Introduction
Compilation of Coaches Responses to "..An Ah Ha Moment that Turned You into a Believer of Coaching" 

List of Experiences/True Stories

--  About ten years ago I was "coaching" a friend on how to make a sales presentation. We worked together for a couple of sessions. He like what we did. He could tell he was better after we talked because of the way his clients responded to him. I was struck by this experience because I realized that I had been doing this for a long time with many people. I loved it. They loved it. 

I was a trainer/consultant at the time. I enjoyed that, too. But I didn't love it. When I discovered coaching as a profession I realized that I had found my dream career. I have said what you said, "I can't not coach!" 
I have had critics (a friend who is a PhD. psychologist who said coaching is dangerous, a friend who said "why can't people just help others out of the goodness of their hearts.") I just doesn't matter. I have never been so proud of what I do. It is easy to talk about and I find marketing effortless. My first coach, whom I paid extremely well (much more than I currently charge), was worth twice the price. I knew then that I could be a coach and earn a good living. 

I am always learning. I want to grow with every client and class I take. I want to be the most masterful coach possible. potential client asked me if I was a successful coach. I did not hesitate to say yes. Not because I am the "only" coach but because I am a masterful coach who is willing to do what is best for the client even if it means referring them to another coach. I never worry if someone doesn't choose me. I know the right client will say yes. God, this is a great life!

--  I related to the comment about marketing being easier when you're doing what you love and believe in what you do. I have sold a host of products in my life - cosmetics, securities, telephone services, etc., etc. Didn't do well and was not excited in what I was doing. Coaching is much what I do in my life anyway - helping others with advice, etc. It's wonderful to make a living by doing something that comes naturally.

I think if coaching isn't something you love, something that doesn't come naturally, then you'll know that in part because of the inability to easily talk about (and thus market) the coaching that you do.

-- Two Ah ha's come to mind;

1. I was working with my coach on why I was stuck working in a job that no longer served me and in fact was wearing me out ( lots of stress and travel.  My children are grown and my finances are in order, but I couldn’t let go to start the second career that I always wanted. My coach helped me understand that my fears were my motivators and that I actually could let my wants and dreams (Joys) be my motivation. I was later able to leave the job and to start my coaching career. 

2. I was really stressed about an upcoming 10 day business trip that
involved multiple cities, etc. My coach helped my to look at ways to have
some fun on the trip ( I rented a Mustang Convertible) and also to make
lists of all the things that I thought I had to do before leaving. Some of
them I systematically did and others were deferred until my return. Aha I
can take control of these stressful situations and even have a good time.

--  I have been coaching for 3 1/2 years and have received coaching from 
several good coaches during that period. It wasn't until this past spring, 
though, that I met a coach who "rocked my world." Within the first 10 
minutes of our initial conversation (not even our first session because I 
hadn't decided to hire him yet), I knew that this person could coach me to 
a level I'd never dreamed of! For the first time, someone was looking at 
my world through my eyes and was also helping me to quickly see what was blocking me. The longer I coach with him, the higher I raise my own 
standards, and the results have been incredible. He embodies qualities I 
want in my life: passion and generosity, clarity of perception, ability to 
articulate great ideas with few words, humility, and true caring. Do I 
believe in the power of coaching? Yes, I do!

--  I remember when I was first coached and realized that this process was allowing me to really understand what motivates me. It came in the form of taking the PIAV, an assessment tool, along with my coach. Using that information, he helped me see how and why I was making certain choices in my life. The "aha" moment was when my coach helped me realize that I didn't have to deny my natural tendencies, I just needed to understand them better in order to maximize my potential and increase the effectiveness of my relationships. WOW.

--  Having so many tools to coach was making me feeling self sufficient, to overcome a complex conflict with my two partners. Thanks God my intuition guided me to talk to my coach and to enjoy being masterfully coached. When we end the session, I was in a completely different space. I worked on some deep aspects of myself and ended emotionally relieved and feeling very confident. A complicated situation was handled in less than an hour. That day I got the experiential clarity on how important is to have a coach and how great can our impact be in our clients. I created my commitment to be an excellent coach right there.

--  My coach said, "That's not who you are." in response to something
I'd said which was quite sarcastic. 

In that simple phrase she reminded me that some of the ways I'd
been presenting myself to the world weren't really me, but masks
to cover my fears and insecurities. And people didn't always like
those masks or judged me for using them. How could I present
myself as a coach and generally wonderful person if I was hiding
behind a mask of learned behaviors which weren't really me?

Of course, until my coach said that, I'd actually consciously
believed myself to be, at least in part, what those masks
presented.

From that moment, I believed in coaching and that coaches really
can hold up a mirror to a client to show them something the
client hasn't seen themselves. Only outside perspective can do
that -- and that's why coaching is so valuable.

--  My coach has a very spiritual focus. While she is extremely spiritual, she also has a real life with kids, a boyfriend and a dog. Many times when I have become bogged down in the details, she has helped pull me up to see the bigger picture. From there I'm able to move forward with a positive outlook.  Her belief in me, as well as her own example, have helped me believe in the possibilities of living with a new focus.

--  My first a-ha, I was amazed at how many of them thanked me for giving them the opportunity to provide me with feedback and tell me how their lives had changed for the better. 

My second a-ha. Knowing my folks, I knew if I requested feedback from 45 people I'd get 8-12 responses. To my utter amazement in less then two hours I had over 15 responses and within 48 hours I had almost 40. I'm still getting replies from folks that were out of the office saying how badly they felt that they missed the deadline I'd asked them to submit by, but they still wanted me to know what my coaching had meant to them.

As if that wasn't enough!

My greatest a-ha. While I may not be a Great Coach.......yet! I am a Coach that has made a difference and touched many peoples lives in a very positive way, often times in ways I'd never have imagined.. This is an insight I might never have gained had it not been for lesson # 4. And yes, when I wake in the morning the first thing I think about Coaching, in every conversation I have I look for someway to give the other person something and learn from them. I'm proud as Hell to tell people I'm a Coach.

Final thought, honor your clients by asking for their
feedback..................it will change your life.


--  I have had two aha moments...

A great article appeared in a regional daily newspaper regarding coaching...title "Mentors of the Mind"...gave me a great deal of excitement.

A colleague reminded me not to let the opinion of others block me from pursuing my career as a coach. I believe in coaching, if a person is coach-able. I truly do not need convincing of this...However, many in my life are skeptical, but as a "slowly walk in the back door" the light bulb turns on.

I had a coach last year for the first time. During our first (freebie) hour together she got me so focused on a creative goal that for the first time in years I felt (totally) alive again. I had always wanted to be a song writer but had never thought about writing in other areas such as literary writing. After 12 weeks I had managed to finish (almost) my first book. Now with her help again I am trying to get it published.

--  Coaching completely came together for me about two weeks while working with a client. One of the big topics that came up with us was how my client viewed criticism. How perfect was it that with my 
coach that same very week , I got to look at the same topic and how I viewed criticism. The organization whose board I chair, More Than Money, began offering a Coaching Program, with free 30-minute sample sessions available at our national gathering in May. I'm the Board Chair; I've got to sample the product we're selling.  What coach My Coach did with me in that half-hour convinced me that I could be a better version of myself by signing up for individual coaching. Now I'm an evangelist,  directing others to good coaches and encouraging talented people 
to pursue coaching as a profession. And I tell everyone that Coachville.com is the best way to learn what the profession's about, and at the current enrollment price, it's the cheapest "Consumer Report" to tell potential coaching clients 
what to look for in a coach.

--   I've had two aha moments for the same thing from two different
coaches. It happened the first time about a month into coaching
with my first coach and six months later when I won a free month
of coaching from another coach.

The aha was two fold, one, I could be a coach and two, and most
important, I could be a great coach if I focused on getting my
life in balance and plugging into the many offerings of the
coaching community to learn all I could about coaching.

A year later and I'm still on a high and have learned a ton, only
to realize I a million tons more to learn.


-- My "aha" eye opening moment came when a personal coaching friend made me realize that the advice and help I had literally been giving away for free was in fact coaching and that I had in actuality been practicing my true profession and mission.

I had been answering the question " What do you do" with a response that met my needs (i.e. pride) not that of the questioner. I now answer questions in the context of the questioner, to meet their inquiry need not my prideful boasting. A very powerful and illuminating distinction for me that alone has exchanged the way I interact with others.


-- I felt compelled to send this, even though at this very moment in life, my focus has had to change from becoming a full time coach to becoming a coach after I get a full time job. So explains my replying to 
lesson #10 at such a late date. I'm behind on my lessons... but I do have a story to tell.

My career began probably in the years about when Thomas' did, but I began as a social worker. I loved it and had passion for it, but after seven years of dealing with abused children, my passion went away. I got a divorce, and things shifted for me in that I wanted a fresh start. So, at 30, I went back to school to explore my more creative side. After two years of being a college student and waitress, I decided I was too "old" for that 
(I chuckle at that now at the ripe age of 50). I got my real estate license and started selling houses.

For 15 years, I was in the real estate industry, in sales, management, relocation, mortgages, and marketing. It was in the last, marketing, where I found my niche. I loved sitting down with realtors, one on one or in a group, and finding out what made them tick, while all the while I was also asking for business. I also got to develop fun marketing strategies and conduct meetings. All great skills for coaching, but I'm getting ahead of myself.

In those 15 years, I also remarried and had two children. I felt a real compassion for women who had to balance work, husband's and most importantly, their children. I worried about mine constantly. I made a huge leap of faith and decided to stay home with mine. Not being too keen on Dr. Laura, but listening occasionally, I got her message about raising your own kids. So I retired. I also had a passion to make some angel dolls I had been "inspired" to do a couple of years earlier. (Which is another whole story). So three years pass, I'm the queen of the PTA and making my dolls and being a mom/soccer mom, but something is missing. I'm still always "coaching" my friends, but never knew it was called that. Then one day, I'm having coffee with my friend who is a working mom, struggling with mom questions and is also an HR Director for a big corporation. She starts telling me about some employee issues and this coach she's hired, that she really doesn't like. And as I "coach" her about this, she says "Denise, YOU need to be a COACH!" Have you ever heard something and it's like the statement goes right through your very being? Well, that statement sent a sensation of energy right through me. I looked at her and said "you mean I can get paid for doing what I've always done for free?" She replied that she paid this coach big bucks. So my coaching path began.

Like is my nature, I rushed right into finding out all I could about coaching. I researched the field, the schools, the organizations. I took a quick community course, taught by a coach, on how to make $100,000 a year and be a coach. I hired that coach (Michael Clark in Dallas) to coach me for awhile. Then my friend, the HR director, hired me to coach two women in her office. And I added two more clients. Then life happened, we moved to a new community, my husband lost his job and here we are. You know the old saying, "Life is what happens, while your making other plans" When I realized I would have to go back to work, I got really depressed and sad. But of course, being the good coach that I am, I told myself "Look, you can continue this pity party or you can choose to see the "gift" in all this. Like Thomas, at his accounting job, I am going to benefit from where life has placed me. All along, I've thought my coaching niche, aside from stressed out working moms, might be with realtors.
So I have the opportunity now to learn my new community inside out and get to know all the realtors, and get paid while I'm doing it. 

I can still coach, and in fact I've decided to "market" myself and the title company I will represent as the "office with heart". Unlike most of the other competitors, I will offer "Life Makeover" (thank you Cheryl Richardson) moments to ease the stress of my clients, the realtors. All along, of course asking for business. Doesn't the "Grand Scheme" of things just amaze you sometimes? (MY other niche would be 
"Spirit Coaching")

My moral to this story, yet incomplete, is that we follow our hearts and our passion, but that we also see life's up's and down's as gifts that may lead to another open door. My having to go back to work, will allow me to meet new coaching clients. My coaching business may not "look" like I thought it would, but I "know with a knowing" that I am to coach and 
have been led to a new path to do it. As my company name says, I want to create passion in my life and guide and inspire others to find passion and purpose in theirs. Life's a whole lot more fun when passion is there.