A new life coaching client came into my office the other day and said, “I really don’t think this process is working. I felt even more discouraged this week. I’m pretty sure I am failing.”
We took some time to explore her feelings of discouragement and the loud voice inside her head that was declaring her a failure. What we discovered was familiar to me. After more than ten years of collaborating with clients in their self awareness and healing, I recognize this as the funky stage of growth. In the beginning, we shine a bright light of consciousness so that we recognize our unhelpful patterns and habits. This helps us to see where we need to get more support and what needs to shift in order for us to be ultimately more fulfilled and joyful.
Photo by Quinn Dombrowski, shared via flickr
The process works. But, it can also be uncomfortable at times. The best balm that I know is self compassion and self acceptance. Because self-growth helps us to see our vulnerabilities and imperfections more clearly, we have to be willing to love ourselves through the process. My clients bring their fears, funks and failings into the sacred space of our session and I serve as the external voice of self-love. And because I am a just another “bozo on the bus”, the practice is grounding and helpful for me too. We are truly all in this together!
