The International Coach Federation

The International Coach Federation’s publication, Coaching World, has just released its February 2016 issue. A couple of articles that caught my eye are the following:

Your Email Habits Might Be Harmful To Your Health by Lisa Cunningham

This interested me because a client this week actually decided during our coaching session to turn off the sound notification on his email. He realised it was distracting to him, took him away from his priorities, diverted his focus and increased his heart rate. It seems this might be true for others when I read this article.

The article states that email might be causing people stress or pressure, especially if checked first thing in the morning or later in the evening.

Changing Habits to Change Your Life: A Q&A with Gretchen Rubin

This article resonated with me because it explains that changing habits starts with us knowing ourselves. It doesn’t just jump how to tips for help us do the things we say we want through willpower, baby steps or accountability. The interviewee talks about knowing your preferences and inner nature before learning the strategies, because once you know your inner tendency you can use strategies that work best for you.

A lot of my coaching clients learn about their preferences and inclinations using assessment tools such as MBTI, NEO and Strength Finder. I had a client this week on a negotiation course realise from his NEO that he has a tendency to be distrustful or suspicious of others and very cold and unemotional. During a negotiation exercise he received feedback that his ‘opponent’ became defensive, withdrew and withheld information due to the impression my client made on him. Great feedback of how his tendency made the negotiation more difficult and less productive. Once know that he could adjust to be more effective.