Today we had 8 people attend our first Co-Coaching face-to-face and it was awesome! We discussed how we’ll go forward and divided ourselves into 3 practice groups.
The chosen topic was Self-Awareness. We will practice this within our Co-Coaching practice groups for the next few weeks. When we meet again, we’ll discuss lessons learned and plan for the next topic. Most formed groups of 3 so one person can be a Coach, another a Coachee and the 3rd being a Coaching observer.
Here is a list of Self-Awareness exercises but by no means should we limit ourselves to these.
Meditate
Spend a few quiet moments throughout the day and do a body scan. Think about how you feel from head to toe and what’s happening with your mind. You don’t need to make your mind blank, just let the thoughts of you feel come and go without judgment or dwelling on them.
3 Whys?
Before acting on a decision, ask “Why”? When you answer that question, ask again and then one more time. Often the final answer will surprise you.
Accept responsibility
This could be for success, failure or something in between. Think about how you acted and how you felt and not how others made you feel or made you act.
Mindfulness
Focus completely on what you’re doing. Think about the most mundane and habitual tasks you may do every day.
Create a journal
Spend time writing how you feel throughout the day. What were you thinking when you made a decision, said something, met someone or how you acted? Writing it down and reviewing it later is a great way to gain insight in yourself.
Monitor your self-talk
What do you say to yourself when you win, lose or just make a decision? Do you celebrate your success? Do you dwell on your failures? It’s a great way to uncover our own saboteurs.
Funeral test
Visualize your funeral. Who will be there and what will they say about you? What would like the to remember about you?
Write down your strengths and weaknesses
Everyone of us is different and we all have strengths and weaknesses. Writing them down helps us acknowledge them, share them on learn from them. Without judgement, dig deep and try to understand them. Be proud of your strengths and weaknesses because they make us who we are and may help us understand why we make certain decisions or react in a certain way.
Accept your emotions
Allow yourself to feel emotions and without judgement, think about them. How do they make you feel? How do you want to respond to them? Most importantly, don’t judge the emotions as good or bad but instead just accept them, feel them and think about them. You don’t have to respond to them but you should acknowledge them.
Don’t react
Before reacting to a situation, take it all in and feel the changes in your body and mind. This may not always be possible but try it when you can. Take a deep breath, feel your emotions before reacting or responding.
Interact with your inner dialog
Acknowledge those voices in your head and interact with them. Ask them questions, be curious with them and see where it goes.
