Abstract
The development of an individual involves changes that are both physical and psychological. People encounter numerous challenges as a result of life dynamisms, which make it necessary to seek the assistance of professionals to help them in dealing with life issues. Both the physical and psychological changes that occur throughout the life of an individual are often referred to as transitions. Life transitions can be challenging, and they are usually accompanied by psychological and physical downturns. As such, life coaching becomes an essential part of human development. Different people do not have the same life encounters. Therefore, their transitions are not the same. Additionally, the physical state, as well as the wellness of a person, is a fundamental factor in determining the type of life coach needed to take them through life transitions. Age is another factor that can influence the desire of an individual to demand a life coach. Adults may require life coaches more than teens and adolescents depending on the level of needs. Additionally, the children with disabilities have different life challenges, and their transitions may not be the same as of those without disabilities. This paper will research transitions in relation to life coaching and make a reflection of the impacts of transitions on the life coaching practice.
Introduction
Transitions entail the changes that occur in the lifetime of a person. These changes involve both physical and psychological transformations that take place throughout the development of an individual (Sheldon & Steger, 2011). A transition may also involve the change of position or occupation. Essentially, transitions entail the process in which individual adopt some physical characteristics and it can be indicated by changes in hormones. Roncaglia (2010) found that transitions involve therapy. A transition is a unit in life coaching because it involves assisting individuals to go through life dynamisms successfully. Transition coaching is concerned with processes that individuals go through during their life- shifts. It involves providing people with support, encouragement, goal development, and other skills necessary to deal with life issues (Sheldon & Steger, 2011). Transitions involve changes in environments and the physical as well as the psychological makeup of an individual. Some people may have challenges when situations arise that forces them to change their positions, career, or adjust to life processes (Sheldon & Steger, 2011). Therefore, the need for a life coach has become increasingly essential. Every event in the life of an individual represents a transition and is associated with certain stress irrespective of whether the transition is positive or negative.
The nature of transitions
A transition can be seen as a situational phenomenon that is similar to life change. However, as a term, transition tends to be more organic in terms of quality compared to change. Transitions reflect shifts in the life situation of an individual and stages in the life journey of a person. Also, transitions refer to something that is different from changes although life changes often involve transformations (Roncaglia, 2010). However, the difference between transformation and transitions is that although everybody must go through the life transition, not every individual will get transformed as a result of changes in life circumstances. Some individuals tend to remain stuck to their habit and what they know about the world and have low tendency to accommodate changes. Such individuals tend to have both social and emotional life difficulties due to their rigidity in embracing transformations according to Bridges (2010). Transitions and changes are inevitable parts of human lives. In our modern life that is highly communicable, consumerist, and technological, the life is frequently changing. Our bodies change constantly from the beginning of life to the end. According to Bridges (2010), transitions can be sudden or gradual. Additionally, life transitions can be stressful or exciting. For example, the death of a family member can be highly stressful while getting married or giving birth can be highly exciting.
Significances of transitions
Transitions represent bridges that individuals go through, which can be external like marriage, redundancy, childbearing, and divorce. Research conducted by Bussolari & Goodell (2009) revealed that life changes indicate what happens internally. Individuals react differently to changes that occur in their life. The success in going through life transitions indicates the capability of a person to manage his or her life changes (Bussolari & Goodell, 2009). Transitions mark major life events throughout the life of a person. They help individuals to distinguish different life experiences. Additionally, transitions help people to change their perceptions and adapt to life changes. For example, life changes like divorce or bereavement may be tough, but they help the person affected to develop coping mechanisms.
Bridges (2010) argued that transitions involve letting the old attitudes and beliefs go of. Such changes help us to appreciate our current life stage and acknowledge the new life status. For example, when a young man gets married, he appreciates that he is no longer a boyfriend but a husband. Thus, transitions give new identities to individuals. Additionally, transitions help to shape our lives and our experiences. Adjustments in the life of an individual are always essential. However, these changes can be stressful if they occur suddenly. They may cause discomfort and often lead to loss of control among individuals when they are not adequately prepared to deal with them (Bussolari & Goodell, 2009). For example, the change of roles and responsibility after the death of a spouse or after an individual get married may lead to life discomforts. However, Bussolari & Goodell (2009) found that such changes are relevant to bring psychological awareness among individuals about life changes.
Challenges associated with transitions
Different individuals do not go through similar encounters in life. According to Sheldon & Steger (2011), various factors such as age, health status, and financial conditions of an individual are some of the determinants of the manner in which an individual goes through life transitions. Old people who are approaching death do not face the same challenges as the youths. The most common life changes that occur among old people retire from their jobs, which mark the end of working life. These people may have wonderful fantasies that involve visiting the coasts and other leisure activities such as traveling (Sheldon & Steger, 2011). However, they face the challenge of financial strains since their income is limited. Additionally, old people tend to suffer diseases associated with old age, which limit their capability to successfully go through the remaining part of their lives. Thus, unless retired persons have strong financial bases, he or she may not have a successful retirement transition (Roncaglia, 2010). The youths tend to have unique difficulties during various transitions.
The change of lifestyle after marriage subjects the youth to various challenges due to extravagance in which they tend to engage in though they have limited financial capacities (Hemmeter et al., 2008). Teens and adolescents face unique challenges as their bodies undergo both physical and psychological transitions. Farmers and business people encounter difficulties resulting from the intergenerational transfer of their businesses (Hemmeter et al., 2008). When individuals move from one life stage to another, their habits change. Consequently, their eating, dressing and other changes associated with transitions force the business community to adjust their businesses to rhyme with changes in generations (Roncaglia, 2010). For example, changes in consumption pattern as a result of life changes cause the producers to adjust their production to meet the current demands.
Individuals with disabilities go through life transitions in different ways. They face unique challenges as they change from one life stage to another. These people usually face social segregation and stigma that make them appear as a unique group within the society (Sheldon & Steger, 2011). Most of them do not even go through some transitions. For example, some individuals with disabilities have difficulties getting marriage partners. Others have crippled physical development because they are excluded from participating in activities that promote physical wellness (Volling, 2012). Therefore, different groups of people in the society do not face the same challenges as they go through life transitions. Various factors determine the type of difficulties that an individual goes through depending on the group he or she belongs to.
The relevance of coaching practice to transitions
Life coaching is one of the professions that is growing in terms of reputation and demand since people have realized the need have professional assistance to go through the life successfully. It involves helping different individuals to cope with various encounters in their living environments (Stevenson, 2004). Life coaches understand the challenges that people face as they go through different transitions. As such, life coaching has become increasingly relevant as the people become more illuminated on the need to tackle various aspects of transitions successfully. The coaching practice is applied in different ways depending on the type of client the coach is dealing with (Stevenson, 2004). Additionally, the life stage of the client determines the manner in which the life coaching will be exercised. Coaching is relevant to life transitions in various ways. Budge, Adelson, & Howard (2013) revealed that coaching helps the clients to overcome the emotional and psychological stress associated with certain transitions such as death. Additionally, coaching helps individuals to appreciate the occurrence of different life transitions and to cope with life challenges.
Major life transitions are common to all people. Kids undergo childhood development and transition to adolescence, youths undergo the transition to middle age while women undergo menopause at certain ages. These transitions are usually associated with behavioral changes as well as changes in the way of thinking. Coaching becomes relevant as individuals go through these transitions to help them appreciate themselves in the new life environment. Additionally, the physical and health wellness of a person changes as a result of various transitions. For example, Sheldon & Steger (2011) found that men at the age of 50s are more susceptible to various health conditions such as prostate cancer and hypertension due to lifestyle and diet change. Life coaching helps individuals to go successfully through these transitions and to avoid dangers associated with some stages. Additionally, life coaching is vital to shaping the lives of people and aligning them with the moral structure of the society as they overcome various challenges that go along with transitions. For example, coaching has been found to be essentially useful in shaping the lives of people who were initially criminals or who would have become criminals to useful and respectable persons in the society (Volling, 2012). Appreciably, coaching and transitions exist as tied disciplines that complement each other in becoming applicable to life situations.
The impacts of transitions on a coaching business
Transitions can have different impacts on the coaching business depending on various factors like the length of time that the business has dealt with life coaching. Also, the type of clients involved in the business is an important factor that can affect the coaching practice. Transitions are associated with various challenges, which are transferred to the life coach when the clients decide to go for life coaching exercise. As such, the perceptions of the coach regarding the coaching business are significantly influenced. For example, the behavior of the clients and their willingness to participate in the coaching exercise may impact the perception of the coach positively or negatively. Individuals who participate actively in the exercise motivate the coach and promote the effectiveness of the coaching practice in assisting the clients to go through the transitions successfully.
Transitions create new opportunities to the life coach and the coaching business. Various changes in life activities such as changes in culture, religious beliefs, education, and business during the lifetime of an individual tend to create new opportunities to the life coaching business (Sadarangani & Ahuja, 2014). These changes entail transitions, and they necessitate the need for coaching practice or expose the life coaches to new ideas. As such, they contribute to the development of new coaching techniques. Additionally, transitions expose the life coaches to various challenges that prompt them to seek more knowledge through research. Consequently, the coaching practice becomes more diversified in terms of the scope and the type of services involved.
The challenges associated with transitions affect the attitude of the coach, which have serious implications for the coaching business, particularly a newly established business. The coach tends to develop new attitudes depending on the type of client he deals with. Some clients encourage the coach while others tend to discourage the coaches, resulting in the development of negative perceptions of the coaches regarding the coaching business. For example, a coach dealing with a mentally disabled client who doesn't believe in the capacity of the coach to help him transform his or her life tends to discourage the coach. On the other hand, clients who participate well in the practice motivate the coach to undertake the business with confidence and to develop great desire to conduct more research that increases the efficiency of the business in delivering services.
The implications of the research on how I would practice the life coaching
The research has provided various insights to both existing and potential life coaches. It exposes the potential life coaches to the benefits and challenges they are likely to face in their coaching ministries and provide more knowledge to the existing coaching businesses to enhance the provision of the coaching services. The research adds more knowledge to how I would practice the coaching business by increasing my exposure to various challenges that life coaches encounter. Education was the most important part of this research to a potential life coach. It has provided some important and exciting methods of learning and created more understanding of how a life coach should handle different groups of clients to transform both their physical and mental wellness. For example, the research has revealed the importance of understanding the different needs of various groups of clients like the needs of old people undergoing retire transitions. This has added great knowledge to individuals aspiring to become life coaches. Also, the challenges encountered in different life stages by various individuals have changed my view of coaching as not just as a profession but a helping field that can significantly influence the lives of many generations.
The research has highlighted the relationship between coaching and transition. Specifically, it has highlighted how different people undergo transitions. For example, the research has revealed the unique ways through which individuals with disabilities deal with changes in their life and how intergenerational transitions affect the coaching business. This creates an opportunity for a potential life coach to learn the behavior of different clients and their perceptions of the coaching practice. Also, the research provides a reflection of how the attitudes of the coach can be influenced by his or her experience with different clients. This has significant implications for the manner in which I would practice the life coaching. It prepares the aspiring coaches to attitudinal changes that are likely to occur as a result of their being life coaches professionals. Appreciably, the research has several important implications for how I would carry out the practice of life coaching. It has exposed both the aspiring and the professional coaches to the importance of gaining a new understanding of how to handle different clients with varying needs caused by the transitions in their lives.
How the research has impacted me
The research on transition and its relation to life coaching have numerous impacts on a student studying health and wellness. Additionally, the research is significant to individuals aspiring to become professional life coaches. One of the ways in which the research can impact a learner is by educating him or her. The study of transitions equips a researcher with exciting scientific approaches that are useful in understanding the most healthy ways of dealing with life dynamisms. Additionally, the research provides me with opportunities to learn and develop the desire to acquire new perspectives in relation to life coaching and transitions. The understanding of transitions that occur throughout the life of a person is essential to help individuals focus on their priorities. Before the occurrence of each transition, individual have different priorities. For example, during childhood development, getting married is not a priority. Also, at old age, people tend to have different priorities from the youths. This research has illuminated how different individuals behave during various transitions. This has provided valuable insights that can enable me to focus my attention on what I believe is valuable and set reasonable priorities that can facilitate the delivery of coaching services and help my clients to adapt to various life changes.
The outcomes of the research on transitions and life coaching have considerable impacts on the attitudes and perceptions of both learners and professional life coaches. The research helps the learner to appreciate the need to understand the varying needs of different groups of people in the society and to link their psychological and social needs with the life coaching practices. Furthermore, the research has revealed how differences in the physical and mental wellness of individuals contribute to their success in adopting life changes. Thus, the research has significantly helped to modify my attitudes and perceptions as well as building my strengths. Most importantly, this research has enabled me to appreciate that every transition is associated with varying degree of success and challenges. This understanding is crucial to provide potential life coaches and learners with mechanisms to cope with life changes. Additionally, the research was useful in equipping me with virtues of self-worth, resilience, and increased capacity to deal with the occurrence of life transitions.
Conclusion
Transitions are not homogenous and occur throughout the life of every individual. As such, it has become increasingly essential to appreciate the occurrence of life changes in order to be always prepared to deal with them. Transitions can change the life of an individual positively or negatively depending on his or her perceptions of the consequences of the transition that have occurred. Major changes in our lives such as marriage and death affect our physical and psychological wellness. Therefore, the occurrence of transitions, which is investable, cannot be detached from life coaching. The need for life coaches has become increasingly important to help people tackle various challenges associated with transitions. Research on life changes and coaching has numerous impacts on coaching business and the coaching practice. The primary benefit of this research is that it equips both learners and professional coaches with knowledge and valuable insights that can help them in improving the health as well as the wellness of people in their society. Therefore, more emphasis should be put on the understanding of transitions and how the knowledge of life changes can be applied in the practice of life coaching.
References
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