Why is it important to have vision

In coaching we often talk about "vision" and the power of supporting our clients to look at the bigger picture or imagine their future. When we're able to do this it's so much easier to think creatively, make decisions and solve problems. This is because we're in a positive affect and more of a reward state meaning we have more cognitive resource.

When we're stuck looking a problem we can find our thinking is closed down and we can fixate on details / people / situations rather than looking at how we can solve it.

Think back to a time when you've been presented with an obstacle: maybe you've had a knock back from a job or you've had some people say "no" to working with you in your business. Have you felt the familiar spiral? one set back becomes magnified and you start to go into a space where you can't see the possibility or potential?

If you haven't you're one of the minority: most of us have spent time in "This will never work/ I'm not good enough" land in our lives: sometimes far too frequently.

Applying this to coaching

It happens in coaching sessions too. Maybe your client is coming in to speak about their boss who they feel isn't supporting them or the partner they feel is critical. It's so easy to get into all of the reasons why this person is x or y or a narrative around how awful they are : and they may well be awful (or feel awful / seem awful).

Coaching isn't about endlessly dissecting the problem : the future focus is all around supporting people to move forward. However, we don't want our clients to feel like we don't care: imagine if you're pouring out your heart about how you feel and your coach asks you how would you like to feel? it can seem blunt. This is why it's so key that coaches are empathetic showing support and acknowledgement for their clients feelings.

At times even after doing this it can feel a little clunky to then step into the bigger vision / goal: I often say to our students at Optimus that when you share why you do this (to support positive affect, release dopamine and reduce stress / threat meaning the brain has more cognitive resource) then clients are often much more receptive. Like anything with coaching it's about being flexible with your client and being open to their preferences.

If we can allow our clients to explore that vision it will help them spark new ideas and mean that their decision making is both rational and empathetic usually meaning they can connect more with their intuition alongside the more cognitive processes. This has been shown to give people more confidence in their decisions.

If you're coaching now test it out and remember even though there is evidence this works for the vast majority of people some clients find it hard to visualise or imagine their future so you may need to modify what you do. There are variations from meditation to questions to drawing which can help : my advice to all my coaches is to test and not be afraid of things not landing: the best coaches are not driven by ego and the need to always get things right and know exploration in itself can provide data for their clients to explore.

On a personal note these exercises and reflections help me to consider where I want to go in my business and open up those creative ideas: I'd love to know what your big vision is.

If you want to find out more about what Optimus offers you can check us out here https://www.optimuscoachacademy.com/