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Your Hero’s Journey: A metaphor for life and business coaching

Written by: Linda Naiman

Article Overview: Did you know you are on a Hero’s Journey? If you are undergoing significant change in your life, you have been called to embark on a journey of transformation, which Joseph Campbell identified as The Hero’s Journey. No hero undergoes transformation alone, and this article describes how coaching can help you navigate the future with more ease, confidence and resilience.

Your Hero’s Journey: A metaphor for life and business coaching

When the world as we know it is no longer fulfilling or endurable, when there is a crisis, or when a door closes, we are “called forth” to step into a higher purpose. Joseph Campbell said: “The call rings up the curtain, always on the mystery of transfiguration. The familiar life horizon has been outgrown; the old concepts, ideals, and emotional patterns no longer fit; the time for passing the threshold is at hand.”

“Where your talents and the needs of the world cross, lies your calling.”

—Aristotle

Aristotle said the noblest goal in life is eudaemonia: Striving toward excellence based on one’s unique talents and potential. For many, this means finding your calling, reinventing your career and making the shift from success to significance.

If you are undergoing a significant change in your life, coaching can help you stay on track and move confidently through the anxiety and confusion that can accompany the process of change.

What is Coaching?

Coaching is a collaborative process that helps you amplify your awareness of self and others, find clarity in chaos, navigate life changes, make informed decisions, brainstorm ideas, revitalise your creativity, and develop strategies, all for the purpose of helping you achieve your dreams, goals and aspirations. Coaching is solution-focused, goal orientated and will help you achieve measurable results. The coaching process encourages the development of leadership, creativity, commitment and responsibility.

Coaching is not therapy. Therapy focuses on relieving psychological pain and treating cognitive or emotional disorders. While therapy helps heal the past, coaching starts with the present, and seeks to help you design a more desirable future.

What stage of change and transformation are you in?

• Leaving the old Status Quo. Stepping into the unknown to find your calling or answer a call

• Facing fear of the unknown, loss, grief, uncertainty, or obstacles

• Finding gold (your true self) — and your transforming idea

• Integrating your vision into your life and work

• Returning to the Ordinary World and expressing your Golden Self to create your new status quo

• Experiencing well-being by striving toward excellence using your unique talents and potential for the good of others—Eudaemonia. (This is the gift of the Hero’s Journey.)

Most leaders, entrepreneurs and managers don’t have anyone to talk to about workplace challenges. Coaching is all about you. Unlike friends, family and co-workers, a coach will listen to you without a hidden agenda, help you find the gold hidden in your challenges and help you make informed decisions from a neutral standpoint.

These are some of the results you can expect from coaching:

• Find or answer your calling

• Find meaning and purpose in your life and work

• Design your future based on your values, purpose, and vision

• Amplified creativity, productivity and efficiency

• Increased income

• More time. Enriched quality of life

• Improved relationships (personal and professional)

• Accelerated progress towards achieving your goals

In my own experience of being coached and coaching others, the beauty of coaching is in the speed and elegance of discovering transformational ideas and finding the right solutions. When you are undergoing a hero’s journey, seek out your mentors and guides. Remember no hero does it alone.

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Article Tags: anxiety, aristotle, clarity, creativity, curtain, emotional disorders, emotional patterns, goals and aspirations, horizon, joseph campbell, life changes, life coaching, mdash, measurable results, orientated, psychological pain, rsquo, threshold, where your talents, world cross



Related Forum Posts
Bake Them 'No's' A Cake, I Say! - I've had a surreal thought. What if the no's really are the successes and the successes are the failures. It's like a metaphor I sometimes use with my clients, which goes like this. You drive a car journey. On the way there, you pass landmarks and notice them for what they are, where they are. They are fixed. Yet, on the way back, you see them from a totally different angle, yet they are the same. It's just the perspective that's changed. A bit like life really - it depends where you are standing!
Re: What's your Business, Ladies? - It was interesting reading about all of your businesses! I do business and relationship coaching for ambitious young professionals in Manhattan. I've been doing coaching since 2005. Before that, I was a freelance writer and wrote marketing materials. I also create painting which I sell online, but I've been too busy to paint for a while. I found that I really loved coaching the most, though I will always enjoy writing/painting just for myself. I find working with people one-on-one to be really energizing and inspiring. Tami, I'm curious how you got into coaching?
Coaching Women vs. Males - Hi Andy, So far, my clients are from Western Canada, US and Australia. The US seems to be the leader and I assume this is because the States are much more aware of what coaching is and how beneficial it is to business (and your personal life too). Those in the States come in with high expectation already. Those in Canada seem to come in blind and then are surprised with the great results. I'm planning some changes to my website so that the Canadians are even more clear about the benefits of coaching. Thanks for asking about this because I think I need to prioritize the changes! That's a great question about coaching women versus men. Of course, there are some basic commonalities in coaching both. They just show up in different ways. My experience coaching men is limited, but I've certainly been observant to the differences. No one woman is the same, but I'll try to share a few things common to women. One thing I notice is that women are used to doing everything themselves and thus sometimes have a very difficult time delegating tasks. This can really hinder their success. For example, women will spread themselves too thin trying to keep up their business and do all their housework at the same time. (They forget they will be more effective when they take time to rejuvenate.) A man might find it a little easier to hire a housekeeper without being overloaded with guilt. Guilt seems to be a woman's nemesis! A woman more readily puts herself at the bottom of her priority list. She sees the big picture and can be overwhelmed by the huge range of tasks at work and at home. Men seem to be more linear in their focus and are more apt to sacrifice their home life before they will sacrifice themselves. (Although they ultimately do sacrifice themselves when their whole life becomes all about work.) The caring nature of a woman can sometimes trip her up and she may be tempted to harden her heart so she can survive. She may even take on qualities which really aren't her personality and then struggle with the effects. The result is a business which doesn't really fit her original vision. She then wonders why she isn't satisfied with it, even if it is financially successful. Some women feel they need to become more "tough" and then hinder their creativity because they have stopped listening to what their inner voice is actually saying. This kind of creativity is key to the entrepreneur! I've also noticed that men expect to make a higher income. Women WANT a higher income, but don't always believe in the possibility. Believing in possibility is also key in moving forward with their ideas. I could say so much more, but this is like a mini book so I'll stop now. I'd love to hear your perspective on this. Have you noticed a difference between your male and female clients? Warm regards, Tami
Business coaching takes top prize? - Hi Everyone, Thanks for all the cool ideas! At the moment, it would seem that business coaching is the most popular prize followed by iPods, and web page redesign. I'll try my best to bring some of these ideas to life! Another thought I had was to offer the winner of the forum contest the opportunity to ask one question, which would then be answered by a well-known and respected business personality/expert. What do you guys think of that?
Top 3 List - Hi Kevin - I would say the top 3 would be: - John Chow - ProBlogger - Entrepreneur's Journey They are the easiest to understand and cover a wide range of topics on how to be a successful online entrepreneur


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