This past weekend I attended Hearts at Home, a conference geared toward mothers who want education, resources, and encouragement to care for their families and strengthen relationships. I have enjoyed this conference for several years, but this year, attending not only as a parent but as a parent coach, I felt so grateful for my coaching training. I came home with a new appreciation for the valuable tool coaching can be for the invested parent.
At the conference this year and in years past I’ve attended workshops to help me learn about how kids think, how kids develop, how boys and girls are different, and how to effectively pass on my values to my children. I’ve heard professionals speak on marriage, healthy approaches to conflict, effective discipline, coping with anger, and healing from trauma. I’ve heard authors, national and international speakers, and local experts in the trenches share wisdom and insights that have challenged and shaped my views. I came home each time from my two days of education and enlightenment feeling energized, inspired, and ready to make some needed changes. But this year I walked away with something more—the assurance that I know how to make those changes a reality.
I now have more than an education; I have the power to put that education to good use for my family. Because as a coach I have learned to identify not only what I want or why I want it, but how to make it happen. I have the key, the special sauce, the secret ingredient that brings all the pieces into focus in a grand cohesive landscape.
A few years ago I remember hearing Kathy Koch, PhD talk about the five core needs and the five corresponding questions “that will change you life” (according to her book on the topic, Finding Authentic Hope and Wholeness). The needs she identified made sense to me and the questions resonated, but I still came home wondering what I was supposed to do with it all. How should the information impact my parenting? What could I do with it during a busy morning over breakfast or in a moment of discipline with one of my children? Having this new way to look at the world and my family gave me a heightened sense of awareness and undoubtedly had a beneficial impact on my development as a parent, but I felt frustrated that even though I had this valuable information, I still felt unsure how to make its impact felt in my day to day parenting.
In contrast, this weekend I happened to listen to Dr. Koch give a different presentation, this one on different ways that people learn, as outlined in her book 8 Great Smarts: Discover and Nurture Your Child’s Intelligences. I emerged from her workshop again inspired, excited, and challenged to do some thinking and make some changes. But this time what I didn’t have was a sense of anxiety over what to do about it. I know I can take what I’ve learned and apply it. And I know how to do that because of the coaching process has shown me how to turn knowledge into power.
It can do the same for you.
Education is a beautiful thing, and it’s a crucial start for all of us. But have you ever wondered why information is more accessible than ever, but we still so often feel lost, overwhelmed, or paralyzed as parents? If you know what you want and why you want it, but can’t seem to implement the necessary changes to get it, coaching may be just the key you need to unlock the elusive results you’re after. Give me a call or send me an email—I’d love to show you how.
