Quite a few people have asked me if they can “coach” children with only our Level 1 Kids Life Coaching Theory training.

I thought this pyramid would help to show the progression to being considered an expert as a world class kids life coach.

Your journey to coaching children starts with theory but what truly matters is getting access to a toolkit, a coaching model and system that helps to refine and define your income and impact as a career kids life coach.

In our experience those who stay at theory level usually don’t manage to launch a financially viable business. They are swept up in the time consuming “game” of figuring out how to get sustainable results. They do as many courses as they can, learning....learning....learning...learning. Which is a good thing...BUT they struggle to take action.

Why?

They don't know where to start to get replicable, sustainable, ethical and measurable results each and every time they coach a child. They play a guessing game and this keeps them ...

This morning I asked a trainee Kids Life Coach who has not achieved deadline for submitting her portfolio of evidence and case studies:

“What is your dream?”

She couldn’t answer me...but yet she could tell me what wasn’t working in her life....what you focus on is what you always get more of!!

When we first spoke on her initial interview and strategy call, she had big dreams but life is pulling her in many directions. All I was hearing were words spoken from a space of fear. 

She was feeling VERY fearful...she didn't have enough time. She didn't know if she would succeed as a kids life coach...She didn't know why she wasn't able to be more positive. She didn't think Covid would allow her to launch. She didn't think parents could afford her fees. 

I have BIG audacious dreams and many people have called me a visionary and blue sky thinker...I have achieved many goals but have taken baby steps along the way!! However, I have never ever entertained negative fearful thinking when it co...

Covid Schomid! I am over this...

I just spoke to a lovely lady in the USA who launched her new personal development business for children just before first lockdown last year.  She approached me because she was finding it tricky to figure things out on her own.  She said lockdown had changed things and parents 'didn't have money'...this is when I knew...

She hadn't yet been resourceful enough to realise that during this hardest time that ALL of us have faced...there is HUGE opportunity. 

Whilst she has experienced parents not being able to afford her services, I don't think it is because of lack of finances. I sensed it was because she had a lack of belief in her own programme and in herself. That doesn't mean she doesn't know what she is doing...because she is highly qualified and highly passionate. 

What that means is that when things got hard for her...she backed down. Instead of stepping up. What I admire most about this conversation is that she admitted that she couldn't do it...

I once had one of my certified kids life coaches ask a question about a mother she was dealing with.

Her client’s husband had died years prior and she had never found the right time to tell her child who had been a toddler at the time. Her child just came to believe that daddy was away for work.

This is obviously an extreme example, but hiding the truth from children can often do more damage than the initial hurt. Sadness is a human emotion and although this mom was well intentioned because she thought she was protecting her child from the grief of their dads death, can you imagine what will happen when the truth eventually emerges.

Not only is this mother suppressing her own right to grieve the death of her husband, but she is wearing a mask that will forever separate her child from her in later years. That kind of act although coming from a place of preservation will do unspeakable harm to the underlying trust that should always be the basis of every parent child relationship.   

I really understand what it means to not want to get out of bed somedays! Having gone through various serious bouts of depression and being hospitalised twice in my past...I understand first hand how hard things can sometimes be if you are faced with trauma. 

Yet, when it comes to working with children there is a certain code of ethics and principles of child safeguarding where we need to CHOOSE to show up professionally. This is despite how lousy you may be feeling mentally, emotionally and physically...

Now this may not be you...perhaps you are one of those Kids Life Coaches who consistently has good days and never has wobbles. You get everything right and your clients are flowing towards you steadily and consistently. You are always healthy. Your mind is always strong. You are always emotionally stable. 

However if this isn't you...don't worry...that is not me either!!  I am perfectly imperfect and still navigating the ups and downs of life just like you.  That doesn't mean that ...

Let us iron something out with you. You may have been wondering about the notion that Kids Life Coaching is becoming a very popular 'niche'. For some...who may never have heard of coaching for children before now...possibly this may be the case. 

However, considering the fact that I have been coaching children since 2003, I don't see this as true. Coaching children isn't a niche within life coaching. Rather I see specialising in a particular area pertaining to children as the actual niche.  

My Therapeutic Play Based Coaching Model® allows any student who certifies with us through our Level 1 & 2 Kids Life Coach Training to adapt and apply our 5 tools and 7 ingredients to target a specific area of need in a child's life. 

Take Monique in South Africa for instance. She certified with us and has specialised in divorce and family dynamics. Or Aurelie in Switzerland is a specialist in technology. My area of passion is family resilience and leadership. 

Our belief at The Kids Life Studi...

So often, we get asked "is coaching children" the same as "coaching adults". The answer is N....O....that spells NO....with capital letters.

The biggest 3 mistakes (albeit unintentional) that adult life coaches make who want to transition to working with children is this...

1. They have been led to believe that you need accreditation from the ICF to coach children. The truth is that there is no regulatory body in the child coaching space and our organisation The Kids Life Studio® and our Kids Life Studio® Coach Academy School are the trailblazers in setting the standards. Any organisation that says they have ICF accreditation for kids coaching is actually just "adult coaching" in disguise...so in our humble opinion...whilst regulation is important...it really doesn't count for much when it comes to coaching children...since it it so completely different from coaching adults.

2.  Our Kids Life Studio® Coach Academy is a certification geared specifically to children. Adult coaching is...

I have been in my own “business” for 17 years...I turned my passion for helping children into an income. It hasn’t been easy. It has taken lots and lots of resourcefulness because I have had to learn a LOT along the way!

When this video* popped up on my You Tube feed this morning I had to share the inspiration.

(^Disclaimer: Only watch if you want to take accountability for where you find yourself in your life)

At times I have wanted to give up because I was lacking in resources but something kept me going when the going got tough....this video reminded me what I have sacrificed and achieved in the process. It hasn't been easy but it has been very much worth it!

As we end 2020, will you keep making excuses as to why you can’t enrol in our Kids Life Coach Training or that you don’t have time or as to why you aren’t getting clients or as to why you need to stay in your disappointing job or as to why you aren't a team player or why you are feeling depressed.

Or are you going to step ...

I have been coaching children for almost two decades. I used to have a habit of always putting myself last. In my mind, the children always came first and I was willing to sacrifice my own time to support children no matter the consequence for my mental health.

My advice after many years of this yo-yo faulty thinking is that if you are doing the same thing, you are heading for burnout....just like me...

So just stop it!! That's what I had to do but I learnt the hard way. It took me hitting rock bottom in terms of my health before I realised that I needed to practice self care first over and above anything else. I was getting my priorities all wrong!

When your mobile phone is flat you charge it.

The same goes for you!

Every single day you should be doing something relaxing to keep your “battery trickle charged” I make time for myself everyday now. I start my day with a little yoga...and I have a walk at lunch time whenever I am able to. I go to bed every night reading a good fictio...