Life coach: What is needed to best support your teens this summer?

Imagine a teacher's gratification after explaining a new subject matter to the students, and immediately their hands are raised, acknowledging they have questions or know the answer. Hands raised are rewarding to any instructor, no matter the subject. Life Coaching allows you to find the answers through self-discovery!

Life Coaching is unlocking a person's potential to maximize their performance. It is helping them to learn rather than teaching them. Customarily, a life coach's role is not to offer advice but to help their client find their answers. It's about creating awareness and shifting to learn, grow, and remove limitations. As a Life Coach, when I'm asking questions, I allow the students or parents moments of silence. Why silence? Because it permits them to process how they will have a conversation with me as they bring their authentic self to the session. Brene Brown said, "We can measure how brave you are by how vulnerable you're willing to be."

For me, life coaching brings out your bravery!

Niche life coaching

Niche life coaching necessitates that coaching is focused on a specific subject that the coach is uniquely equipped to "speak to" with clients. My life coaching niche is families, parents, and teens. As the coach, I have expertise, knowledge, and experience in this area, and I coach my students and parents to grow accordingly. I have worked with students for many years, most recently in the classroom teaching Project Arrow, our afterschool life coaching program for students. As a life coach, I use my years of experience to help clients find their best selves by asking questions. A life coach can help you define your purpose and create goals to live a purpose-driven life. In each session or self-coaching process, something new is revealed. During these moments of clarity, hindrances dissipate. Parents, you too have the answers and the ability to help your teen recognize they also have the answers.

What is needed to best support your teens?

Remember to provide support to your teen this summer if you notice attention-seeking behaviors which can sometimes be a result of stressful situations. Summer break is the best opportunity to help our teens because they have more idle time, and our support is not competing with as many social, curricular, and/or athletic activities. Adolescents need acceptance so they may alter their behaviors to increase their chances of belonging and connecting with peers. Use Life Coaching to help them be their best self. One must be brave to say, “I need help,” “I can't without you,” or “I don't know what to do or say,” or “I am sorry,” and “I love you.” Bravery and self-determination are my new favorite words. So, let's use them to empower our teens.

Life Coaching is just one resource to help your teens be empowered to help themselves and their friends. So here is a brief overview of other resources:

Therapy - Therapists are licensed and trained to recognize and work through difficulties impacting mental health. The therapist normally focuses on past issues to help change self-destructive behaviors.

Mentor – Mentors are experts in the field where the client pursues growth. They advise and habitually provide information and suggestions regarding the issue.

Counseling - The counselor helps clients identify goals and possible solutions to problems that cause emotional instability.

Coaching - Focuses on the present and future rather than the past. It helps people at all life stages, including those doing well and expressing a desire to do even better.

Here are a few coaching tips and questions you can use to provide support as your teen discovers their ANSWERS!

• Visualization: you want your teen to create a visual picture of their desired future (with specific details)
• Pretend that you have solved your problem. What did you do to get there? What is the final result?
• What are you willing to commit to?
• I don't know; let's explore it together
• How can I help you?

Gale McKoy Wilkins is a wife, mom, grandparent, and family life coach. Gale is the founder of Project Arrow, an evidence-based peer-to-peer and leadership program teaching life coaching techniques to middle and high school students.

Gale is passionate about using life coaching and creative solutions to empower families and teens to help themselves and others. Gale is a Life Coach to parents and teens, and she teaches them coaching skills and techniques and trains teens on how to make good decisions, manage emotions, overcome obstacles, and motivate themselves and others to be their best. Gale is a North Carolina native that has worked with youth and families and served the triangle in various leadership positions; she has a graduate certificate in Family Life Coaching and a Master of Arts degree in Women's Leadership from North Carolina State University.