Are you a highly sensitive person? Have you wondered if you should become a coach? If so, then here are some things to consider...
According to Elaine N. Aron, who wrote the book, The Highly Sensitive Person, traits might include:
- Being easily overwhelmed by loud noises, bright lights, etc.
- Being attracted to subtle flavors, sounds, sights, and more.
- Needing to protect your energy from angry people, violence, coarse language.
- Preferring solitude, quiet, natural settings, comfort.
- Being introverted or shy.
- Being overwhelmed or stressed by too much busy-ness, pressure, or complexity.
- Being self-reflective with a rich inner world.
Looking beyond Aron's writing, multiple qualities or states might correlate with being highly sensitive, such as:
- High intelligence.
- A high level of empathy.
- Highly creative.
- Highly intuitive.
- ADHD.
- Depression or anxiety.
- A tendency to develop chronic illnesses, such as auto-immune disorders, and allergies.
According to the journal, Intelligence, highly intelligent people take in more information, which enables them to do well in life, but may also lead to more physical and mental disorders. In other words, it's a gift as well as a curse, which may allow you to notice far more, but may also lead to mood disorders or chronic health problems.
If this is you, even if you don't possess all the above features, this probably feels familiar.
So should you, as a highly sensitive person, become a coach? In the past, highly sensitive people sometimes joined cloistered religious orders, or became hermits, to avoid the onslaughts of life. Or they might have buried themselves in rewarding work, or became artists, or psychotherapists.
In today's world, coaching is an ideal profession for the highly sensitive person. Intelligence, empathy, and intuition are vital tools for the coach. Treating clients with respect and sensitivity is necessary to developing trust. Being curious and simply noticing more are wonderful tools for coaching. Working from home allows highly sensitive and introverted coaches to shelter themselves from unnecessary intrusion, while still being able to use our sensitive gifts to help others.
Plus, coaching is one of the few professions that requires you to take great care of yourself, because you can't be a great coach when your own needs aren't well met.
So if you are a highly sensitive person, you may want to think seriously about becoming a coach. It could be perfect for you. To find out more, download the free Become a Coach eBook, below. It will help you understand the opportunities and challenges of becoming a coach. School of Coaching Mastery can help you become a coach with this course.
