Introduction to Mindfulness_349810_bookemon_ebook.pdf Coaching and Practising Mindfulness | Page 42

Mindfulness and coaching Mindfulness is a hot topic in coaching. Experts increasingly recognize that developing mindfulness skills is an effective way to improve performance, reduce stress, enhance emotional intelligence, increase life satisfaction, and develop leadership skills. These experts include such luminaries as Daniel Goleman, author of Emotional Intelligence, and Richard Boyatzis, author of Resonant Leadership. The ACT model, with its emphasis on mindfulness, values and action, is ideally suited for executive coaching, life coaching, and sports coaching. Values provide inspiration, motivation, and direction. Mindfulness skills provide many benefits, including the ability to reduce stress, rise above self-limiting beliefs, improve focus, develop self-awareness, facilitate calmness, and handle difficult emotions such as frustration, resentment, boredom and anxiety. ACT interventions can be incorporated into other coaching models, or ACT can be used as its own self-contained model. The Benefits of Mindfulness for Coaches  Facilitates empathy, compassion, and unconditional positive regard.  Allows you to stay focused and present, even when your client is not.  Helps you stay grounded, centered and composed, even in the midst of clients’ emotional turmoil  Enables a healthy attitude to therapeutic outcomes: neither complacent nor overly-attached.  Helps you maintain direction and focus for therapy.  Increases your skills at observing your clients’ responses. 41