What I Do as a Life Coach for Teens

I’ve always been a great listener. I’ve always cared about kids. Before I trained to be a life coach for teens, I was that teacher who totally listened to my students. And they loved me for it.

Then straightaway, when they were done talking, I told them exactly what to do. But they never took my advice. Ah, feckless kids, right? Nope. Feckless teacher. I was trying to help kids change using only half of the magic formula.

As parents, as teachers, we have vivid dreams and solutions for our young people. And we’re thrilled to share them. But you know what we rarely do? Ask kids what their vision is. Help them ID what’s between their goals and their reality; help them kick off a plan to smash those barriers.

Enter teen coaching.

And the magic formula is…

Have you ever met someone who is really interested in you? Who is genuinely curious about your life and your passions; who, when you politely try to steer the conversation toward them, insists, “I want to hear more about you”?

Ten bucks says after that conversation, you felt like you could do anything. Like you had wings. Right? That’s the listening part of coaching.

And then, there’s the action part.

Go back to that vibrant listener. Imagine that person has a backpack full of mountain-climbing tools. She knows the terrain, the obstacles humans stumble on, as they strive for their peak. But she’s a trained climber: she’s going to hand you the tools you need, and teach you how to use them when you hit the rock slide. The ice slick. The cliff face.

Now that you’re equipped with an expert’s tools, the next time you’re on a mountain, you’re good. You’re confident. You’ve already proved to yourself you can get past the stumbles. And as a result of your efforts, you’ve got your own backpack full of tools.

What a well-trained life coach for teens does is both: the deep, non-judgmental listening and the sharing of tools to tackle the problem.

In short, as a life coach for teens, I help kids to…

» Discover what they want

» Figure out what’s standing in the way

» Create a plan to get around the obstacles

» Support them as they put that plan into action

…and above all, it’s all 100% focused on what the teen, themself, wants to achieve. That right there? The fact that teen coaching is driven by kids’ own goals and personality and strengths? That’s the *real* magic.

To see the magic at work in your own child’s life, shoot me an email!