I have always felt a desire to make a positive difference in the world around me. So often I have seen the potential that others have just thrown away. Through my own experiences of self development and the power it has given me to confidently seek challenge and grow as a person, I know I can help others do the same and be comfortable with who they are.

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In my previous role, I was talking to people every day about the challenges and values in their lives. I came to realize that this most basic level of engagement could be the most profound. I thrived on this often raw, but necessary human interaction. I remember one client in particular. Someone who had a lifetime of anger, mistrust, self-doubts, toxic relationships, substance abuse and violence behind him.

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He wanted help with his life but at the same time didn’t want to admit or accept that about himself which pushed him away from starting the change he desperately needed. Our journey together wasn’t always smooth but we worked closely for a year and formed a genuine relationship based on mutual respect and trust.

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Our paths crossed again a while ago, he had a new partner, was rebuilding his relationship with his children, had qualified to be a counsellor and was substance free. He told me that our work together, the values we had explored and the positive relationship we had built had supported him living by his values and reaching the goals he had set for himself. This had given him a tremendous sense of inner peace and the ability to achieve more than he originally thought possible.

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It was this experience that made me realise that working with people, helping them unlock their potential and become comfortable with who they are was something I loved doing.

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When I saw my friend, Dan pursue his dream of a coaching business, a number of thoughts and feelings ran through my mind. These included admiration for his courage in trying something new and pushing himself into the unknown, as well as envy that he could do something I didn’t at the time have the guts to do.

 

After talking with my wife and looking at my life and all I had achieved I realised that my own fear was holding me back, the fear of breaking my comfortable life, the fear of trying and failing, the fear of finding out that my work with my friend above was just a fluke and that I didn’t have the ability to help others.

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I have always prided myself on living by my values, and one of those is courage around overcoming fear. So for me, this journey into working with people around supporting them to do the same is as much about their growth as mine.

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Whatever the result, I feel like I have already achieved so much just by staying true to myself and what I believe. Just like my client from Probation I have been able to accept my many mistakes and poor decisions and be comfortable with who I am and what I have achieved or not achieved in this world.

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Hopefully I can share this realization with other people and help them achieve in ways that make them feel the same.