Why do you need a coach?

What is the difference between a Nurse Practitioner and a Coach?

I have been a Nurse Practitioner for over 30 years, and in that time I became a skilled medical provider, an expert in the exam room.

I was the authority, the educator, and the problem-solver, focusing on what was wrong and coming up with appropriate treatment plans. If we were discussing preventative health, such as weight loss and diabetes prevention, I would define the visit agenda.

I felt responsible for the patient’s health, and sometimes found I was working harder than the patient was at pursuing the health goals I outlined for them to help prevent further disease. I enjoyed excellent rapport with my patients, and I felt I was an effective provider of excellent medical care.

And yet, I was no more effective at helping my patients prevent the major lifestyle-related diseases than any other random medical provider. 

And then I discovered coaching!

Coaching focuses on helping clients grow into becoming the unique experts in their own well-being and personal behaviors. The client is helped to become the decision-maker, to blossom into the role of personal expert on the way forward.

Coaching fosters personal responsibility, reflective thinking, self-discovery, and self-efficacy.

Clients have their own answers if they are simply given a reflective environment in which to see and listen to themselves. The coach is a partner, focusing on what is right, eliciting the client’s agenda, co-discovering the answers, and facilitating change.