We watched a show on The Learning Channel last night called 'What Not To Wear". Basically, the two experts work with someone who dresses poorly and totally inappropriately for his or her profession. I'll make a note here that the two experts invariably do a good job in selecting a style that goes with their weekly subject and everyone winds up happy with the result – coaches, subject and audience.
Life Coach Pushed into Personal Growth
Last night Stacey and Clinton worked with a woman who has credentials as a Life Coach. She wore either men's clothes or very embroidered, patchwork, shapeless women's clothing. Her footwear of choice was flip flops. Not what I think of when I think of a Life Coach. Fortunately, most of her coaching was over the telephone, because she certainly didn't present the image of a successful coach who had her own life on track. She was beginning to worry because now some of her clients wanted to meet her in person.
Image Isn't Everything Is It?
What this says to me is two things. First is that we form opinions of people within the first couple of seconds of meeting them based upon how they look. It may not be right, but it happens.
The second thing is that great coaches aren't necessarily great themselves at what they coach, but they have to be really good at analyzing their client, selecting coaching methods that work for that person, and providing the stimulus for that person to improve.
This leads to a third thing. It was brought up last night and I have seen it regularly throughout past episodes. Many people are afraid that with a change in clothing and makeup and – here's the biggest one – hair style, they will lose themselves and who they are. Some women even cry when it comes to getting a haircut. Though our Life Coach from last night was willing to go for the change, she, too, expressed some trepidation about the change. Very often a person's self image is very tightly tied up in their external image. What does that say about how a person feels about him/herself inside?
Self Esteem
If you work on personal growth internally, no one need know that you have tried a change until you follow through enough for the results to show. If you make a change on the outside, the world immediately knows something is up. You can't hedge on this one because it's right out there for everyone to see. So if you want to push your personal development and put yourself on the line, make an external change and 'act as if'. Make the change and step up to the plate.
