Coaching to Save Lives

Ever since I was little, I have been in awe of my dad’s work. It is not his profession that dazzles
me as much as his way of doing it. I grew up watching him save lives. He could ‘literally’ save
the lives of people because he had invested his own life’s peak years to master a skill that
enabled him to do so (he is a surgeon). But that was only on the surface. He has been saving the
lives of people because he is an empathetic human being who knows how to connect to the pain
and suffering of people and find ways to ease it for them, and he knows how to support people in
ways that they can grow.

As I progressed on this coaching journey, I have started to feel this sense of joy and relief,
because I feel I have discovered yet another way of saving lives.

Coaching facilitates life-enhancing change in people, and that change can be life-saving. There
are people who feel unhappy and suffocated in their personal life situations or work
environments and are unable to see the problems or how to get out of them. There are people
who feel paralyzed, trapped, and lost due to crippling emotions such as fear, doubt, guilt, and
insecurity. There are people who are unable to recognize their true worth and potential. Coaching
conversations can enable awareness, a diagnosis, that something in their lives is not quite right.
And when there is diagnosis, the motivation to find the cure only gets stronger.

This process of finding the cure comes in small steps and requires patience and consistency. The
brilliant inventor and futurist Buckminster Fuller provided a metaphor to understand how big
transformation is a result of many small changes, known as the “trim tab” principle. A “trim tab”
is a small, 15 cm wide strip of metal attached to a ship’s rudder. It is this tiny sliver of metal that
is responsible for stabilizing and guiding large ships. A small shift that leads to a big
transformation. An individual can also enable vast changes in his life by making just small shifts
and it is the awareness of these small shifts that makes all the difference. The coach helps the
client identify these small but powerful changes that can enable big meaningful transformations.

Coaches can be helpful ‘healers’ on such a journey by showing compassion, genuine care, and
trust in their clients, giving them the energy and motivation to move forward and find remedies
to their pains and problems. The medicine in this case is the different tactics, behaviours and
beliefs that the coach progresses the client towards.

While I have been on this journey to be a coach, I have thought about it again and again from
this lens, coaching as a way of saving lives. Perhaps inspired by my father, perhaps informed by
my own life events, and perhaps fuelled by my natural desire to connect with others in
meaningful ways. I have started to believe that there was always a coach in me and that belief
gives me a profound sense of confidence and joy.

About The Author

Mehreen Ovais is a Pakistani expat who moves around the world with her husband and two young daughters. She has studied Economics, Social Sciences, Marketing & Entrepreneurship, Emotional Intelligence and Early Childhood Development. She is passionate about writing and journalism. Over the last five years, she has worked to establish an entrepreneurial venture in Nigeria and Pakistan, to work with families and educators to develop social-emotional skills in young children. She enjoys exercise, traveling, and photography.

Program Attended with CTT: 
ICF Coach Certification-Level 1 ACC

Reason for taking this program:
I get to interact a lot with people for my work in the early childhood sector. I have a strong interest in the Emotional Intelligence domain. I believe coaching can help me in those interactions and conversations. I was also feeling a little stuck about what should be my next stage professionally. Coaching was an effort to gain some self-awareness as well as a skill-set to help me move forward.

What worked for you:
The interactive way the training has been designed worked well for me as it helped me reflect, think and implement many ideas.

 What benefits you got:
I am a better and more patient listener. I am better at self-evaluation and self-reflection. The social experience has also been great.

Disclaimer

The views and opinions expressed in this blog are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Coach-To-Transformation or its parent company.