Over the past half-century, the traditional marriage institute evolved time and again, with other forms partnerships and cohabitation becoming socially acceptable. Marriage and its common day comparable relationships (for simplicity I will use ‘coupling’ hence on) consist of varying quantities of interest, friendship, attraction, commitment, comfort, and habit. Maintaining a coupling requires constant watch and continued adjustments, applied through honest and thoughtful observation. Long-term couplings rely on internal balance that is kept over time, with periodical adjustments. Yet every coupling, even the most stable ones, is met with challenges. When an impasse is reached, the partners – individually or together – will choose one of two paths. Some may seek counseling in an attempt to correct the stalemate and salvage the coupling. Others may call a divorce lawyer and prepare for battle. To these two paths stands an alternative, one that has been gathering momentum and popularity in recent years, which produces effective results: Life Coaching.
Life Coaching is designed to help individuals achieve personal goals; those which directly influence the couple-hood, and others which affect it indirectly. If sought in time, Life Coaching can help circumvent a rift in the coupling, and improve the environment and future prospect of the relationship. If the coupling is already near or in crisis, seeking Life Coaching may help mend the relationship, or help the parties reach a better separation, whichever is the client’s desired direction. Life Coaching may be utilized alone, or in conjunction with other professional services.
Here are some examples to illustrate these options:
Couple-hood maintenance:
- An individual may seek Life Coaching to help isolate and resolve paths and goals that personally obstruct them in the relationship.
- A couple may use Life Coaching to address a direction in the relationship, and set goals to reach together in order to improve the relationship.
- A Life Coach can help a person identify personal priorities and avert their negative effect on the relationship.
Separation/Divorce maintenance:
- An individual who has decided to pursue a separation or divorce may seek Life Coaching to help set a clear game plan and a solid strategy for the separation process and beyond.
- Life Coaching can assist an individual to reach clearer, better decisions in the day-to-day struggles of this often challenging period.
- Life Coaching can help an individual improve the environment they keep around them in their daily life. Separation or divorce often ushers in a period of personal stress, which affects the individual negatively at home and at work.
- A Life Coach can be a personal asset in averting the negative consequences of a divorce. Keeping a calm and healthy environment for kids during a divorce, or sustaining a respectable relationship with a soon-to-be ex rather than turning them into a foe for life will pay dividends for years to come.
A Life Coach can be a great asset to utilize at many points in your life. It is always recommended you meet with a Life Coach you are considering to hire. Use the initial meeting to lay out your situation for the coach, and evaluate the possibilities that coach offers you. No two coaches are alike; find the one that you feel best matches your needs. You will thank yourself later.