the question of what value coaching clients perceived as a result of their coaching experience. The responses were as follows:

A landslide of 98.5% of coaching clients said their investment in a coach was well worth the money.  

• 70% of clients said their investment in a coach was very valuable.
• 28.5% said their investment was valuable.
• 1.5% said their investment in a coach had not been valuable.

If you have been thinking about coaching and wondered if it was worth the time and investment the results of this survey should help convince you that chances are you too can gain from a coaching experience.

There are many ways to describe coaching and numerous adjectives used to convey what coaching is all about. Thus, this a survey done by the International Coaching Federation caught our attention. The following are the primary reasons people chose to work with a coach:

By far, most coaching clients pay their coach to be a sounding board - to really listen to them and give honest feedback. Clients, who could select as many choices as were applicable, characterized the role of their coach as the following:

• Sounding board: 84.8%
• Motivator: 78.1%
• Friend: 56.7%
• Mentor: 50.5%
• Business consultant: 46.7%
• Teacher: 41.0%
• Taskmaster: 30.5%
• Spiritual guide: 29.5%
• Other: 13.3%

In our experience the primary reasons people initiate a coaching relationship with us are: Sounding Board, Motivator, Mentor and Business Consultant. If you have had a coach in the past we would be interested in your experience.

Here at FutureDecisions we have offered coaching services since our inception, however; we have never emphasized it outside of the realm of our Reinvent Yourself career transition product. Well, that is changing as of now! After successfully completing an extensive year-long training program, Kevin has chosen to spend more time with this personally rewarding work. Kevin’s extensive executive experience in Fortune 100 companies coupled with his recently completed training serve him well in being a highly effective executive coach. While coaching can and often is a stand-alone pursuit, it can also be effectively utilized in support of Workforce/Succession Planning.
So what is coaching anyway?
Coaching is partnering with clients in a thought-provoking and creative process that inspires them to maximize their personal and professional potential.
A coach provides an ongoing partnership designed to help their clients produce fulfilling results in their personal and professional lives. Coaches help individuals improve their performances and enhance the quality of their professional lives, personal lives, or both.
Coaches are trained to listen, to observe and to customize their approach to individual client needs. They seek to elicit solutions and strategies from the client; they believe the client is naturally creative and resourceful.
Individuals and organizations that engage in a professional coaching relationship will experience fresh perspectives on personal challenges and opportunities, enhanced decision-making skills, greater interpersonal effectiveness, and increased confidence in carrying out their chosen work and life roles. Consistent with a commitment to enhancing their personal effectiveness, they can also expect to see appreciable results in the areas of productivity, personal satisfaction with life and work, and the achievement of personally relevant goals. The coach’s job is to provide support to enhance the skills, resources, and creativity that the client already possesses.
Many people call themselves coaches but have had little or no training on how to be an effective coach. As previously stated, Kevin has completed an extensive training program that has served to expand and enhance his coaching skills. He is certified by the International Coaching Federation - a consortium of professional coaches and organizations that have joined together under its auspices to shape and govern the profession of coaching. Being an ICF certified coach indicates that the individual holding that certification adheres to skills sets, competencies, ethics and standards which are a collective agreement between coaches from all over the world who have made the commitment to maintain the very highest standards for the coaching profession.
Contact Kevin to see if coaching is right for you and to explore the possibilities of expanding your professional and personal horizons!
To kick-start this exciting new focus of our business, we are offering a 20% discount to anyone responding to this article when they contract for 5 or more hours of coaching services!