Month: August 2013

A Healthy Balance

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One Portion Of Five A Day (c) R Dennison August 2013

One Portion Of Five A Day (c) R Dennison August 2013

It isn’t fair.  You work really hard, get the job you always wanted, start to enjoy your success and then your weight becomes an issue.

If you are David Cameron (photographed on holiday recently displaying a bit of middle aged spread) there will always be someone to remind you about your weight and the impact on your health.

All this in a climate in which: Central government promotes a healthy diet including five portions of fruits and vegetables per day; Birmingham council has promoted free sessions in their leisure facilities to encourage good health http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-22350807 ; the Royal College of Psychiatrists draws attention to the link between physical activity and positive mental health.

Since the consensus is that being healthy is a good thing, how might an average person use coaching support to form a health goal?

Well, any success goal will be more powerful if it is phrased in a positive and forward looking way.  So the plaintive cry of ‘I don’t want to drag around this middle aged spread’ will benefit from some further thought.

To help the coachee refine their goal the coach might ask some questions to establish what the personal benefits of ‘feeling healthier’ would be.  For instance: what has the coachee done already to change their situation; how many steps are there to get from where they are presently to the healthier state; what will friends and family be saying when the coachee reaches their healthier state.

Answering these questions starts to build up the background to the healthier state the coachee hankers after.  It also may start suggesting what powerful initial step he or she could take to move them in the right direction.

Ultimately, the coach can help the coachee clarify their situation.  Taking the action necessary to start to attain the goal is the coachee’s responsibility.

Money Matters

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Carrots Beat Sticks Every Time (c) R Dennison August 2013

Carrots Beat Sticks Every Time (c) R Dennison August 2013

It is that time of the year when thoughts turn to personal finance.  It can seem tempting to beat oneself over the head about having an easy-come-easy-go attitude towards money.

I think a strategy that is more carrot than stick, helps.  Keeping track – on a simple spread sheet – of sources of income; where expenditure goes; and where economies might be made, helps.  Clarity could certainly supply answers to questions such as:

  • Will there be enough money in the bank after the family holiday to make the autumn and pre-Christmas period bearable?

 

  • How tempting does a pay-day loan look?

 

  • Is it time to start buying supermarket own brands instead of the costlier versions advertised on the television?

 

There’s definitely value in having a personal goal around the effective management of money.  There’s also something positive in having control over personal finance, instead of feeling it has a strangle hold over you.

Graduate Employment: Against All Odds

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More Than 80 to 1 Odds On Getting A Graduate Job (c) R Dennison August 2013

More Than 80 to 1 Odds On Getting A Graduate Job (c) R Dennison August 2013

As some school students nervously await their exam results their elder graduate siblings are looking for work.  The good news is that there are graduate level jobs available.  The not so good news is that competition has never been more fierce.

 

As the BBC noted in a report from the Association of Graduate Recruiters there are more than 80 graduates after each vacancy.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-23247176

The challenge is twofold, scale down unrealistic expectations of new entrants and then encourage realistic appraisal of their skills.  The coaching approach would then be to ask questions to:

 

–      clarify what the job seeker wants from the jobs they are pursing  (an adequate income; the opportunity to use their skills; room for development into a long-term career)

–      support the development of a confident; approachable presentational style on paper and in person, to ensure their CV becomes one of the half dozen sifted in and they shine during their interview.

–      Encourage reflection if the job search does not make the hoped for progress – what else could be done to present the candidate in the best possible light?

 

Keeping the candidate’s confidence up would also be part of the coaching programme, since the odds are their search for their elusive first job might take them beyond the end of the summer.