What Is Coaching & How Can It Help?
You’re in the driver’s seat.
I’m in the passenger seat.
You decide where you want to go.
You decide how quickly you’re ready to move.
My job isn’t to take over the wheel.
I’m there with a map, practical tools, perspective, questions and strategies to help you navigate the road ahead.
That’s coaching.
Why Work With a Coach?
Sometimes you don’t need someone to tell you what’s wrong.
You need help figuring out what to do next.
Coaching is practical, collaborative and forward-focused.
We look at what’s happening now, where you would like to go, what may be getting in the way, and what realistic steps can help move you toward your goals.
You leave our sessions with more than insight.
You leave with something you can actually do.
“You don’t have to know every step before you begin.
You just need a clear next move.”
Coaching vs. Therapy: What’s the Difference?
I do not diagnose or treat medical or mental health conditions, and coaching is not a substitute for medical care or psychotherapy.
In fact, one of the foundations of my Move FORWARD™ approach is making sure we aren’t trying to “coach away” something that needs clinical care.
The O in FORWARD is Organize & Oversee the Care Team.
When something may have a medical, psychological, nutritional, developmental or other clinical component, I want the appropriate professionals involved.
Sometimes the next step FORWARD isn’t another strategy.
It may be talking with your physician, therapist or another qualified professional.
Sometimes It’s Not Coach or Therapist
Sometimes it’s coach and therapist.
Or coach, physician, dietitian, school team or another member of your care team.
With appropriate permission, I am comfortable collaborating with other professionals involved in your or your family’s care.
They may be helping identify or treat what’s happening clinically.
I can help you connect the dots and apply that work to everyday life.
What does the plan look like Tuesday morning before school?
What do you say when the conversation becomes difficult?
How do you practice the strategy your therapist recommended?
How do you follow through on the goal you and your doctor established?
What do you do between appointments when real life happens?
That’s where coaching can be particularly valuable.
SUPPORT BETWEEN SESSIONS
Change Doesn’t Only Happen During an Appointment
My clients may use brief between-session communication for appropriate coaching support, reminders, accountability or help applying a strategy we’ve already discussed.
That access is one of the ways coaching can help turn insight into action.
Between-session coaching is NOT emergency or crisis support. If you or someone else is in immediate danger, call 911. For a mental health crisis in the United States, call or text 988.
Why Work With Me?
I bring more than one lens to the work.
My background spans more than 30 years across public health, health education, college teaching, health and wellness coaching, and parent coaching.
Over those years, I’ve worked with thousands of parents, students and individuals across different ages and stages of life.
That means I don’t look at a challenge through only one lens.
I look at the whole person.
Mind. Body. Environment. Relationships. Family. Behavior.
And I ask:
What’s happening?
What might be underneath it?
Who else, if anyone, needs to be part of the care team?
And what is one meaningful step we can take from here?
The Move FORWARD™ Framework
My coaching is grounded in the Move FORWARD™ framework.
Focus on what is happening right now.
Organize and oversee the care team when added support is needed.
Recognize patterns, roadblocks, and strengths.
Work toward realistic next steps.
Adapt strategies so they work in everyday life.
Reflect, refine, and keep moving.
Do the next right thing with clarity and support.
The framework gives us a place to begin and a path forward, while your individual goals determine where we focus.
No blame. No shame. Just FORWARD.
CONFIDENTIALITY
A Confidential Space to Be Candid
Coaching conversations are confidential within the limits described in the coaching agreement and applicable legal and professional requirements. I want our work together to feel like a place where you can be candid about what’s working, what’s not working, and where you feel stuck.
You Don’t Need to Know Exactly What You Need Yet
That’s part of what we can figure out together.
You bring the destination—or even the uncertainty about the destination.
I’ll bring the map, tools, questions and support.
You stay in the driver’s seat. We move FORWARD together.