Professional and Life Coaching
276 Hudson Street, Cornwall on Hudson, NY 12520
E-mail us: info@thehudsoncenter.com
There is much overlap between counseling and coaching. However, there is a distinct difference. A counselor and a life coach each treat the client with deep respect, empathy, unconditional acceptance, particular awareness of his/her vunerabilities, emotional wounds and blows to their self-esteem. Counseling may be short-term or long-term, but in many cases, depending on the counselor's theoretical orientation, the focus may be on resolving emotional, mental, social, relationship and spiritual issues by deving into the client's history and exploring the origin of the problem. Coaching on the other hand involves examining present-day lifestyle issues and helping clients identify what is or is not working in their lives. The focus is on developing goals to achieve concrete, tangible results.
Many people hire coaches today for personal fitness training, professional development, health and wellness, and a variety of personal issues. Basically, coaches help their clients improve the quality of their lives by working on specific areas of their lives that need to be further developed. Coaches work from the viewpoint that the client already has the skill, resources, and creativity to solve their problems, but they are blocked. The coach's role is to listen, observe, ask questions, in order to help clients free up their blocked energy. The coach's belief in clients' abilities allows them to find their own solutions. The coach may suggest strategies and help the client set goals and objectives. It is a solution-oriented process.
At the Hudson Center one type of life coaching offered is Life Mission Coaching. This type of coaching is based on Parson's trait theory, Rogers' Person Centered Counseling, Milton Erikson's Solution-Oriented Interviewing and Counseling(SOIC), and Brief Counseling. While a career counselor helps clients find the "right" job, a Life Mission Coach helps you discover what kind of job is meaningful to you, how closely it matches our personality traits, and how it fits into the overall purpose of your life. It facilitates breaking the pattern of unfulfilling jobs that lack passion and zest. Embarking on the coaching process you identify activities you love to do most. These are the things that make you feel alive, happy and fulfilled. They are also usually the tasks you perform most easily and naturally. You will come to realize that there is no one "perfect" job or career for you and that you may not have to choose between several career paths. Once you discover the core theme of your life you can uncover many ways to integrate this theme into all areas of your life and express these favorite activities in the world. It's like going on a treasure hunt.
Life Mission Coaching operates from a spiritual perspective, yet it recognizes the realities of life and the limitations of human striving. A key factor in this type of life coaching is homework assignments, designed to maximize results. These involve career assessments and research, as well as creative exercises and projects, and spiritual practices. The coach's role is to be your guide and mentor, keep you on track, help you overcome your obstacles, encourage you to take risks and generally, cheer you on. When you feel lost and experience inner or outer struggle, your coach is there to gently help you through.
