Life Coaching with CBT
A Unique Service combining
Life Coaching &
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Techniques
* Build a Positive Future *
* Relieve Stress & Anxiety *
* Become More Assertive *
* Increase Self Esteem & Confidence *
What is Life Coaching?
There is no agreed definition of life coaching. However, coaching often contains the following features:
- Techniques and simple strategies for helping you to close the gap between where you are now and what you want to achieve
- The opportunity to discuss your problems, your feelings and your aims with an independent person in non judgemental facilitative coaching sessions
- The chance to think through your options and decide on what actions you want to try out to help you achieve your goals and deal with your concerns
- A type of support that focuses on achieving positive results and is forward looking
- Simple processes and easy-to-follow models to help you to make choices for yourself and make your life more purposeful
- A type of support which is holistic, i.e. encourages you to achieve overall well being and to set in balance the different aspects of your life.
Extra Value from CBT
I offer information and specialist life coaching to help you achieve life, relationship, work or business changes.
The extra element of coaching with CBT techniques that I offer provides additional support to:
- Help you deal with mental and emotional barriers that get in the way of dealing effectively with stresses, anxieties and obstacles.
What is CBT?
CBT, otherwise known as cognitive behavioural therapy, or cognitive behavioural coaching, evolved from the ideas of Albert Ellis (the founder of Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy) and Aaron Beck (the founder of Cognitive Therapy).
There is actually no one thing which constitutes CBT and practitioners of CBT may differ in their preference for individual techniques within the CBT umbrella. Usually, however, coaches or counsellors who use CBT techniques share the following basic elements in their approach which are common to most CBT practitioners:
- A recognition that the way we think influences the way we feel, the way we act and the choices we make in life, career and relationships - thus for example if your mind is continually filled with negative 'self talk' you are likely to feel bad and this in turn may impede your ability to make practical choices in life and to meet your own needs in a reasonable way
- A commitment to using practical techniques which help you to analyse and deal with thinking patterns which are causing you emotional difficulties or affecting your ability to move forward in life
- A fundamental belief in realistic approaches and actions. CBT is not about simply replacing negative thoughts with positive thoughts. It is about helping you to achieve a balanced and constructive approach to life and to the problems or dilemmas that you encounter in life.
What CBT Can Help With
CBT provides a set of techniques used by counsellors and life coaches which are particularly effective in helping people who are experiencing:
- Stress
- Anxiety
- Negative thoughts
- Self esteem or assertiveness difficulties.
It is also commonly recommended as a successful method for helping people suffering from depression or other low mental states and research evidence supports its use as an effective tool in helping with such issues (this can be in conjunction with medical support and you are advised to contact your GP if you think you may be experiencing depression).
At the time of writing, the National Health Service in the UK has embarked on a campaign to recruit and train many more practitioners of 'psychological therapies' of which the most well known is CBT which is viewed as being amongst the most effective ways of dealing with anxiety and depression. This is an example of the esteem in which CBT techniques and approaches are held amongst health and social care organisations and professionals.
How Can CBT Improve Thoughts, Situations or Emotions?
An illustration of a simple CBT type coaching exercises that I work through with clients, (similar to the well known CBT approach known as the ABC Model - which was devised by Albert Ellis, one of the founders of CBT) is to ask people to reflect on an issue that they find is a repeated problem in the following way:
- Describe what the typical situation is in which the problem arises
- Note down your thoughts, beliefs and feelings which the situation triggers
- Describe how you then typically act.
- Make a note of the consequences of these actions and how you then feel.
In a coaching session using this model I would then explore in depth with you what are your options at each stage for breaking the negative cycle. We would consider:
- Actions that may help prevent the problem situation arising again
- Things you can say to yourself or do when negative thoughts arise to help put them in perspective or approach them rationally and positively
- Actions you can take to break away from negative thoughts and feelings or deal with them differently
- What you can do afterwards to help you feel better about the consequences.
Life Coaching Compared to Counselling
I am a life coach who specialises working with people suffering from stress, anxiety, low self esteem or related difficulties, so there is some overlap with counsellors in the client group that I coach. Nonetheless there are significant differences between the service that I offer and that offered by counsellors or psychotherapists. In fact a number of clients have come to me after having counselling who did not find the counselling to be particularly effective but have then found the life coaching that I provide to be both constructive and productive.
Traditional counselling delves at length into a person's past and comes up with explanations of why a person acts in a certain way often to fit preconceived theoretical assumptions of the counselling model. By contrast:
- Life coaching has a practical focus. I teach relatively simple effective strategies to help you solve problems and overcome negative thought patterns which can leave you feeling under pressure.
- I use techniques for problem solving and helping people which have been shown by research to produce results. I have been trained in cognitive behavioural techniques which research confirms are effective in dealing with stress, anxiety, panic and depression. These techniques are also proven to be helpful in dealing with negative thought patterns.
- I work in a pragmatic way, helping clients to move forward, focusing primarily on how to create a brighter future for you rather than delving into a painful past or difficult emotions.
- Some counsellors and psychotherapists have an indefinite number of sessions with clients stretching over a long period, sometimes years. This may not be cost effective. By contrast, I offer the option of a short series of focused life coaching sessions or even a one-off coaching session where this is appropriate.
- Counselling
and
psychotherapy are usually carried out face to face, whereas life
coaching has the benefit of being done over the
phone usually. Advantages of telephone coaching sessions are:
- If you are meeting someone face to face, there are potential risks to your security which are not present over the telephone.
- It is important for the effectiveness of work that professional boundaries are maintained between professional adviser (whether counsellor or coach) and client. Telephone coaching sessions facilitate the setting of effective boundaries as there is no need to address boundaries issues that can arise from the physical proximity involved in face to face sessions.
- Telephone coaching sessions are not so time consuming as face to face meetings because no travel to and from the session is required
- Geographical distance is not an issue with coaching by phone- a service can be provided across the UK and internationally.
Life Coaching with CBT - The Unique Combination
The telephone coaching service that I offer synthesises the balanced thinking techniques of CBT with the practical techniques of life coaching for exploring options, deciding on goals to pursue and making positive choices and action plans. My broad approach is as a life coach but the specific techniques I practise include those of CBT because I have found these to be efffective and they are validated by research evidence.
The CBT techniques that I use in coaching fit very well with the practical nature of life coaching as described above, because despite the word 'therapy' being in its name, CBT is in many respects very different from traditional psychoanalytical methods of therapy or counselling - it does not involve you in having to undergo psychoanalysis and indeed both of its founders, Albert Ellis and Aaron Beck, formulated their ideas because of disenchantment with aspects of the psychoanalytical approach.
Unlike much psychoanalysis, CBT techniques (at least the ones that I practise!) are practical by nature and do not involve attributing symbolic meaning to dreams, words or actions. They involve the here and now! People usually follow a CBT programme for a relatively short number of coaching sessions, not for an indefinite and lengthy period which traditionally used to be the case in counselling or psychotherapy and still is in some instances!
The aim of CBT and other coaching models is to help you help yourself.
In addition to CBT techniques I have also received training in the following coaching models and if appropriate can incorporate them into the coaching service that I provide:
- Motivational Interviewing (effective as a model for helping people to change or break difficult habits)
- Solution Focused Therapy (also known as Brief Therapy) - helpful in creating positive thinking strategies and a forward thinking frame of mind
- Person centred counselling techniques, such as Gerard Egan and Carl Rogers' models of counselling, allowing you a voice to express your concerns and be listened to and
- Transactional Analysis - useful in particular for helping people to act assertively.
If you find yourself commonly thinking self critical thoughts, comparing yourself to others or if you think that you are sometimes your own worst enemy, it may well be that you would benefit from the specialist Life Coaching with CBT service that I offer.
Coaching Topics that I Cover
I can provide coaching to cover most of the usual areas that people seek life coaching assistance for, such as career development or relationship issues. However my greatest expertise and where CBT techniques are most effective is around issues where anxieties, stresses, fears or mental blocks are inhibiting you from making effective change. Descriptions of some of the areas that I cover in coaching are given below (If you are looking for help in an area that is not covered please Contact Me to see if I would be able to assist).
Dealing with Negative Thoughts and Feelings
If you experience negative thoughts or anxieties you are not alone, but you may have more choice over the way that you deal with those thoughts and feelings than you recognise.
Most people have periods of their life or specific situations, circumstances or relationships in which they feel stressed or have difficulty in achieving their full potential or expressing themselves assertively.
In such situations you can find that you:
- Feel trapped by a particular situation, have a sense of going round in circles or feel like you are banging your head against a brick wall
- Lacking motivation to take the first positive step to change
- Finding it difficult to see the wood for the trees or
- Feeling nervous about things you have done or left undone
The combination of life coaching techniques with specific CBT techniques to deal with problematic thoughts processes is ideal for this kind of situation where negative thoughts are creating stumbling blocks for you in achieving your goals.
Self Esteem and Confidence
Self Esteem is part of our self image which develops during childhood and is a combination of our own natural personality features together with the messages and influences we receive from those around us about how we should act and feel about ourselves.
Coaching using CBT techniques is particularly effective in this area because it can help you in a supportive way to examing how your thought processes and negative self perceptions are impacting on the rest of your life and then give you techniques and ideas to create a more positive self image and to counter negative thoughts.
Assertiveness
Assertiveness involves communicating effectively by explaining clearly to others what your needs and wishes are in a reasonable way without being overly aggressive.
Often what gets in the way of being assertive is a worry about what the consequences will be - What will other people think of me? How will they react? Am I being selfish? are the sort of thoughts that might inhibit you from communicating in an effective assertive way.
The focus of CBT on helping you to examine and change thought processes which are making it difficult for you to communicate effectively can be extremely useful in giving you the confidence and ability to start expressing your needs and wishes in a clear and reasonable way.
Stress
Stress can be caused by a variety of factors, relating to for example:
- Your work situation
- Difficulties in relationships
- Anxieties about certain situations or about your future or yourself.
Coaching can help you to deal with stress in effective ways by:
- Providing basic stress management advice - about how to look after your body sensibly and ensure that you achieve a level of balance in your life
- Helping you to analyse your options for dealing with stressful situations
- Helping you, where appropriate, to think about stressful events in a constructive way and to deal positively with negative thoughts that may be contributing to your stress.
Anxiety
Everyone get anxious at some time or another, but if anxiety is dominating your life or certain aspects of it such as work or relationship, then coaching can be helpful to enable you to look at your anxieties in a calmer, more reasonable way, to improve your life balance and to help you meet your full potential.
Social Anxiety
Social anxiety, also known as social phobia, is a condition in which you experience high levels of anxiety about being criticised or judged in a negative way by others which leads you to having high levels of fear about your ability to cope in social situations. Surveys have suggested that as many as 10% of people may suffer from the condition, although it was not commonly recognised as a form of anxiety disorder until the 1980s.
It is unlikely that you will find a magic bullet solution which 'cures' your social anxiety at one stroke, but CBT techniques and encouragement from a life coach such as myself who is familiar with this area can help you devise and implement strategies in a sensible step by step way which will help you to grow in confidence in your ability to deal with social situations and address underlying self esteem issues.
Performance Anxiety
Performance anxiety or presentation anxiety can lead you to panic at the thought of having to take part in public speaking or give a performance or make a presentation at work or in another environment.
CBT can help you to work through the psychological fears that you are struggling with and learning relaxation techniques through coaching can provide you with additional helpful tools.
Panic Attacks
A panic attack is an intense short period of anxiety without an obvious explanation such as an external threat or a medical reason.
- According to the UK Mental Health charity Mind, as many as one in three people can expect to have a panic attack at some stage in their life.
- Panic attacks can develop into agoraphobia - a tendency to avoid situations where escape might be embarrassing or difficult.
- Panic attack symptoms can include breathlessness, faintness, nausea, chest pains, irregular heart beat, feeling terrified.
- They are not life threatening but often the first time you experience one you think you are about to die or are experiencing a heart attack
The main trigger in panic attacks is often actually the fear that you are going to have a panic attack. Coaching using CBT techniques, offers ways of identifying the thinking patterns that are reinforcing this belief and causing you to panic, and then retraining yourself to cope with the irrational fear of panicking, so that you can begin to take control of the situation, to enable you to Increase your ability to cope with panic attacks if they happen and to lessen your fears of them.
Jealousy
Amongst relationship issues, the one that I am most often asked to help with is jealousy (I have written eBooks on Overcoming Jealousy and Dealing with a jealous partner).
Jealousy in a relationship is one of the most destabilising of emotions. It usually indicates insecurity about a relationship involving suspicion and often involves a misguided attempt to reach certainty about whether the person you are in a relationship with is betraying your trust - it may not be possible to reach absolute certainty about this in a relationship, in which case the desire to know may simply lead to greater anxiety and frustration.
The cognitive behavioural techniques that I use in life coaching encourage you to take control of your jealousy rather than letting it take control of you. Coupled with coaching techniques to help build self esteem and confidence where relevant, this kind of practical coaching provides a useful practical way of learning how to prevent jealousy ruining your relationship or causing you anxiety.
Changing a Habit
If you are having difficulty breaking a habit, whether that is smoking or drinking too much alcohol or something more personal such as your behaviour in relationships or the way that you express anger, then motivational interviewing is a coaching model that can be particularly helpful.
Often people think that making changes is purely a matter of willpower. This is not the case and in my coaching if you want help in beaking a habit and feel crestfallen that you have tried before and not managed it, then I can introduce you to a model of change described in motivational interviewing coaching that many people find to be more practical. This can help to prevent you getting too down on yourself if you are find it hard to make changes and it can support you in sustaining motivation.
Diet and Coaching
Diet may be relevant to coaching in two ways.
Firstly, parts of your diet may be contributing to your problems - for example, caffeine or alcohol use can make mood swings and anxiety worse. Coaching can help to highlight some of these issues for you if they are relevant.
Secondly, if you have a weight problem part which you are having difficulty in dealing with because of underlying emotional, self esteem or stress related issues, CBT techniques may be relevant to helping you to manage some of the feelings and impulse eating habits that you are experiencing. I offer free tips on this at Free Dieting Tips via an email newsletter. For those who can invest in coaching sessions, telephone coaching can help in a more planned way to deal with any underlying emotional issues and support your efforts to maintain a reasonable healthy weight.
Living a Balanced, Purposeful and Satisfying Life
Where appropriate in coaching sessions, I can also teach or give information about:
- How to build up simple personal affirmations to help improve your confidence and self esteem
- Simple relaxation techniques
- Dealing with lifestyle issues and helpful stress management strategies
- Ways in which people manage to bring about successful change and break away from habits which can be harmful, such as excessive alcohol use, smoking or comfort eating.
My Coaching Expertise
I have worked successfully for 15 years to help clients learn and implement powerful personal and professional change and overcome difficulties in their life. My background prior to becoming a professional life coach was as a qualified social worker in the UK where I gained practical experience of helping people achieve changes in the most difficult of situations and received training in a numnber of techniques including those highlighted on this page, such as CBT, Motivational Interviewing, Brief Solution Focused Therapy and Transactional Analysis.
I have have written specialist life coaching articles for the Association for Coaching and other sources of coaching expertise and information, on change management, stress control, relationship coaching and career issues and I have been invited onto BBC radio to give advice on coaching issues.
I have helped numerous people to make effective, positive change in their lives, through learning specialist coaching and CBT techniques.
The techniques are practical and straightforward and do not involve painful analysis of your past. They are designed to be helpful, constructive and supportive.
I am a uk life coach and business coach but the medium of coaching on the telephone allows me to provide my service throughout the UK and worldwide.
My Coaching Books
If you would like to get an idea of some of the techniques that I use in life coaching with CBT, then a good low cost way of doing this is to work through some of the practical exercises in one of my eBooks which are available for instant download from this website.
This isn't a substitute for life coaching but it will help you to see the sorts of ideas and exercises that I recommend on a range of topics at a low cost. Some of the issues covered in the books include self esteem, assertiveness training, life change and life coaching exercises and CBT techniques.
For information about my ebook about CBT, please go to: CBT Techniques Book
For further details of my other coaching books, please go to: Life Coaching Books.
Coaching for Clients in the UK & Worldwide
The medium of telephone coaching enables me to provide a service for people across the UK and internationally.
I have coached clients from London, Bristol, Bath, Birmingham, Brighton, Cheshire, Edinburgh, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Oxford, Surrey, Sussex, Kent, Hertfordshire, South Gloucestershire, Wales... all over the UK.
Internationally I have coached clients from the U.S.A., Europe, France, Spain, Germany, Switzerland, Japan and Africa. Examples of a couple of testimonials from clients outside the UK can be seen at International Coaching.
Distance is not a barrier to telephone coaching. Sessions are confidential, professional, effective and time-efficient.
How Do Coaching Sessions Work?
You can purchase individualised telephone coaching either as a one off, stand alone coaching session or as a programme of sessions.
The aim of the coaching sessions is to assist you in making a practicable and often enjoyable movement to what and where you want to be. For each coaching session we arrange for you to call me at an agreed time when I guarantee to be available.
My standard coaching sessions last 1 hour.
The Initial Coaching Session
The initial coaching session that you have will give you the opportunity to talk through the issues that are of concern to you. Before the initial coaching session I will supply you by email with a short questionnaire to fill out to give information and details about where you want help or ideas and we will use that questionnaire as the starting point for the discussion in the initial coaching session.
Coaching sessions will look at your individual needs and wishes and aim to help you to come up with and implement strategies to help you progress with the issues that are most important to you.
The content of each session is tailored to your particular requirements. It will vary depending on whether you are looking for help in relationships, work, business, or personal development issues.
Each session will conclude with us agreeing suggested steps for you to try out in relation to your concerns be they self esteem, anxiety, stress, work, relationship or other matters.
Flexibility
The number and frequency of coaching sessions can be adjusted to suit your individual circumstances. Some people will just want a few coaching sessions others may want longer input.
You can arrange sessions to be weekly, fortnightly, monthly or on an individual basis - whatever seems best for your needs.
What is Included in Coaching Sessions?
The coaching service provided for you will include the following:
- An appropriate number of telephone coaching sessions tailored to your individual needs.
- The creation of a Project Plan in the coaching which can be updated at each session, setting out
- Outcomes aimed for
- Actions agreed for you to try out
- Any assignments for you to undertake between sessions.
- Progress on actions will be reviewed at each session and any learning points or assignments completed will be discussed to assist progress.
Does Life Coaching with CBT Work?
The specialist life coaching with CBT service that I offer and the techniques that I recommend to help people progress are based on research into the methods and strategies that are most helpful for people to make positive and real change. I also ask clients to evaluate their progress in terms of increased satisfaction levels after a short period of coaching compared with satisfaction levels before the coaching.
Some of the results achieved for clients in terms of increased satisfaction levels include:
- 400% increase in feeling in control of your own life
- 500% increase in feeling relaxed and in good mental health
- 200% increase in satisfaction with nature of work/daily occupation
- 150% increase in satisfaction with quality of relationship with partner
- 250% increase in satisfaction with use of leisure time
If you are wondering whether life coaching with CBT is likely to be helpful for you then please read the feedback below provided by clients who have experienced the personal coaching service that I provide. These comments give an idea of the kind of changes and progress that people make using this unique form of coaching:
"I feel lighter and more in control...I have a greater sense of achievement..."
|
Life Coaching with CBT - Fee Options
What are the Fees for Life Coaching with CBT?
The initial coaching session lasts 1 hour (occasionally a little longer) and is provided for a fee of £55. Thereafter you can purchase a block of 5 x 1 hour sessions. If you prefer to book smaller blocks or individual sessions this is possible but a slightly higher fee is charged due to the extra administration involved.
People usually purchase a 1 hour introductory coaching session with Project Plan via the link at the foot of this page, then decide how many further sessions they want to book on discussion at the end of the session.
For each session we arrange a time for you to call me on 0117 230 3119 (UK) or by Skype phone if you prefer. You can continue the coaching for whatever period you wish. If you purchase an introductory session there is no obligation on you to take further coaching sessions if you feel it is not for you or if you feel that you have already gained sufficient insight from the introductory session to move forward on your own.
Purchasing an Introductory Life Coaching with CBT Session
1. To purchase a full 1 Hour Life Coaching with CBT telephone coaching session click on the Google Checkout Buy Now button at the foot of the page. You will then be taken through a checkout process provided by Google where you can pay by credit or debit card and provide phone and email details (this will enable me to contact you to arrange the time for the introductory session).
2. Following receipt of payment I will contact you by phone or email, usually within 1 working day, to arrange a mutually convenient time for the introductory session. Sessions can start at any time between 9.30am and 6.30pm (UK time) on a weekday - within that range we will agree a time that is convenient for you (for example, if you work during the day I will offer an early evening slot). I can usually arrange a session within a few days.
Money Back Guarantee
Sometimes people know that they want to achieve changes and are willing to invest in coaching sessions so long as they know that they will be successful, but they are apprehensive about taking the step of purchasing sessions because they are worried in case they do not work.
I am confident in the coaching techniques that I teach which are based on proven methods and which I have witnessed working successful on countless occasions. I offer a guarantee. After the first session or any other coaching session I provide, provided that you have kept the telephone appointment for the coaching session, I will give you a full refund on request for the session if you think it has not lived up to your expectations. You can claim the refund any time up to 14 days after the session and it will be provided immediately.
Cancelling or Rearranging a Session: Once a time for a coaching session has been agreed with you it can be rearranged by 48 hours notice, otherwise the full fee remains payable.
Your Introductory Life Coaching with CBT Session includes:
- Exploration of issues of concern in a 1 Hour telephone coaching session, including constructive suggestions and proposals for action
- Introduction to CBT and other coaching ideas or techniques or ideas as appropriate for your situation
- After the session I will email you a written Project Plan detailing outcomes aimed for, any agreed actions and any assignments to complete before your next coaching session if you decide you want to proceed with further sessions.
Any Queries?
If you have any questions or would like to speak to me before purchasing,
please call me on 0117 230 3119 (UK) or +44 117 230 3119 (International).
Otherwise, please make your purchase via the link below and I will then
contact you by email to arrange a time for your coaching session.
Purchase an Introductory Coaching Session Now!
To Purchase an Introductory 1 hour Life Coaching with CBT |