compassion

Questions

| kevinthecoach

All too often when we consider the future whatever we dream is crushed by a voice saying it’s impossible.

In group sessions searching for creative ideas I have often observed people hold back for fear of looking silly and being laughed at. The ‘normal’ reaction to an idea is to dismiss it as being silly or impossible – people are easily threatened by the merest whiff of anything outside of their experience.

As I have said before, when Apple introduced the IPhone the Microsft MD dismissed it out of hand. Had you heard of Zoom before Covid? Did you think you would be using Zoom, Teams etc. as easily as you once made phone calls?

Landing a man on the moon with less computing ability in a spaceship than you have in your mobile phone sounds crazy! Yet back in the 1960’s the challenge to do so was made and it was done within 10 years.

As David Shaked says, one of the most powerful questions is, ‘what is possible?’

What is possible right now?

What haven’t I considered?

What are my resources?

What might be the first step?

And if I make that step what might the next one be?

And the next?

Who might support me, even if it’s only with a few kind words?

Now Its About Who You Are

| kevinthecoach

Retirement is not a time to sleep, but a time to become truly awake. To be truly awake is to have a real sense of your past, what is happening now and what might be.

If you have been busy all of your working life you can opt to live a busy active life but are you swopping business for another busyness to drown out the silence?

Once many cultures were mindful of the knowledge an elder had acquired, but now knowledge is instantly available through technology. Retirement means yo are no longer in competition with others, now is the time to distill your wisdom. You don’t have to be like anybody else or worry about what they think of you, only what you think of yourself.

There is no need to retire in the same way as every other soon to to retire or retired person. Retirement is a time to discover who you were meant to be now, because what you did has, or will soon come to an end.  No longer is your identity is based on what you do, now its’ about who you are.

How many sliding doors confronted you up to today?

Which doors did you choose to walk through and why?

What enhanced your identity?

What enhanced your self-esteem?

What have you learnt about yourself?

What do you need to do now?

Do you need some creative space to explore?

How can I help you now?

Getting Coached Around Retirement

| kevinthecoach

Whilst retirement doesn’t seem to be a hot topic unless it’s about financial advice, yet it is a vital part of living one’s life to the fullest. When do you think about retirement? Does the question occur when you have successfully made a fortune by forty or is it when your pension falls due? Do you plan to work on past a ‘normal retirement age’?

Experience shows me that people begin to question what their life has become or could become at different points in their lives, my focus is on retirement because it provides an important focal point.

Childhood is the prologue, the career the first act, retirement the second act and death the third act. Once upon a time retirement generally meant one had perhaps five or six years left but today we are not too suprised when people make one hundred. So that could mean another forty years, pretty much as long as one’s working life!

Growing up as a child the questions are around what you will be. During a career the questions are around what have you become, what do you do, with possible sub-questions around what that involves, and with status around complexity, challenges, status and rewards. That whole structure disappears with retirement, so who then are you?

The questions we ask can be all important. The opportunity to use creative explorations can bring new insights.

What will you become?

I have brought together a range of creative tools and techniques to allow discoveries to be made and reflectively marinated to allow new positive approaches life.

As your coach on this journey I look forward to working with you.

More workshops are planned and I continue to coach one to one..

If you have questions please let me know.

New courses coming in 2023

Some Resources For Today + a fun bonus

| kevinthecoach

Resilience

I met Chris Johnstone whilst he was still lecturing at Bristol University. A softly spoken doctor with a huge experience that you can rely on. Easily understood, and simple graphics, followed by questions.

Coronavirus

https://www.covidviruspandemic.com

A great American resource whose focus is obvious from the name!

Flow

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi is a bit dry but he gently shows the outcome of his investigations into happiness, career choices and what it means to be in a flow state or as sports people would say, in the zone.