Twitter in particular is full of motivational quotes from certain coaches. In fact, I have just flicked to Twitter and there are 2 on my screen:
* ‘Your beliefs don’t make you a better person, your behaviour does’. - What does this mean? I'm not being deliberately obtuse. Does it mean that if you want to punch someone on the nose, for example, you should behave differently? Is that not just common sense..... in most cases?
*’If you don’t like the situation you’re in, change it. If you cannot change it, change the way you think about it’. - Ok... am I missing something here?
I really don't want to upset anyone but why are there so many motivational quotes doing the rounds right now? Some quotes are quite profound and a good one can alter your perception of the way you look at life. We all have our favourites. I actually said to someone recently 'Do not judge me until you have walked in my shoes'. Yep I said it, it's out there and it was very apt for that situation. However, most run the danger of turning into tired old clichés and alienating the very people you would like to inspire.
What next, inspirational music bites? Maybe instead of quoting something inspirational, we could hum the theme from Rocky. Da da da da da-da da dadada - Yo Adrienne, I did it! ... Actually that might work.
*No Life Coaches were hurt during the making of this blog.
"The problem with common sense is it's not very common."
ReplyDeleteThere's such a lot of regurgitated nonsense out there that practitioners requote each other, and people forget that the person who spouted it in the first place was a blithering idiot.
Take the "power of visualisation and goal setting" for example... I'm not suggesting that working with a plan in mind isn't sensible. But spending time thinking about how things will be once goals are met is frequently dribbled about. There's the much quoted Yale1979/Harvard1953 study. A year group was split, those that wrote down their goals, and those that didn't. Ten years later those that did were way more successful than those that didn't. Wow - get out your planner. Map out your life. Except... it appears that these studies are the same urban myth. Neither actually happened, and there's actually evidence that visualisation is counter productive.
(Wiseman's "59 Seconds" is a must read if you want to see this garbage debunked properly - whilst at the same time outlining things that are proven to work in this kind of field.)
Still - I've been at one of your meals with a Medium at the table. Perfectly pleasant as the lady was, if you're going to allow that sort of "rob 'em when they're down" drivel at the table I'm not sure how your life coaching rule fits. What's next homeopaths and nutritionists?
I shall add Wiseman's 59 seconds to my wish list - Thanks for recommending it. With regards to the Medium - a lot of decisions regarding guests are made through trial and error as everyone deserves one chance at least, to see what they offer at the table.
ReplyDeleteThe Business Lounge is about sharing experience and knowledge. However, there are some professions that do not work within the structure and the invitation to attend is not offered twice.
I would also state that I was not debunking Life Coaches. It would be foolish to write them off in one sweeping generalisation. I was merely stating that there appears to be an awful lot of them. Most networking events and social media platforms are over run with Life Coaches spouting motivational and inspirational quotes... Personally, just a bit fed up of it.
But with a Life Coach you are given the outside view to see the things you might not be able to see from your own space in your head.
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