Beliefs, mind frames and coaching success (1)

It is not the strongest of the species that survive nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change” Charles Darwin.

Every successful coaching intervention is been predicated upon one vital factor. That singular vital factor is the client’s personal belief. Personal belief in this regard refers to, and describes the quality and quantity of ideas that the client affirms, validates and confirms. The client’s personal belief is in turn dependent on the meaning that he attaches to what he expresses through his ideas and the impressions held in his mind.

The client’s personal belief is also heavily dependent on his personal feelings, which are in fact the expressions of his emotional ideas and thoughts. The combination of the two factors (meaning and feelings) produces what psychologists refer to as mind frames. It is therefore no big surprise that the critical issues that a professional coach has to deal with in any coaching intervention revolves around confirming or altering personal beliefs. This is however only possible through changing the client’s mind frame.

Many of us may have at one time or the other heard someone say things like “I am not in the right frame of mind” or “My mind frame at that time…” Statements like these only go to show that a successful coaching process relies so much on how the mind matrix of the client is probed, accessed and engaged. That is why no effective coaching takes place unless the client fully engages with, and is committed to the process – in his mind.

In this regard the client has to develop the right mindset and consistent mind frame concerning the specific coaching outcome. That also means that the personal awareness of the client must be increased and his expectations heightened. Personal awareness in this context is all about positive self identity. It is about knowing who you are, where you are, where you want to be, what you want, as well as your motivations and intents about what you want. It is also about what works for you in terms of self motivation, as well as knowledge improvement, enthusiasm, passion and energy.

Because every coaching process is client-driven, the ideas, thoughts and knowledge that are built up in the mind matrix about self, wants, desires, capacities, resources, etc., must be such that would compel higher or superior mind frames. These must reflect clear assumptive worlds and understanding, based on renewed thinking and/or mind frame changes. That is why personal beliefs are so critical in coaching success. What coaching speaks loudly to the client is this: “If you believe it, you can have it”. The mind matrix of the client, which reflects the true belief system, determines the response.

Good quality decision-making, due to positive belief systems will always benefit everyone that seeks to achieve specific goals, especially through coaching. Still, it is the sole responsibility of the client to determine the direction of the process. This is because it is the client’s sense of personal values and commitment to the cause of actions that will ensure goal achievement. The client must therefore have a full understanding of the change process and an appreciation of the power of his belief in ensuring success.

The famous philosopher and writer, Ella Wheeler Wilcox may have had this kind of situation in mind while stating thus: “One ship drives east and another drives west; with the self-same winds that blow. It’s the set of the sails and not the gales, which tells us the way they go. Like the ways of the sea are the ways of fate, as we voyage through life. It’s the set of the soul which decides its goal and not the calm or the strife. It is the same with setting and achieving goals through coaching. You must decide what you want and how you want it, based on an increased personal awareness and positive belief systems.

The following questions are relevant in this regard: How can you improve your current condition, and what is it that needs to change for your condition to improve? Irrespective of what motivates you to consider coaching as a facilitator of your goals, you must remember that your beliefs remain the success-driver. If you can present a positive belief and mind frame, you will be well positioned to inspire yourself, through the facilitation of an impactful coaching process to ‘see’ the future now, and be energised to rally your mind’s best resources to compel the achievement of desired goals. You can read more about the transformational power of coaching at www.ceedcoaching.com.