212-564-2073 sharon@goodlifecoaching.com

About Coaching "Our chief want in life is having someone who will make us do what we can." ~~ Ralph Waldo Emerson   What is coaching? Who works with a coach? What can coaching do for me? How does coaching work? Do I have to be in New York City to work with you? What happens in a coaching session? Why should I hire a coach? Can't I do it myself? How does coaching differ from therapy? What is the cost of coaching?   To read about coaching from a client's perspective: Idellah's article Jennifer's article   What is coaching? Coaching is a way to get the life you truly want! Coaching helps you develop your potential and talents and discover more of your authentic self, so that you can attain true fulfillment. Coaching is a one-on-one interaction in which your coach works with you in partnership to clarify your vision, discover new possibilities, set goals and create a strategy for achieving them. She helps you implement your strategy – dealing with the obstacles and helping you through the fear and discomfort of making changes, while offering support and encouragement. Your coach can also work with you on a single, specific issue or goal, such as writing a book, finding a new career or moving through a life transition. Like a sports coach, a personal coach provides an unbiased outside eye to help you see things more clearly, applies techniques from her training, shares what she's learned from her own life experiences and cheers you on. And most of all, the synergy of coaching – the creativity of two minds working together – is incredibly empowering.   Who works with a coach? There are coaches with a myriad of specialties, including life, career, health, relationship, spiritual and executive coaching, so just about anyone can work with a coach. Coaching is for those who want to be proactive in their lives – not just to wait to see what comes your way, but to actively decide what you want and pursue it. Most of the people who come to coaching have good lives and want them to be even better. It requires readiness and commitment, and a little bit of courage, and the rewards can be amazing. Working with a coach can simply improve your life or move it beyond what you ever imagined was possible. Clarity + Focus + Action = Results Top   What can coaching do for me? Your coach is there to help and support you in moving your life forward more quickly and effectively than you could by yourself. Coaching can help you: advance in your career make your current job more satisfying change careers manage your small business or private practice with better focus and structure market your small business or private practice more effectively start and complete a project you've been putting off improve your relationships resolve ongoing negative patterns improve your health and well-being have a deeper connection with your spirituality organize your environment more effectively improve your financial situation be more productive have a more balanced and improved quality-of-life gain new perspectives make your big dreams possible achieve more than you can on your own   Your coach will: Help you get a clear vision of how you want your life to be Be an objective and attentive listener Give you honest and compassionate feedback Remind you of your strengths and gifts Guide you in acquiring useful life skills and resources Help you progress more quickly toward your dreams than you could by yourself Teach you simple techniques for breaking through overwhelming feelings that are hindering you from taking action on your goals Offer a powerful support system with lots of encouragement and positive feedback Customize her skills, tools and techniques for your unique needs   One of the intangible benefits of coaching that many people particularly enjoy is having someone there who is totally focused on you and your needs, without running her own agenda. A coach can listen to you like no one has ever listened to you before! For many people, this is very healing and a real confidence-builder.   My coaching specialties include: Whole Life – achieve fulfillment and balance in all areas of your life Career – discover your life purpose and find work you love with the Life Purpose Process© Creativity and the Arts – coaching for writers, artists, performers, musicians, photographers, etc. Writing and Publishing – expert advice to get your writing project completed and published "Tortoises" – those with goals and ambitions who don't have the energy or time to move as fast as they'd like Spiritual Coaching – add a spiritual perspective to your coaching experience Mentor Coaching – receive support from an experienced coach on working with coaching clients and building your practice Retirement Coaching – prepare proactively for this next stage of life Top   How does coaching work? Coaching is provided through biweekly phone sessions, generally 30 minutes each (45- and 60-minute sessions are also available). The initial Discovery Session, in which we discuss your background, concerns and coaching goals, is an hour and a quarter and may be done in person in my midtown Manhattan office. You can also reach me by phone or e-mail between sessions to share successes, ask questions or work through rough spots. There is no standard course, and the length of time you stay with your coach is decided by mutual agreement. Change takes time, so an initial six-month commitment is encouraged, and many people stay with their coach for two years or more. I also offer short-term, focused coaching to help you achieve a specific goal, such as clarifying your career, completing a project, writing or publishing a book, or making an important life decision. For more information visit my Coaching Programs page.   Do I have to be in New York City to work with you? No. Most coaching is done over the phone, so I can coach you from anyplace you have a phone connection and where you have a sense of comfort, focus and privacy. If you are in the New York City area, we have the additional option of meeting in person. Many clients do their first session in person and then switch to the phone.   What happens in a coaching session? Coaching is customized for each individual. Each session will be a little different, based on your needs at that time. In general, I will listen to where you are and where you want to go, ask questions to clarify or get further information, give you feedback, brainstorm ideas and challenge you. I'll offer encouragement and validation for your successes, support you in finding the learning in your failures and mistakes, and help you see the bigger picture. I may also make requests or give assignments, suggest a course of action or ask you to come up with one. At the end of each session, you'll agree to some action steps that we feel will most effectively move you toward your goals at that time. If you choose Career Coaching with The Life Purpose Process©, I will lead you through a series of exercises and steps to help you discover work you love, and then coach you through the process of finding a job or creating a business.   Top Why should I hire a coach? Can't I do it myself? Coaching empowers you to go beyond what you could do by yourself. You may feel you should be able to accomplish your goals on your own, but often, people get tripped up by their own limiting beliefs about what's possible for them, or simply overwhelmed by all that life demands. As a result, even though they may know what to do, they don't take action. A coach helps you to see past your own thought process and beliefs to get more clarity and see new possibilities. A coach helps you achieve more in less time by helping you plan a strategy and giving you unconditional support and encouragement. A coach helps you come up with achievable action steps that will bring you closer to your goals. Coaching is an investment that you make than in yourself and in living your life fully. It can move you toward your dreams and goals more quickly. It may save you money in the long run, as well as the time and wear-and-tear of struggling through the process by yourself.   How does coaching differ from therapy? While emotional issues may come up in the course of coaching – and you do learn more about and develop yourself in the process – coaching primarily focuses on helping you achieve specific goals through taking action and developing constructive behaviors, rather than on healing psychological issues. Coaching focuses more on the present and future than the past. It is about generating possibilities and moving through any blocks or obstacles, rather than healing deep-seated emotional issues and traumas. Coaching and therapy can be mutually supportive, and some people work simultaneously with a coach and a therapist, or use coaching as the next step after therapy.   What is the cost of coaching? Coaching rates are all over the map. Keep in mind that you get what you pay for. An experienced coach will cost more than a beginner, but you'll get faster and deeper results. For an overview of my programs and rates, go to my Coaching Programs page. Top Testimonials "I've come along way thanks to your coaching, Sharon. From feeling like I was spinning in place to knowing where I am going and why I want to be there. From being clueless to being more emotionally intelligent. From feeling I was going crazy to knowing I am growing spiritually. Now I put one foot in front of the other. I know myself better. I know my goals. I work on them daily or at least I try to!" ~~ Linda Bell "It was really helpful to have someone to talk things out with in regards to where I've been and where I'm headed. Having a personal coach can help clarify what you want and need in a career. It's good to have an objective observer who can point things out to you that you might be too close to see in yourself. Sharon never foists anything on you; she checks to see if it's something that might be [right for you]." ~~ Michelle Hughes "You have achieved changes in me (and I am resistant to change) and a willingness to try that I appreciate. You make it seem possible." ~~ Carol Laird "Our calls have helped me to be more responsible toward achieving my goal. It's very nice and encouraging to have you in my corner. Thanks a lot." ~~ Ann Lim "That was some powerful help you gave me, and so light and easy!" ~~ Sylvia Hawley "I'd like to hire you to just listen to me and endorse me. What a luxury that would be!" ~~ Skip Borst "Sharon Good is truly one of the brightest and most gifted students I have ever had.... She is adept at working with clients, counseling and coaching them, providing information and resources, and educating, inspiring and motivating them to make desired changes." Fern Gorin, M.A. Director, Life Purpose Institute Half-hour Introductory Session I am pleased to offer you a free half-hour phone session to try out coaching, get acquainted and answer your questions to see if we might work well together. To schedule your free session, call (212) 564-2073 or e-mail sharon@goodlifecoaching.com. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. ~ Goethe ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   Top