It’s possible I learn even more from my personal coaching sessions as the facilitator than my clients do from me. There’s this idea that our clients come to us to teach us something that we ourselves need to learn. It reminds me a little bit of the concept of ontological design – that what we design, designs us right back. That device you’re using for example. Just like when we read a good book, it is also writing us. The experience of facilitating change in another person is also changing me.
I often experience this sense that my clients are holding up a mirror to my own stuff that I would benefit from paying attention to. Or some particular insight they have is just the right little reminder I need in my life at that time too. Sometimes they are spookily well timed. So, I thought I’d start sharing some of these insights and themes as they arise because maybe they can be little reminders for you too.
Last week as one client came out of trance and began to share all of her wonderful insights with me, I was reminded of this water metaphor.
Be like water. When water encounters an obstacle such as a rock, it doesn’t stop or try to move the obstacle. It simply flows around it, over it or under it.
When we encounter an obstacle we often try to fight against it, or try to smash through it. Expending a great deal more effort and energy than is required. Not very effective or efficient. Unless you’re The Hulk! Hulk SMASH!! But then he was kind of an angry guy, wasn’t he?
Instead we can be like water, moving only as much as we need to and just find a way past it.
There is always a way.
