Are you struggling to find clarity in your professional or personal life? Are you concerned about achieving your goals or communicating effectively with others? There are several benefits that life coaching can offer. A life coach can help you problem-solve situations and find solutions that you can implement in your life without the emotional investment that comes with traditional therapy.
1. Solving Problems vs. Therapy
According to the International Coach Federation (ICF), life coaching is defined as a process that, “supports personal and professional growth based on self-initiated change in pursuit of specific actionable outcomes.”
This means that a coach works with you to help you find answers to problems instead of telling you what to do. The relationship between a coach and client differs from that of a therapist, in that you are not processing to understand your emotions or resolve issues in your relationships with other people. For those who may dislike the idea of being in therapy, life coaching can be an option for working on issues in your life.
2. A Life Coach Can Be Specialized for Your Needs
Another benefit of life coaching is that a coach can be a specialized expert in a particular area in which you need help. This can be helpful if you are looking for assistance with a particular area of your personal or professional life. Some topics include:
- Leadership development.
- Working together as a team.
- Communication skills, either for professional or personal settings.
- Education-related topics, such as for children who are struggling in school or have learning differences like ADHD.
- Improving results for individuals or organizations.
- Career advice and career transition.
- Sober living.
3. A Life Coach Can Be a Sounding Board
A life coach can be a sounding board for you to bounce off ideas and help you to discover solutions. The coach does not give an opinion, rather a life coach is to remain impartial. If anything, a coach is your own personal consultant whose job is to guide you through your process of change instead of simply telling you what to do.
4. A Life Coach Can Help with Skill Assessments
Life coaches offer the benefit of helping you to understand your strengths, some of which you may not even be aware that you have. By knowing your strengths, you can not only gain more confidence when in certain situations, you can also have a better awareness of your weaknesses. This knowledge can help you and the coach create a plan to maximize your strengths and strengthen your weaknesses. Other benefits of assessments include:
- Knowing your learning style and how you absorb information.
- Awareness of your personality traits and which personalities you work well with or may struggle with.
- Assessing your communication skills and what you can do to improve them.
5. Life Coaching Benefits Everyone
Working with a life coach can be helpful to anyone regardless of their background or what their goals are. Whether you have struggled in life or have been successful, there is always something to improve on.
6. Success Can be Individualized
Speaking of success, the outcome that you want can be individualized, instead of having to meet an arbitrary standard. Maybe success for you is finding better ways to communicate with others, or finding your true passion in life.
7. Coaching is for a Certain Period of Time
A life coach is someone you work with for a certain period of time. There is flexibility, but the idea is that a life coach is meant to help with a particular issue within a defined time frame, such as six months. This may differ from a therapist, with whom you visit for a more extended time frame, even years.
Life coaching benefits those who want to learn more about themselves, find solutions to problems, and develop skill sets. By consulting with a life coach, you can learn more about yourself and work with your coach to develop solutions.
"Igor is well trained in cutting-edge, research-based therapies. With his compassionate heart and presence, Igor is gifted at helping clients find resources to face even the most difficult challenges and develop healthier cognitive patterns and behaviors. Clients love Igor's warmth, openness and innovation." Tasha Medley MA, M.Ed., LPC, NCC, RPT -- Psychotherapist, Boulder, CO
"Igor Giusti is a profoundly gifted healer and spiritual guide. His deep knowledge of different styles of therapy is balanced by an equally deep knowledge of spiritual practice and literature. He really does practice what he teaches - integrating the mind, heart, and body together in a life dedicated to spiritual realization. He has studied extensively and done lengthy retreats. I know personally from working with him and observing him that his clinical perception is extremely precise and his responses very accurate and effective. He has clarity and intelligence, is heartful, caring, and also dedicated, strong, and incisive when needed. I can't think of a better guide in the process of getting
to know one's inner nature and bringing it into the world." Josh Medley MA, NCC, LPC -- Psychotherapist, Boulder, CO
"Igor is, first and foremost, a fine, sensitive human being, with a heightened self-awareness as well as a deep sense of compassion for other people. There is also a deep inner quiet about him, perhaps developed in his meditation practice. In addition to these aspects of emotional intelligence, empathy, self-awareness, and presence, he has a fine sense of humor." Deepesh Faucheux -- Adjunct Professor and Psychotherapist, Boulder, CO
"Igor’s greatest gifts are his somatic intelligence and compassionate heart. He is surprisingly attuned to the inner realm of sensations and feelings. He relates to the world from a spiritual and somatic felt sense, rather than from his mind alone. This makes him highly capable in guiding clients to become more embodied, in touch with their feelings, and grounded in their spiritual experiences while living in the world." Les McAllan PhD -- Retired Professor and Psychologist, Prescott AZ
Igor has a warm, open, and attentive presence. His warm listening capacity, keen curiosity, psychological depth, and insight are palpable. Igor is a transpersonally trained psychotherapist with group and individual experience, as well as a participant-explorer in other types of contemplative and psychological intra- and inter-personal work. He has great value for and emphasis on the body and his adept somatic awareness is evident by the way he can articulate—and help others get in touch with and articulate—bodily, emotional, and mental experiences. In general I would say Igor is a
grateful and joyful person. His affectionate and joyful nature make him desirable and delightful to be around. Jason Appt -- Assistant Professor and Psychotherapist, Boulder CO
