Coaching
Is Coaching a kind of therapy where you help someone?
Definitely not. Therapy is about working with an individual who has experienced some previous trauma/experience which makes their daily lives difficult in that they are seen as damaged and dysfunctional.
Perhaps it is similar to counselling?
Not really. A counsellor would work with someone who is experiencing significant levels of distress which is impacting on their lives.
A bit like mentoring maybe…..
Again not quite since a mentor would work with those seeking a direction from someone with experience and knowledge in the same area.
Surely it is similar to consultancy work?
Again no because a consultant would work with an individual or group looking to diagnose the problems they are facing and recommend solutions to their current challenges.
What exactly is coaching then?
It is about working with clients around their desire to move forward in their lives and achieve their ambitions. “Coaching is about bringing the best” as echoed by Pam Lidford, Coach/Trainer and “is not about dependence”. Rather it is about achieving that goal through one’s effort where the coach acts simply as an enabler, a facilitator or one’s inner voice!
What’s good about coaching?
Well. If you are procrastinating and keep being jumbled-up and entangled in many of your life projects, checking it through coaching may be a way….
I am happy. I can always do things by myself. I do not need someone to tell me what to do…..
Great. Please be aware that a coach would not tell you what to do. A coach simply works alongside with you as a comrade, an inner voice.
What if I decide to take coaching? How does it work?
Many coaches adopt a certain model but others develop their own models of approach. I shall be using/adopting/applying the GROW Model which is sufficient for the purpose of moving one forwards from a position of stagnation/procrastination toward moving forwards.
In what way can coaching helps me?
Coaching helps you to define what you consider most important within your life at a given moment and importantly provides you with actual tools to achieve these.
What happens in a session?
After the initial greetings, you explore the areas you wish to discuss and choose a specific area or goal which is most important to you. This is explored further looking in detail at aspects which may help you in your progress. You are then taken through lots of alternatives you might wish to take on towards realisation of the goal. And finally you are taken through some steps from those actions which would be most conducive towards your chosen goal. All these though are done through Q/A, discussions, visualisations and most importantly commitment on your part to follow up the agreed actions.
How many sessions will I need to see a change in myself?
This depends entirely on you and the commitment you put towards your goal. You would need to work on it thoroughly as the onus is on you. But what MFB will do for you is to clarify actions which you would need to do in order to move forward. We propose an initial block of six sessions which may be sufficient for most people. Others may prefer to carry on extending these further until fully satisfied.
I am a little worried about revealing too much about myself. Is there a guarantee that confidentiality would not be breached?
Whatever is stated between clients and MFB remains absolutely confidential. As an associate of the Coaching Academy, MFB strictly abides by its codes of confidentiality and ethical standards, aspects of which are explained at the first introductory session. A full copy is always available if one requires it.
How much does it cost for a session?
It is better to book for a block of sessions, a minimum of 4 but six is usually the norm. If interested please e-mail MFB at info@mantraforbeing.com when we would organise a pro bono session of 30 minutes following which you may decide whether coaching is for you and or whether you wish to work with MFB. That would give you with a more practical /informed insight on coaching before committing…..
Relaxation
What about your relaxation consultancy then? Do you diagnose and so on?
Well. This simply in a nutshell is about helping others who find themselves requiring the need to enjoy moments of inner happiness/peace rather than always trying to run after happiness or peace in the exterior. In other words, a bit of relaxation may always be useful in re-creating a life balance where one is overwhelmed and stressed and seeks a technique to feel better and better.
Is it similar to Yoga or meditation?
Yoga and meditation have their own specific techniques. At MFB, a process of visualisation is used not dissimilar to that often used within various disciplines such as sports science, arts and drama.
Do you provide a mantra?
Well a simple technique as stated above rather than one associated with any particular religion! As has been stated this is simply about delving into the alpha level from the beta based on the work pioneered by Jose Silva in the sixties.
Do you work exclusively with groups?
The provision is mainly to provide people within an institution a means to be able to approach their workloads and help making them effective, whilst giving a technique to be stress-free. In brief, a means to be more balanced! However, MFB will work with individuals if they desire to do so, again over a block of sessions.
How does a relaxation session work?
The method is based on a technique to swiftly move from the beta level of outer consciousness through reflection/introspection which puts you at the alpha level where you are most creative. You are asked to relax all bodily parts and through visualisation to get to a special place of your own creation and left to assimilate and enjoy that feeling of being at peace before being returned and re-united with yourself. At all times you are in control.
Would you say it is a kind of hypnosis?
Definitely not as here you are in control of all your senses at all times.
Again, do you use a mantra or special words to reach a certain state?
Not really. There is no special word used. All is done in simple plain language understood by each and everyone. There is indeed no state to be reached but one simply feels better and better, perhaps from being tensed, and one is naturally enlivened and energised.
About Mantra for Be-ing
Why Mantra For Be-ing?
This is a convenient umbrella to include two aspects which appear prima facie far wide apart in one way as relaxation provides a technique whilst coaching is the opposite with the agenda remaining very much with yourself.
However both aspects of the business are very much centripetal to our motto of “Believe, Desire and Achieve” as stated in our home page. The appellation ‘Mantra for be-ing’ is what we propose to offer as a way to be empowered, an opportunity to create a life balance, to be calm, peaceful and feel synergised and rejuvenated (through relaxation) whilst the coaching aspects involve commitment, connecting with the inner-self, with also the idea of becoming pro-active: taking action and authentic engagement.
A bit awkward to relate mantra to coaching, would you say!
True that the word ‘Mantra’ is strictly speaking about training of the mind. The ‘be-ing’ aspect with a hyphen is indicative of the philosophical nature of oneself rather than the just being there in the midst of the world passively. Essentially, the hyphen emphasises an in praxis or a movement from just being there; hence its link with coaching where one recreates a life balance from states of procrastination as we have already observed.
So the philosophy of Mantra for Be-ing is…..
In coaching this is about reaching out to the self who we are….. From the self, in introspection or reflection, one uncovers those hidden ideas which may be there and from then onwards through the process in coaching one moves onwards and forwards!
In relaxation this provides a medium to recover oneself from the self which we have lost whilst engaging in life in battered forms where we run after things in the exterior…….
( This page is currently being revised)