Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #418. - There's no going back, and that's a good thing

For many people, "There's no going back" often sounds quite menacing and gloomy.

Something that "final" and conclusive has to be bad and scary... It has to be about something we are losing for good, right?

Sometimes, it is. Other times, it's actually a great opportunity and a gift: In those cases, it's all about what we are actually letting go of.

What if you would be sure that there's no going back to health problems, toxic relationships, unfulfilling work, and harmful habits?

[Let's see... Living in the past, plenty of baggage,
lack of sleep, among other things. How about you?]

Coaching question of the day: 

"For what in your life there's no going back?"                   

                                                    

Tags: Coaching question, Self-coaching, Self-awareness, Self-reflection, No going back, Change of perspective, Life chapters, Long-lasting change, Growth mindset, Letting go

What to read next:

Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #392. - Choosing progress

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Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #335. - The list of all the things you could lose

Sometimes we ask ourselves today's question in a rhetorical way, in order to prove the opposite.

This way, "What have I got to lose?" actually means "Seriously, why not?".

Other times, we may indeed be afraid of losing countless things, both literally and metaphorically speaking: our cool, important keys, our mind, too much sleep, our time, money, chances, our house, our health, good friends, teeth, our dignity, and so on.

We may be afraid, but those fears are often purely theoretical and they represent some abstract horror scenarios we don't really want to think about, in detail.

[The golden rule for creating a solid list for this question

is to list also all the things we usually take for granted]

What if we would do just that once, for a change?

Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #321. - Every breathe you take, after slowing down

Today's coaching question may appear mundane, and yet it's probably going to be difficult to answer for most people.
We rarely pay attention to how and how often we breathe, and therefore the answer to this mysterious question is usually "Too often".

Like every person accustomed to meditation or body awareness practices can confirm, breathing in a deep, relaxed way is paramount for our health, our well-being, our ability to relax and concentrate.

[More often than not, people should reply

with a big "Way too often". It's time to change this]

If the question made you curious, it could be interesting to measure how often you actually breathe in a minute under normal circumstances, and then to slow down a little bit.
If you are usually breathing 20 times in a minute, try to aim at 18 for a couple of minutes, and see how you feel. Could this become your new normal?

Coaching question of the day: 

"How often do you breathe in a minute?"                          
                                                    

Tags: Coaching question, Self-coaching, Self-awareness, Self-reflection, Habits, Building new habits, Healthy habits, Body awareness, Deep breathing, Dealing with stress

What to read next:

Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #237. - The healthy habit to try out this year

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Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #283. - Your opinion about life hacks

Beauty lies in the eye of the beholder, as we have been investigating already earlier this year.

The same applies to life hacks of any kind.

For some, it may be something related to their finances or how to deal with investing, for someone else it can be intermittent fasting or anything related to body hacking, for others it's about decluttering, or cleaning, or finding the best deals online.

[Here we are, with yet another apparently innocent question

that will give you a chance 

to think about your attitude towards life hacking...]

We all have something we swear by and that can make others cringe or get excited.

In the end, the most interesting aspect of this is, at least in my opinion, whether or not we are curious about what could be seen as a life hack and where the boundaries are.

Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #275. - A new daily ritual for you... and your relaxation

Would you like to experience more relaxation in your day-by-day life?

Few things are more effective for that than designing some kind of tiny "special moment" to experience on a daily basis in order to develop the ability to turn the switch off and take a break.

Some people call it a habit, others call it a ritual.

In the end, even if there are some differences between a habit and a ritual, it doesn't matter.

[A daily ritual doesn't have to involve

Bollywood-like choreographies or shiny gimmicks:

Five minutes of your time can do wonders]

What matters is finding something that works for you, enjoying the benefits of it, and tweaking it according to your needs when necessary, again and again.

If relaxing is difficult for now, creating a ritual may be a good solution for learning (again, or for the very first time) how to slow down, take it easy, and unwind.

Coaching question of the day: 

"Which daily ritual could help you relax?"                 

                                                    

Tags: Coaching question, Self-coaching, Self-awareness, Self-reflection, Relaxation, Daily rituals, Mindfulness, Self-care

What to read next:

Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #177. - The places where you can reward yourself

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Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #272. - Your last daytime nap

We usually think that the more active and productive we are, the better.

Our body doesn't always agree with us, though, and a good example of this disagreement is our relationship with sleep: More often than not, it can be described with "it's complicated", at best.

[Close your eyes, think about this question

and remember how you felt after that last nap you took]

Today's coaching question is an invitation to start thinking about our sleep, our sleeping habits, and how we overall consider sleep and making time for it.

Stay tuned for further questions on the topic!

Coaching question of the day: 

"When was the last time you took a nap during the day?"                          

                                                

Tags: Coaching question, Self-coaching, Self-awareness, Self-reflection, Mindfulness, Sleep habits, Healthy habits, Body awareness

What to read next:

Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #67. - The meaning of well-being

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Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #270. - A peaceful day, a peaceful hour

While thinking about our day or even while describing for someone else how our day has been, probably not that many of us would use the word "peaceful".

More often than not, we like our days to be productive, interesting, adventurous, fun, relaxed, successful, exciting... but peaceful?!

Somehow, the idea of "peaceful" is not that sexy or inviting for most of us. As if it would be a subtle way to talk about something boring, predictable, mindless.

[Peaceful is the new sexy:

Let's bring it back to our lives]

And yet, the opposite is actually true:

Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #255. - Your self-care routine

Even if being spontaneous and living in the moment are great things, at the end of the day, our life is just going to be as good as the routine we created for it over time.

It doesn't matter whether daily, weekly, monthly, or even once a year: We truly are what we repeatedly do.

And this applies to our health, our career, our relationships, our growth, our goals, and last but not least, to our self-care as well.

Reflecting on what we actually do for our self-care on a regular basis can be illuminating, revealing, pleasing, or even embarrassing. 

[It may include some kind of workout, a meditation,

dancing, reading a book, having a good conversation,

spending time in nature, a hot bath, cooking a healthy meal... 

pick your faves and go for it]

Still, if the answer should not be the one you would like to go for, it's never too late for establishing a new, more suitable self-care routine for yourself. Small steps add up over time.

Coaching question of the day: 

"How does your self-care routine look like?"     

                                                    

Tags: Coaching question, Self-coaching, Self-awareness, Self-reflection, Self-care, Self-care routine, Habits

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Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #214. - The golden part of your day, every day 

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Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #242. - The permission to pause

We like to talk about work-life balance, and about how important work-life balance is for us...

Even if defining what work-life balance actually is and how we could achieve it can feel at times difficult, blurred, ambiguous.

We are always willing to recharge our smartphones and other devices, and yet we often fail to realize that we are running on empty.

[A good answer to this question?
"As often as you all need it". Just saying]

Today's question is a precious tool for performing an honest reality check.

On top of it, it may be quite revealing and unveil one among at least four possible constellations:

Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #237. - The healthy habit to try out this year

Even if many are convinced that you can't teach an old dog new tricks and that each of us, somehow, tends to become an old dog after we turn 30, it's actually never too late to learn something new, to change aspects of our lifestyle if we want to, to build a new healthy habit over time.

The same applies to how we can look at this year.
Even if the countdown to the end of the year has started already and it's all about forgetting a "terrible" year, closing it with a bang, or even starting planning the next one already... this year is not over yet.

[Before the end of this year I will give
meditation and deep breathing a go.

How about you?]

We still have two full months in front of us and we can decide to use them for getting curious, being open about something we never did before or that we know it's healthy and yet never became part of our routine so far, and for choosing how to spend the rest of the year in a meaningful way.

Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #230. - Slowing down - Reprise

"I will not let this slow me down", we say. As if slowing down would always be a very bad thing to do. 

Sometimes it is, other times it isn't. 

In a culture that sees every pause as a sign of weakness or laziness, slowing down is considered just the same as falling behind. 

Sometimes it is, other times it isn't. 

[While slowing down, your mileage may vary.
What's "a little bit" for you can be "a huge lot"

for someone else. But your pace is the one that matters]

Slowing down is more often than not a way to practice self-awareness, mindfulness, and thankfulness. 

Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #229. - The misunderstanding about quiet evenings at home

We say "feeling at home" for a reason, when referring to the emotional state experienced in situations of any kind where we feel safe, at ease, relaxed.

And yet, "spending a quiet evening at home" is way too often considered something dull, dry, and even loathsome.

Apparently, many of us mistake "quiet" for "boring", even if they are usually two very different things.

[Among many other things, it can feel

cozy, intimate, meaningful, invigorating...]

Opting for something "quiet" is a matter of choice and it's related to intrinsic motivation and self-reliance, while finding many things "boring" may be connected to a certain amount of dependency on external circumstances and sensation seeking.

Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #194. - That other kind of quality time

We like to talk about quality time and we are proud of how much quality time we are able to carve for some kind of good cause or for our relationships with people we care about.
Meanwhile, we rarely consider the time spent unplugging or the time dedicated to ourselves as quality time.

Having some me-time seems not so important, or even a selfish thing to do.
And yet, we spend every single minute of every single day with ourselves... 

[Quality time can also be me-time,

even if not so many people look at it this way]

Coaching question of the day:
"When was the last time you had some me-time?"                                                

Tags: Coaching question, Self-coaching, Self-awareness, Self-reflection, Unplugging, Self-care, Me-time

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Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #149. - Unplug is like...

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Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #186. - Listening to your own body

Over the decades, tons of pop songs taught us how to listen to our hearts, our guts, our minds.
Unfortunately, the same didn't happen with our own bodies.

Still, for some of us, listening to the body, and to what it has to say, may be a no-brainer.
For some others, it could be less intuitive, and for sure there are people that consider the whole concept of "listening to the body" a bit weird, if not exactly impossible.

The body doesn't talk. 
How can we listen?!

[Depending on your belief system, the answer could go either

"Always" or "Never", or everywhere in-between]

Well, the body talks. A lot.
Just, most of the time, we don't listen.

Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #185. - Your investments, long-term

Investments are not always about money, real estate, and stock market cycles.
Everything that is related to some form of commitment and may bring prosperity, in the long run, can be seen as such.

Paying attention to our health, building strong and positive relationships, cultivating a hobby, sleeping enough, eating whole foods, devoting time to our education, meditating, enhancing our self-awareness, decluttering, learning new things on a daily basis, practicing thankfulness, exercising regularly...

[One of my biggest long-term investments right now?

Getting enough sleep every single night...]

All these rewarding habits can also be considered some kind of investment that will bear fruit not only right now, but above all over time, if continuously honed and improved.

Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #172. - A tribute to rainy days

We put aside money for a rainy day, we write rain checks, we don't want rain on our parade.
More often than not, the rain has a bad reputation, even if it's actually vital for plenty of human and animal activities, and it keeps the soil from just drying out too fast.

Put this way, rain is one of those things that keep us alive.

[It's time for an official rehabilitation of rainy days,

so you can start making the most out of them!]

Rainy days can be just as vital for each of us.

Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #171. - The importance of treating yourself

The first question should be another one, to be honest.
We should actually start with the question about whether you consider treating yourself as something acceptable or not.

Some people think that treating oneself is selfish and a waste of time.
There is so much to do, there are so many people that need something, anything, the world is suffering... so why devoting time to oneself?!

[If you haven't been treating yourself so far...

How about starting right now?]

And yet, I like to think that without helping ourselves first we are not really able to help others.

Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #163. - Relax is the word

Sometimes I wonder how many people would actually be able to give a thoughtful answer to a question that could appear absolutely mundane, at first.
And yet, most of the time, we are just so busy, so busy, so so busy...

Too bad that being busy is not a synonym for being productive, creative, or successful.
Too bad that being busy makes it very difficult to relax and to be mindful, essential habits needed on a regular basis by our brain, our body, and last but not least by our creativity and productivity.

[We are talking real relax here...

Spoiler alert: Endless scrolling on Facebook is not real relax]

Relaxation is the other side of the coin.

Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #159. - Rethinking what crying is for

Crying is among those things that get a bad reputation without always deserving one.
Sure thing, crying can be often related to pain, suffering, stress. But that's not always the case.

Besides the fact that crying is not always a sign of distress and we can also cry out of joy, relief, gratitude, and feeling touched, a good cry can be incredibly healthy, both for our body and for our peace of mind.
It can help to get feelings sorted out, to talk out loud about something we are scared of and that is suddenly less scared if expressed in words, to free ourselves from an emotional burden.

[It's called "a good cry" for a reason...

And it can really do good once in a while]

There is a big misunderstanding about crying.

Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #149. - Unplug is like...

Unplugging is like water: Each of us has a different opinion about which kind of water is good, or pleasant to drink, and yet we all need to drink some.
The same is true for unplugging: Each of us has a different opinion about what unplugging really means and looks like, and yet we all need to unplug once in a while.

"Once in a while" could actually be a big understatement.
"Often and regularly" is way more accurate, and fruitful.

[You can like it warm and cozy, or wild and adventurous...

It doesn't matter. 

Please pick a place for unplugging regularly]

Sometimes it takes a fresh glass of water for us to realize that we were thirsty without even noticing it because we were so busy. With unplugging, it is just the same.

When in doubt, just drink a glass of water.
And unplug.

Coaching question of the day:
"Where do you like to unplug, and why?"

Tags: Coaching question, Self-coaching, Self-awareness, Self-reflection, Unplugging, Self-care

What to read next:

Coaching, reloaded - Coaching question of the day #74. - Unplug & Recharge

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