How can you coach a child who has punched his teacher?
Now picture this scenario: A boy has been excluded from his school for punching his teacher. The teacher is known to taunt the children, use sarcasm and derogatory statements.
The boy, who has shown his temper before, acted out of a space of anger and frustration and his behaviour cost him dearly. He is sent to another school, but his reputation precedes him. He isn't even given the respect or the chance to redeem himself and show people the positive side of who he is. He is judged and labelled and through this, he gives up and creates a self-fulfilling prophecy of bad behaviour and poor choices.
Along comes you as his Kids Life Coach, who knows the boy's background but tells the boy that all past behaviours and bad choices are left at the door. These will not enter into your coaching relationship. The boy is safe to express himself, but in your Coaching Sessions, he finds a place where choices are made easy. Within the Coaching Space of unconditional acceptance, skills training and building up a toolkit for life, this boy turns himself around. The result: Academic Excellence and behaviour which reflects self respect and is based on making responsible choices.
Who is to be congratulated for this? You as the Kids Life Coach or the boy? You know the answer: (okay well if you don't...) it is the boy. He chose to use the skills you gave him. You did not force him or coerce him. He did it willingly because you believed in him.
At various times in their lives, you and I both know that children will have different levels of happiness and this is usually influenced by external circumstances beyond their control.
Having the ability to overcome stressors, is about lifestyle management that contributes to their mental well-being. When you start to learn how to introduce children to a recipe for healthy living, you will see results physically, mentally and emotionally.
I am sure you know this but no matter the type of child, the parents, the family, the school, the community or society there is ONE key ingredient that everybody wants children to have: HAPPINESS.
Children need the freedom to explore their own potential because once they realise what they are capable of, they will feel empowered to take control of their. own lives. Coaching kids to find out who they really are allows them to become more. aware of their own influence with regards to creating happiness in their own life.
So this brings me to the three pillars of Kids Life Coaching.
- Happiness is linked to self esteem
- Motivation is linked to resilience
- Inspiration is linked to leadership.
All three of these areas are underpinned by having Zeal. Now Zeal means to have enthusiasm or energy for a cause or objective. You can roughly translate this into meaning that when a child has a purpose, they will be happy motivated and inspired to move forward in the direction of their goals. This will directly influence their self esteem, their resilience and their leadership capabilities.
Making responsible choices is based on being happy, motivated and inspired. I keep repeating these 3 words happiness, motivation and inspiration because they are fundamental to your work as a coach but most of all I want to mention ZEAL.
I want you to ask yourself now: "What is your ZEAL...your energy and enthusiasm linked to? How will you make a positive impact on children? I want you to get clear on that picture. How will you help a child who has punched his teacher?
I also want you to understand that changing our world doesn't mean we have to all be doing big things. Changing our world means doing small things consistently. If each one of us positively influences one child at a time, we never know the extent of our reach and influence. Who knows if that child could be our next:
Mother Theresa, Martin Luther King, Ghandi, Nelson Mandela, Winston Churchill, William Shakespeare, Florence Nightingale, Albert Einstein, Elvis Presley or Oprah Winfrey. You get the idea!
You have taken action by reading this blog and perhaps you have signed up for one of our online courses. I see it as a privilege to have you feel so passionate about influencing children because I know that you have the ability to impact not only a child, but also on a nation.
For me making the world a positive experience for children, isn't an option, it's a necessity. The reality is that alone, I am powerless to feed the hungry, fight crime, prevent learning difficulties, protect the abused or embrace the neglected, curb teenage pregnancy, stop violence, alleviate drug & alcohol abuse or prevent meaningless loss of life due to suicide.
I cannot fix our broken world, but what you and I do have is the power to share my experiences & knowledge that my team uses in the hope that you can make a positive impact on children in your own corner of the world.
We are looking for passionate positive people to join our team of global Kids Life Coaches. Please click here to apply.
