WHAT IS EMPOWERMENT?
When I meet new people and I tell them what I do, I'm often asked what an Empowerment Coach does. It's an interesting word this word empowerment, no? If you look up the definition you will find: to give power to; to make powerful; to sanction; to authorize; to allow. I've come to discover that I really love the word empower because it is such a, well... powerful word. I can even feel something inside myself shift and get excited at the mere thought of it!
I remember so long ago when my son was a little boy and blessed to be attending a wonderful preschool. The environment was so nurturing of the kid's curiosity & self expression. I remember how much I loved watching my son becoming this little person who was learning new things about the world around him almost everyday. He wasn't afraid to learn, he wasn't afraid to feel and he wasn't afraid to grow. It was all instinctive.
Whether or not we were fortunate enough to have had nurturing and empowering environments in our early years of life, it seems that inevitably we all run into circumstances or events which begin to disempower us in certain areas of our lives. Maybe we were given subtle messages or had subtle experiences about certain things not being safe, or we learned that sometimes when we trust people, we get hurt. Maybe when we unabashedly shared or expressed ourselves with others we were laughed at or it wasn't received to our liking. Or maybe we experienced deeply traumatic experiences that left us frightened. Our hurtful experiences get registered on very deep levels and begin to create barriers (either conscious or unconscious) which in an effort to keep us feeling "safe" actually hold us back. As a result, so many people move through life armored and not really feeling fulfilled. They have learned to settle for much less from themselves and others.
Awareness is one of the crucial ingredients for transformation. Without awareness, change cannot even begin. Sometimes when we become aware it can initially be unsettling. However, once we have a clear vision of where we want to be, then this awareness can ultimately prove to be very empowering. Knowledge is power.
As an empowerment coach I ask questions and I give the space and the permission for my clients to come up with the answers. I create a safe and supportive environment for my clients to become aware. Aware of what they want, aware of who they are, aware of what they value, aware of what's not working in their life. Then I become their support person as they begin to make the changes to get them on their way, one step at a time. For some it could be to simply start painting again, despite their 60 hour workweek; to allow themselves to play with the creativity they packed away so many years ago. When they begin to play again, suddenly their life starts to open up in more ways than they could have imagined. For another it could be to change careers or hike the Himalayas. For another, to get out of an unhealthy relationship, loose weight, or get out of debt. The spectrum is broad. The results, always transformative.
