FAQ's

What is Life Coaching?

Coaching is a dynamic partnership that will enable you to pragmatically and imaginatively achieve excellent results in specific areas of your life. The coaching process is a powerful catalyst for change whereby as your coach I will think of you, speak to you and work with you in the total belief in your goodness, your resourcefulness, your talents and the gifts that you want to realise and share. My intention is to support you in realising your amazing potential. You already have the answers to all of life's supposed problems it is just a case of uncovering them and tapping into your tremendous knowledge, experience and wisdom. As your Life Coach I am your partner and role model who will challenge your beliefs and examine what you feel you deserve, helping you move beyond doubts and fear that hold you back. Coaching is all about looking at how you can change your behaviour and actions in the present moment so you can profoundly influence your future. As your coach I will encourage and nourish your self belief and faith in life.

How does Life Coaching differ from counselling or therapy?

Coaching differs from therapy or counselling because the focus is very different - we shan't be delving in detail into past events and the 'Story' of your life. Instead a coach finds it's far more enlightening to discover where you want to go, what you want to reach for and how you are going to get there. As part of that process it is important though to acknowledge how far you have come on the journey of life and affirm your learning, skills and successes. Thus any good life coach like myself will be looking at your motivation strategies, your avoidance strategies and getting you to examine your beliefs about what is possible. In the process it is natural that when you review life decisions and events from the past that they will have a new positive spin and be full of learning potential.

Can I use Life Coaching for any problem or situation?

Yes absolutely, the reason being is that a life coach such as myself doesn't have to be an expert in a particular field, although when such knowledge is beneficial, you will be directed to find it. My job instead is to be an expert at asking you enlightening, relevant questions not only so that I can enter your world and specialisation but so that you find answers to facilitate your own clarity, creativity and insight. Life Coaching as a discipline regards the client as holding the golden keys to their life. You are the ultimate expert on yourself and what fills you with joy and vitality, the coach is the catalyst. So coaching is the process of uncovering what works brilliantly for you and what doesn't and how to direct your time, energy and resources to do and be more of what you want.

I have working experience and knowledge of the fields of Accountancy, Fine Art, Theatre, Web and Graphic Design, Publishing, Healing, Teaching and Training and have over 20 years of experience of being both an employee and a business owner giving me ample understanding of the various dynamics that operate in the workplace. In addition I have been in a creative, loving, committed relationship with my husband davide for 10 years and have had many relationships prior to the biggie.

To be a coach you don't have to be perfect and have life completely sorted. I like to view life as a work of Art in progress, a process of chipping away at what isn't necessary and relevant, refining, to reveal the inherent beauty of the soul. So as a life coach I do have to be focused, inspired, energised, creative, inquiring and love people and hold the belief that we all, every one of us, have outstanding beauty and potential. We all deserve to have amazing, enriching experiences of ourselves in this lifetime. Experiences that nourish and inspire the very core of our being. Experiences that move us to be courageous and inventive. Experiences that connect us deeply to nature and all of life in its fullest expression.

If I have a problem why is advice from friends or family any different from Coaching?

Of course it is a natural and vital part of any valuable relationship to share what is important in your life - both your frustrations and your successes. All of us have received precious support and encouragement at times from those we love. But Coaching is different - it is consistent positive feedback and facilitation of your goals from someone who is professionally trained, worldly and objective. It is also beneficial that they are not a friend, family member or work colleague because they won't share any history with you or have a particular agenda. They come to the relationship and the issue(s) you're concerned about with a pair of fresh eyes. Your success or growth in a new direction can be threatening to loved ones whose own self esteem and security is dependent not only on things staying the same but you staying the same. Or perhaps you are considering coaching because you are unhappy about an area of your life and yet despite your best efforts and having consulted those around you, you still can't seem to change anything for the better. Now is perhaps the time to try something different and really make that investment in yourself and your happiness. Perhaps you too have had a wake up call and want to take your life to a whole new level of fulfillment and joy.

How do I know Coaching is really appropriate for me because I have never done anything like this before?

I would like to reassure you that you can get a massive amount of personal gain out of coaching whether the field of personal development is new to you or not. It is more a question of attitude and dedication to realising change in your life. Like anything of value the more you put into it the more you get out of it. Coaching does require you to commit time, energy, focus and resources and make that powerful investment in yourself. So it is important to ask yourself whether you know deep down that there is a large gap between where you are now and where you would like to be in life and if so whether you are fully committed to working on yourself to close that gap. Are you willing to keep agreements with yourself (and me) and are prepared to take risks and try out new things? Are you willing to face self defeating patterns and behaviours and change them? Do you have the patience and self discipline to take consistent action towards your goals? Be honest with yourself - are you ready for coaching - and if you are not sure talk to me, perhaps you would like to commit to a one - off session to begin with.

How is Life coaching going to be any different from the many coaching books I've read?

If like me you have procured your own small library of books on how to change your life you might be dragging your feet and feeling demotivated - you'd thought you'd found the answer to your problems but the solutions just don't seem to be working for you now - you go through the same old routine of setting your goals for the year but they seem to have lost their juice and the whole process seems a little laborious. So - I haven't got the perfect life, lover and career - I'm not the fittest, slimmest, sexiest I've ever been - I am not as confident as I have been about relationships - I frequently don't feel inspired by my work- and yes I haven't got a cool plan for the future. You've read the books, set aside quality time each day to affirm your accomplishments, reminded yourself of your goals and tuned into your greater purpose. You have decluttered your life or rather started to, but making lists is not your thing, drawing up weekly and monthly plans just seem monotonous, lacking real passion and excitement - you feel overwhelmed / underwhelmed, deflated, a failure.

When I started on my own journey of transformation back in 1987 my books were my bibles - the lifeblood of new ideas and revelations flowing through my veins. The first books on life coaching I purchased over 7 years ago were also brilliant but I have to confess that over time they stopped working for me Instead, despite the best of positive intentions I found myself panicking, feeling unresourceful, disorganised and overwhelmed by the multitude of tasks I was supposed to complete to change my life.

I knew that personal development programs were catalysts for change - I had been a participant, assistant and facilitator and both witnessed and experienced tangible changes and benefits myself; moments of revelation - of release, of acceptance, of courage and inspiration. But I just wasn't getting it from Coaching books - I felt irritated by drawing up endless list, targets and life goals. The process felt lonely and hollow. It wasn't until I took the leap, did something different and found my own life coach that I really began to believe in and experience the power of coaching. Having a tangible human being who was able to be objective but who recognised my potential, believed in my abilities and was wildly enthusiastic about me developing my vision, was outstanding. I felt I had a real buddy who was 100% with me all the way, who was a mentor, a magician with lots of tricks to help me get past myself and that makes a real difference. Coaching was such a powerful process that I was hooked - I now wanted to learn to weave this special form of magic practically into people's lives myself.

I have heard the term NLP but what is it?

NLP is the major current science and methodology for understanding and changing human behaviour. It is concerned with how we do something rather than the why (ie the story we tell ourselves). Neuro Linguistic Programming therefore studies the structure of how humans think and experience the world through our five senses. Obviously, the structure of something so subjective does not lend itself to precise, statistical formulae but instead leads to models of how these things work. From these models, techniques for quickly and effectively changing thoughts, behaviours and beliefs that limit you have been developed.

NLP as a system presupposes that because most of our behaviour is learnt from the circumstances and people around us as we grow up, that once we understand what the program is (the software), we can unlearn it. The way we do this is by looking at how the brain stores all its experiences as pictures, sounds and feelings. The brain always has a tendency to believe what you think is real. Emotions are accurate reflections of what we are thinking about but have nothing to do with what is out there in the world. We each perceive events in entirely unique ways and there is no one right way for anything. As soon as we realise that we don't have to be right all the time we can have more fun, more creativity, more energy and passion. So if you change either how your brain recognises these experiences (through a different lens) or the way you represent them to yourself, you can change the way you respond to them. As a consequence you can begin to invite different responses from yourself and invoke a different future.

What is so special about your style of Coaching?

When it comes down to it either something will resonate with you about the way I have communicated my ideas and passion about the work I do as a coach or it won't. What I will say is that my coaching practice is an integral part of a 17 year career in what I consider to be the most exciting and meaningful fields of life - Creativity and Personal Development. I have devised and taught pioneering seminars in Catalysing Creativity, Work/Life Balance and Envisioning Dynamic Futures for the past 9 years and have lectured at well known shows such as The Feel Good Show, The mbs Festival and Alternatives. My excellent training and qualifications span the fields of motivational training, co-counselling, hypnotherapy, life coaching, NLP and other personal growth models. I hold a Certificate and a Diploma in Life Coaching and a Diploma in Performance Coaching from Newcastle College. More recently I have trained and developed my skills and knowledge with Michael Breen and hold a diploma from Richard Bandler himself for a Masters in Busniness NLP. I have also begun a very relevant journey to acquire the mediation skills of Marshall Rosenberg's brilliant work in non-violent communication (NVC) and am inspired by communication on another level - the field of public speaking. I am the mentor coordinator at London Corinthians Public Speaking Club, am a Competent Toastmaster and am training to be an advanced public speaker.

How does it work?

You have the choice to come and see me face to face in my beautiful space in hampstead in northwest london or for us to conduct our sessions over the phone, or a mixture of the two, you choose. I use Skype so if you are likewise a Skype user we can speak FREE at anytime. Additionally if your'e not on Skype but it's convenient for you to have an evening or weekend session over the telephone, I will phone you FREE of charge.

I will send you a Coaching Form to gather more in depth information about you, where you think you are at now, the quality of life you really desire and what's stopping you getting there. You will also receive a Coaching Contract by email which outlines My Commitment to You as your coach and likewise Your Commitment to Me as my client for the duration of the coaching process. Both forms must be returned prior to our first appointed session.

There are four different coaching packages available ranging from 2 to 4 sessions a month of an hour's duration with email support in between or a one off 21/2 hour Catalyst session to meet your needs. At each session you will have the opportunity to use me as a sounding board for new ideas and insights about the direction you're headed. Naturally you will become increasingly aware of what is most important to you in life, what your needs are and how to fine tune your strategies old and new to meet them. Thus we will frequently look at how passionately alive and relevant your goals actually are and plan what you are doing to get there.

How long should I see you for?

I suggest a minimum of 6 ongoing sessions to support you in realising the very best results and experiencing powerful change in your life and some of my clients choose to see me for much longer - over the period of a year. It largely depends on what sort of changes you want to realise in your life and how committed you are to following through and making it happen. I also offer the one stop Coaching Catalyst sessions of 21/2 hours if you are interested in just addressing one particular issue in your life and want new ideas, insights and a fresh perspective with clarity as to a plan of action.

What are your Fees?

In consideration of the recession I have reduced my fees by 20% so that sessions are now priced at £80 per one hour session. I also wish to provide a sliding scale of £65 for people in part-time work and £50 for those who find themselves unemployed.

Additionally if you book a Coaching Package in advance you can receive various levels of discount:

The three A's - different monthly packages

Amazonite - Two sessions of 1 hour per month + email support for priority issues £150 / £120 / £90 per month

Having our sessions fortnightly with email support in between for any urgent issues that you would like additional clarity on. An appropriate package for those of you who generally want to review your game and raise it substantaily to access far greater freedom, choice and fulfillment in life.

Aventurine - Three sessions of 1 hour per month + email support for priority issues £220 / £180 / £135 per month

Having our sessions weekly with one week off for reflection and email support in between sessions to raise any urgent issues. A suitable package for those of you who have a major issue(s) you wish to address and resolve creatively in life. You suspect that it's severely draining your energy and capacity for enjoyment in life and are willing to work with me to create something new and enlivening in this area.

Aquamarine - Four sessions of 1 hour per month + email support for priority issues £290 / £180 / £135 per month

Having our sessions weekly with email support in between sessions to raise any significant issues. A great package for those of you who have a major issue(s) you want to resolve urgently and effectively in life. You are absolutely committed to realising transformation in your life and take it to a whole new level.

One - Off Coaching Catalyst Mini Session

Coaching Catalyst Package - One Off session of 21/2 hours £200 / £150 / £100

A powerful dynamic process designed to bring insight, clarity and learning to a particular area of life that you have identified as needing immediate considered attention or action. As part of that process you will build a map that is completely unique to you, your talents and your situation, giving you a fresh overview and insight into your life.

One - Off Coaching Catalyst Maxi Session

Catalyst Breakthrough Package - One Off session of 6 hours £450 / £350 / £250

An amazing creative process designed to look at every area of your life and find the three major areas that need an immediate overhaul. Using techniques such as yoga, voice, percussive and movement work to raise and align your energy, we will then use word and image mapping to create an exciting, realisable vision of the life you really want. Next we will examine and deconstruct the beliefs of fear and guilt that get in the way so that you feel invigorated, inspired and powerful. Finally we will build step by step, a workable plan fully taking into account both inner and outer resources, to realise fantastic changes in your life.

"I met Esther and thought wow what a creative person so it was very natural for me to book some sessions to enhance my creativity. As a result much has changed. I feel far more powerful and dynamic, excited and ready to create challenges for myself in every area of my life and it has been so much fun."John Fossie - writer and performer

Richard Bach

0207 433 1619 : txt : 07765 907 514