What do I need a Life Coach for?

Why would anyone need a life coach? That was the thought that went through the mind of one of my clients, he later admitted, as he put off our initial meeting.

Although he was struggling with many aspects of his life - relationships, work and home life - he couldn't see what value a personal development coach like me could offer him.

But he felt as if he was sinking. So finally he came to a first session where we looked at what he wanted to achieve. Before that first session, as with all my coaching clients, I asked him to complete a document that sets the scene of where they are now and where they want to be.

This is what he had to say about that first session: "I can only liken Clare to a sculptor, and thought of the conversation between the painter and the sculptor. The painter turned round to the sculptor one day and asked: 'How is it you can carve such beautiful statues out of big lumps of stone?'. The sculptor said: 'I don't...all I do is chip away at what doesn't belong and chisel and refine what's already there'.

"And this is exactly what Clare does. She doesn’t try and make you into anything you aren’t already. She just helps chip away the fears, the doubt, the insecurities and takes the ideas you already have and helps you turn them into a realisation that you can achieve."

This man wanted to restructure work, his relationships and personal ethics. There were tasks along the way over the next five sessions looking at all the positives and negatives and his role at work.

His testimonial means such a lot to me because he made such a huge change to his life in such a short time.

He wrote: "In five sessions Clare turned my life around, on a personal level and on a professional level. If you want to make yourself feel better as a person, then don’t waste money on shoes, or a car for a temporary fix, see Clare for a permanent solution. Thank you Clare. Thank you for everything. You made me open my eyes to myself."

It's not unusual for people to have doubts about whether a life coach can help them. Many will delay for weeks, or months, about taking action and booking that initial meeting. But stories like this one show that the results can be a permanent change for the better in your professional life and your levels of personal peace and happiness.

Coaxing and Coaching, the clutter away

Too much clutter in your life can be a symptom - and also a cause - of stress. As the saying goes, "Tidy house, tidy mind"

Being surrounded by isorganised piles of papers, things you have hoarded and don't know what to do with, and just general mess can quickly sap your energy and make you depressed, unhappy and inefficient.

It takes longer than it should to do simple jobs when the clutter stops you finding the things you need when you need them.

It's easy to feel overwhelmed if clutter has weighed down your home, your work area and your life.

But by taking small steps, one at a time, towards reclaiming a clean and clear working and living space you can start to feel re-energised and happy. You can work more efficiently and have more time for the fun things in life.

In the working day clutter can mean more than just an untidy desk and a non-existent filing system. Have you heard people talk about information overload? Are you finding your inbox full of notifications and alerts and e-newsletters that you no longer need or don't want to read? Cull them down to the essentials and free yourself from the tyranny of unread emails continually piling up all day every day. You can organise your inbox into folders so that designated must-read items can go straight into them, bypassing your inbox. Then you can allocate time in your diary to review them.

Is your computer or laptop desktop full of icons for software you no longer need and random documents and images that should be filed safely away online? A tidy desktop ...can also mean a tidy mind.

Your desk and your work area can quickly become cluttered with papers and invoices, receipts and stationery in random piles. Make sure you've got enough storage space for things you need to keep so that there is "a place for everything and everything in its place".

In the home, wardrobes, drawers and cupboards are the places where clutter usually starts - and it can easily spill over on to floors and surfaces. Divide the clutter into things you need to keep, things you KNOW you should throw away and things you can donate to charity shops. Once you deal with the clutter you will feel like a weight has been lifted off your shoulders. It's as if your rooms can breathe easily again - and so can you.

It can be a vicious circle when the clutter confuses you until you can't make sensible decisions about what to do with things. That's when it might be time to call in expert outside help: Pam Beale at Mission Accomplished.

Reducing physical clutter will relieve stress and give you a feeling of freedom and liberation - but you may still need to tackle 'life clutter'. Have you taken on too many commitments at work, at home and in your social life? Are you the sort of person who finds it hard to say 'no' and ends up helping with every school, committee and charity event going? Helping others is a source of tremendous personal satisfaction - but it can go too far when you're being pulled in every direction and your own life is suffering. Think about what you really love doing - and consider opting out of the ones that are no longer enjoyable.

If you need help from a neutral and independent expert than coaching could be the answer.

A coach can help you bring some sensible structure into your life - a bit like a filing system in an office. Together you can review your daily and weekly routines and hobbies to see how you can organise your time more effectively. Get in touch with Meta4 if you think that extra help is what you need.  

Top ten tips for running a sustainable and successful business

Sometimes you can be so busy working IN your business - doing all those hands-on, practical day-to-day tasks - that you forget the importance of working ON your business.

To have a successful and sustainable business you need to keep the clients you have already AND find new ones. This means that you can't just be 'the do-er' - you need to be your own sales and marketing specialist too. Getting and keeping customers is the most important role at any company - without customers there's obviously no business. That's why a lot of my top ten tips for running a successful and sustainable business are about reminding your customers to do business with you while reaching out to the new clients who will secure the future of your business.

1. Keep in touch with your customers - Ask them if you can add their email to an occasional newsletter where you provide special offers, showcase your expertise and highlight success stories; offer a free six-monthly check-up; connect and interact with them on social media.

2. Find, and stay in touch with, the influencers who can help you build your business - Local face-to-face networking and online networking are both ways to meet people who can evangelise about your business; establish a trusted coaching group with other business owners where you can give and take advice and support each other.

3. Offer something for nothing - Giving out top tips via your website or blog, offering free consultation and perhaps an open surgery wins trust and showcases your expertise and experience making potential customers more likely to choose YOU.

4. Makesure your customer service is better than your competition - Whatever your product or service there's always another business your customer could choose. Make sure your exceptional customer service is the reason they come back to you.

5. Reward customers and clients for referrals - If someone wins business for you offer them a gift or a discount off your products/services as a tangible way of saying 'thank you'. What others say about you is many times more powerful than what you say about yourself.

6. Spend at least 10% of your working week on developing your business - Diary regular slots when you ignore emails and other jobs and work on some of these tips. If your business is still in its early stages you need to devote more hours to growing your client base, planning for future growth and measuring the success of things you try.

7. Ensure your promotional material is professional and compelling - Review the content and images on your website, business cards, brochures, leaflets and social media platforms regularly. Is everything consistent and conveying the image you want to project?

8. ALWAYS set business goals for the next 12 months - They should be SMART - Specific, Measureable, Achievable, Realistic and Targeted. Don't put them away in a drawer. Keep them in sight, adding images to fix them in your mind; measure your progress towards your goals.

9. Understand how your customers find you now - You should always know how every part of your marketing is working. A spreadsheet can be tagged or colour coded to show how customers found you; measure the return on any investment (time as well as money) that you have made; identify where you want your customers to come from and adjust your plans accordingly.

10. Your enthusiasm for what you do is infectious - If you still have pride and passion in what you do, your customers will be impressed and confident in your ability to deliver. If you have fallen out of love a little bit with what you do it might be time to invest in some coaching to get you back on track - or to help you decide to make changes.

If you want any more information about bringing about positive change in your life and your business, contact me for a free initial consultation on 07739 196896.

Taking The Leap into Starting Your Own Business

Starting your own business can be one of the most exciting and rewarding experiences life has to offer.
But taking that first step into self-employment can sometimes seem like a giant leap into the unknown.
Some people take the plunge and become their own bosses without a backward glance: They relish the freedom and flexibility, thrive on the hard work and responsibility and love being masters of their own destiny.
But for others, fear and uncertainty can make them hesitate - even when their heart tells them they have a great business idea and the talent to make it happen.
If this sounds like you, or someone you know, then coaching can be the way to make that transition less stressful and increase your chances of growing a successful and sustainable business.
I can help you set short term and long term goals making it easier for you to see the road ahead and understand what the future looks like and feels like for you.

Coaching can also give you greater confidence and self-belief - if those are the barriers holding you back.
Planning for your own business will also involve you looking at other aspects of your life such as your values and your objectives - both for business and your private life. If these all complement each other you will have every chance of achieving happiness and fulfillment as well as financial stability.

If you love what you do, have the drive to succeed, and a dedicated work ethic, life as a business owner can be a dream come true.
All my training and coaching is bespoke, and as individual as you, your business idea and your circumstances.
I wouldn't be the first coach to tell you that you can either make money, or you can make excuses - but not both. If you don't want to spend a life time wondering what might have been if you'd been brave enough to follow your dream and start your own business - maybe it's time to stop procrastinating and take that leap of faith.

You can read my top ten tips for starting your own business here.