The mindset shift for Play Based Coaches

 As Play Based Coaches, we pour our hearts into our work. We plan intentional sessions, hold space for emotions, guide developmental growth, and build bridges between children and their families. Our job demands empathy, energy, creativity, and knowledge, but here’s the truth that too many coaches learn the hard way:

 “Working on your job keeps things running. Working on yourself keeps you growing.”

Mindset matters more than your coaching curriculum. You can have the best tools in your coaching toolbox, sensory toys, story-based interventions, parent workshops, but if your mindset isn't healthy, grounded, and growing, you’ll hit a ceiling.

Your mindset determines:

•  How you respond when a parent is defensive
•  Whether you view a child’s regression as a “problem” or a “message”
•  How you carry feedback (or criticism)
•  What you do when your own energy dips

You can’t model resilience, regulation, or growth for families unless you’re actively practicing it yourself by focusing on your own inner work: 

1. Build Awareness of Your Triggers

You work with families in sensitive situations. When a caregiver dismisses your input or a child refuses your activity, what surfaces in you? Frustration? Self-doubt?

 Mindset shift: “This is information, not a reflection of my worth.”

Working on yourself means becoming aware of these responses and learning how to navigate them, so your reactions don't lead the session.

2. Stay Curious, Not Critical

Mistakes are inevitable and you may somewhere in your coaching career, misread a situation, say the wrong thing, or feel unprepared.

Mindset shift: “Curiosity helps me grow. Criticism shuts me down.”

Instead of beating yourself up, ask: “What can this teach me?” This not only builds your coaching strength, it sets the tone for how families approach mistakes at home too.

3. Practice Emotional Hygiene

You’re absorbing a lot: stress from parents, emotional dysregulation from children, systemic pressure, your own expectations.

Mindset shift: “Self-care is not selfish, it’s skill-building.”

Working harder on yourself means protecting your nervous system. Mindset isn't just your thoughts. It’s also about how you regulate your body through breath work, boundaries, journalling, movement, therapy, or supervision. 

You’re not just a Kids Life Coach. You’re a mirror, a mentor, a guide and in this work, your presence is your most powerful tool.

Working harder on yourself might look like:

•  Reading mindset-based books alongside child development research papers.
•  Reflecting weekly on Feel Good Fridays: “Where did I grow? Where do I need support?”
•  Saying “no” to a client that drains you, and “yes” to rest.
•  Owning your blind spots and committing to your own mentorship and/or coaching.

The more you evolve your now mindset, the more you can offer to families who need the best of you. Not the most perfect version. Not the one who has all the answers, but the version of you who is:

•  Grounded
•  Open to growth
•  Regulated
•  Compassionate with yourself

This is why I have always worked hard on my job but harder on myself. This means I can show up for the families and create magic for them through play. I am sure you do the same but just in case you have forgotten I am here to remind you today: 

 "Your job may be to support others, but your mindset is what supports you."

Every time you choose growth over perfection, awareness over reactivity, and compassion over criticism, you become the kind of world-class Kids Life Coach families remember forever.