Beginner coaches often seek to add value by helping the client solve a problem. And that’s okay – it’s kind of like, “Problem examined, problem solved, let’s get to the next problem.”

Meanwhile, masterful coaches add value by helping clients grow, develop, and become a new kind of person (often the kind of person who is more capable of dealing with life’s challenges).

One way to move from beginner to masterful coach is to pay attention to where the focus is. There are three options:

Not everyone needs (or wants) to become a professional coach who sees clients and earns a living through coaching. If the only realm in which coaching could be used were the professional coaching world, the world would be missing out some wonderful applications for coaching. Here is my list of the big four applications of coaching.

My kids and I were watching Iron Man a few weeks ago when my son asked, “When does Iron Man sleep?” Together we reasoned that the arc reactor in his chest meant that Tony Stark needed very little sleep. After all, the arc reactor is a virtually self-sustaining power source. Forget 5-hour energy shots, Iron Man has a much longer battery life than that. If only we all had self-sustaining resources.

While personal sustainability is a rare reality, self-sustainability is an outright myth. Our Creator designed us to need more than we can provide ourselves. We are sustained only by wise choices and meaningful relationships with those around us.

You’ve probably heard that goals should be SMART – specific, measurable, action-oriented, realistic, and time-sensitive. That sounds smart. But one thing that lots of people miss is that goals need to be challenging. A great goal should feel attainable, but only with effort. The question is, “How much effort?” Like Goldilocks, we don’t want goals