The Art of Change: Transformational Coaching
By Feroshia R.J. Knight, Agent 47 Image Enhancement Technology

One of the few things guaranteed in life, is change. Change happens all around us and constantly affects all aspects of our lives. Change touches everything - from our relationships, to the jobs we hold, to the way we live and even how we think about life itself. Change is what moves us toward what we want or away from what we don't want. But, many of us approach change with trepidation, some going to great lengths to avoid it altogether. Wouldn't it be great if we could take the fear out of change? Apply new, empowering ways of thinking that enable us to make the best out of the changes we encounter throughout our lives? Transformational coaching can help provide the tools necessary to take more confident steps toward our dreams, diminishing the fear and eventually banishing it forever.

Transformational coaching represents one of the newest advances in the fields of accelerated learning, complex performance enhancement and personal development. It differs from traditional performance coaching - best known for its success in sports. This "traditional" coaching works to create positive changes at the behavioral level. Often change at this level is neither holistic nor sustainable.

Through transformational coaching, participants can learn to create and expand their way of thinking, feeling, speaking and acting. They often discover or reaffirm that motivation and enthusiasm already exist within themselves. Transformational coaching may address a variety of topics including - values, conceptions, and self-identity - with the intention of guiding participants closer to their desired goals. Through questions and hands-on exercises, the transformational coach helps participants step out of what they are "doing" and into "seeing and hearing" with a new set of eyes and ears. This new higher-level awareness enables them to make more appropriate choices and move closer to what they really want in life. Changes made at these deeper internal levels are naturally more holistic and sustainable as they are integrated throughout the mind and body system.

Sometimes life throws something at us, forcing us to alter our behavior or make an uncomfortable decision. We might be confronted with an unexpected circumstance in our jobs, relationships or health. And suddenly change stares us right in the face. We didn't choose it but there it is anyway. Why do we so often wait for life's challenges to sculpt our pathway when we can wield the power to create positive change anytime, anywhere?

We may not always recognize the need for change. We simply do the best we can at the time. And, behind every action lives a positive intention. Because we believe that there is something to be gained by not changing, we don't. For example, we may continue to indulge in an unhealthy behavior because we are still getting some kind of benefit from it. We may justify our behavior for a variety of reasons because it is more comfortable than change. We may even realize that what we are doing is harmful to us but continue to repeat this unsuccessful pattern. Relationships are always great playgrounds for this trick. "Next time it will be different". When we do encounter a challenge, do we respond with an appropriate change right away? Or do we stay mired in the pattern until something external changes? Or are we finally compelled to make a change through sheer frustration?

Transformational coaching allows us to access our higher states of thinking. By recognizing and acknowledging the positive intent behind our habits found at this higher-level of consciousness, we can find much healthier ways to feed our needs. Understanding the intent behind our actions provides us with a boost toward self-improvement and self-empowerment. We can move from a non-productive state into a position of control and purpose. From this higher sense of living we can design and integrate strategies to succeed in all areas of life.

As a process in self-discovery, transformational coaching allows individuals to create new rules in the game of life, enhancing how they participate in it. With a focus on exploring and facilitating small to sometimes monumental shifts in the way we think, feel, act, and relate, we learn to remove those obstacles that have stopped or diverted us from succeeding in life.

What if we could not only recognize a need for change but trigger that change from a sense of secure self-empowerment to direct our lives onto the desired path and banish fear of the unknown with confidence?

We can. For what is F.E.A.R., really, but an acronym for False Evidence Appearing Real? We can eliminate fear of change once the unknown lies unmasked and humbled before us.

About the Author

Feroshia Knight, NLP Coach, owns and operates Baraka: Center for Creative Change. As the "Good Living Guide", she uses a variety of tools and resources to foster encouragement, understanding and accountability. Feroshia believes in the power of communicative partnerships and feels a healthy dose of commitment coupled with the right catalyst is a winning recipe for positive change within reach to all. She is dedicated to helping each client realize their life dreams.