Why is coaching growing?
Why is coaching becoming more and more popular? One explanation is the
great need we have today to explore our own identities, for self-fulfilment
and to find answers to existential questions.
Many refuse to be satisfied with a “70% life”. People of the 21st century
want to live life to the fullest.
For example, there was once a time when a job was only supposed to pay the rent and ones living expenses. Today, many of us want to feel that our time spent at work is significant and rewarding, and coaching is one method to help us achieve just that.
For a long time now in the United States, it has been perfectly normal to go to a psychiatrist or family therapist, but in many other parts of the world this is taboo. “The shrink-session”, as the visit to such professionals was called only a few years ago, is today something quite impressive at work. (“How enriching that must be! What sort of insights did you get about yourself?” can very well be the sort of comments heard around the office coffee machine).
Another factor contributing to the progress of coaching is the increasing pressure upon us as citizens. We are expected to be larger-than-life both at work and at leisure. Coaching can be like a saviour in the hour of need. This method can be used to make us focus on the right things, make the right decisions and to discover new possibilities.
The coaching trend also gets its fuel from the ever-increasing competition in our professional lives. Nowadays, it takes more than just education and good references to be successful in a career. No less important is having a strong “Me Incorporated”. That is to say that one needs a strategy for ones own personal trademark, and to devise marketing and investment plans for oneself. The hard part is finding the answers to questions such as, “How can I refine my personal talents and strengthen my trademark?”, or, “How can I invest in myself now in order to progress as a person in the years to come?” Lots of people turn to coaches to find the answers.
More and more companies as well regard coaching as an investment in their
employees so that their staff may continue to be healthy and productive
and to develop themselves in their roles or to move on to new challenges
within their respective companies.