Power Tool Assessment Name: Sheri Bodnaruk Date: July 4, 2012 Student ID: 266001 Email: Sheri@barkingturtlemedia.

com

Complete your Power Tool in the space below and then email as an attachment to assessment@icoachacademy.com

Specific vs. Vague

Reading Have you ever heard the phrase "You get what you ask for"? That usually implies that you may be communicating what you want in too vague a way and it could be interpreted in multiple ways. You could then end up with something that is nothing like you wanted. To get what you really want you need to be specific in what you are asking for. Getting specific about what we want can sometimes be difficult to do. We tend to want to generalize, much like King Midas did when Dionysus granted him a reward of his choice. Instead of being specific in his request King Midas was vague and asked for everything he touched to turn to gold. Can you imagine what he would have gotten if he had been more specific? Midas didn't really want everything to turn to gold when he touched it, he really wanted to have all the riches in the world, more specifically he wanted to be the man with the most gold! Instead he died of starvation because he didn't communicate his request clearly. You need to communicate what you want clearly and to do that you need to know what it is that you want. Has anyone ever asked you what you really want in life? Was your answer something like "I just want to be happy"? What exactly makes you happy? Is it having a wonderful family, a rewarding career, traveling to new places, or just having the freedom to do what you want? If you are vague in what you want the chances of failure become greater, you need to define what is really important to you so you stay motivated to get it. Life coach Martha Beck wrote, "It's like telling a waiter, 'Bring me something delicious. I have no idea what, but I'll know it when I taste it.' No order that fuzzy is likely to produce a satisfying result. ... People who get what they want tend to be the ones who make the effort to know what they want".
Copyright 2006 International Coach Academy Pty. Ltd. Use is governed by the Terms and Conditions at http://www.icoachacademy.com Last updated Feb 2006

Self Reflection: Think about the last New Years Resolution you made, how specific were you in communicating that goal to yourself? Were you able to keep the resolution? Specific Goals - Getting What You Really Want Getting what we want in our lives begins with setting some very specific goals that will get you real results. Setting goals with a specific outcome will increase your chances of success because you'll know exactly what you want, how and when you are going to achieve it, and where you want to be at the end of your journey. When we are vague with our goals it's difficult to set clear milestones to get there as well as knowing that we are even progressing towards that goal. Compare this vague goal, "I'd like to own a house" to this more specific one, "I'd like to own a house by the time I'm 40, in the country, with 4 bedrooms, lots of windows and a beautiful yard. I'd like to have enough space so our families can visit and we can entertain our friends". Which goal inspires you more, the vague one or the specific one? Vague goals are less inspiring because they lack the details that motivate us. With vague goals it is more difficult to create concrete milestones to move towards. It is also difficult to measure your progress and commit to these vague goals because you are not completely invested in them - they have no real meaning for you. Getting specific with your goals forces you to become more detailed and brings out their real meaning for you. If your goals are vague you'll lose interest and most likely give up before you achieve them. Reflection: What goals would you like to achieve in the next year? How exactly are you going to achieve them? Are these goals attainable in the timeline of a year? Why are these goals important to you?
Copyright 2006 International Coach Academy Pty. Ltd. Use is governed by the Terms and Conditions at http://www.icoachacademy.com Last updated Feb 2006

Coaching Application: Sometimes it's difficult for our clients to come up with well-defined goals. When you begin working with your client and you find that they are being too vague or are having trouble creating their vision, this could mean a number of different things. Do they feel worthy of that goal? Or are they lacking the confidence that they can achieve that goal? Maybe it's not even their goal, but someone close to them and it doesn't really align with their values. As coaches we need to help them identify the underlying beliefs that are holding them back so they can set better and more specific goals that are true to them and their values. Helping Clients Create Specific Goals One way a coach can help a client move from vague goals to more specific ones is to help the client become more aware of what they would like to achieve. Can the client visualize what they would like their life will look in a year, can they describe it in detail - what do they smell, hear, feel, is there someone with them? Are they inside or outside? The more descriptive they are the more these goals will align with their values. It's difficult to describe something in detail that doesn't have meaning to them. Ask them to only speak in the positive so their minds stay open to the possibilities, instead of saying "I'm not fat" they could say "I look fantastic in my size 8 jeans!". When stated in the positive and present tense this future self is capable of anything! Stating in the positive is very important because if we focus on what we don't want to do we usually end up doing it. "Whatever you put your attention on, you get more of. As soon as you are aware of what you don't want, immediately put your attention on what you do want and feel the feelings and the true value of having it now" (Atkinson, Chois, 2007, pp. 112-113). Our brains are trained to go towards what we focus on so if we are always telling ourselves "not to eat" our brains thinks "eat" and that is what we will do.

Copyright 2006 International Coach Academy Pty. Ltd. Use is governed by the Terms and Conditions at http://www.icoachacademy.com Last updated Feb 2006

Keeping with the positive the client will feel, "their life's value becomes self-expressive and they will feel a deep sense of their heart's own awareness" (Atkinson, Chois, 2007, p. 146). With this positive future self in mind the coach can begin the process of goal setting backwards. For instance, if the client's vision included them looking great in a size 8 jeans, enjoying a coffee in a cafe in Italy, meeting the person of their dreams, their goals or outcomes for that year are; feeling healthy and fantastic in those size 8 jeans, exploring a country they have always dreamed of going to, and having the confidence to approach and communicate with a complete stranger. Check with your client, can they bring the feeling of having completed their goals into the present so they can begin living with that feeling now? Are their goals more motivating to them, can they really see themselves interacting with their goals or do you need to go back to the visualization? Now break the year down into 3 months periods, at month 9 where does your client want to be? Set their specific goals for that period. Next do month 6, and then month 3, are the goals attainable in those time periods? Are they excited and motivated about moving forward? Are they ready to take the first step? Planning and setting their goals backwards may seem a bit odd to them but it helps the client look at their goal setting from a different perspective. The milestones they set for themselves may be very different then the ones they would have set projecting forward in their goal setting. It's even more difficult to be vague when they are setting their goals backwards, they have to use their imagination and visualize what it will be like at each milestone. Placing themselves there and visualizing it will better their chances of achieving their goals. Coaching Reflection: As a coach, what tools do you use to set specific goals for you? How can we support our clients to move away from vague goals towards more specific goals? What other ways can we help our clients define more specific goals?
Copyright 2006 International Coach Academy Pty. Ltd. Use is governed by the Terms and Conditions at http://www.icoachacademy.com Last updated Feb 2006

References: Beck, Martha. (2012. January). How to Figure Out What You Want in Life. Oprah Magazine. http://www.oprah.com/spirit/How-to-Figure-Out-What-You-Want-inLife#ixzz1zUvpV3Aq Atkinson, Marilyn, Chois, Rae. (2007). Inner Dynamics of Coaching. Canada: Exalon Publishing.

Copyright 2006 International Coach Academy Pty. Ltd. Use is governed by the Terms and Conditions at http://www.icoachacademy.com Last updated Feb 2006