Find a Counsellor in Totnes

I am a qualified Life Coach who helps people of all ages to live and grow more consciously and confidently. By working with me, you will not only improve your present but simultaneously impact your future. Are you asking yourself: What is life-coaching? You could describe it as a comprehensive and holistic process based on non-judgemental explorative conversations. But I think this neat, one sentence definition, is not instantly clear. For example the use of the word ‘conversation’ might make you imagine a rather passive or simple activity. from what follows, you will learn it is not. I want to share with you the two words I believe underpin life-coaching: courage and honesty. These words will become clearer as you continue reading. My clients would tell you that I full-heartedly support them, but that I do not do the 'discovery-work' for them. They, not I, are the ones actively finding their solutions. They, not I, are gaining the insights which help them to reach their chosen goals. And by completing their unique thinking-journeys, my clients take ownership and responsibilty of their new insights and opportunities. They feel motivated and inspired to continue developing and constructing their desired future and acknowledge that responsibilty, accountability and success lies with them, not with me, their life-coach. They would also share with you that they know not to expect to receive advice or instructions from me and that sometimes they experience challenging, life changing and emotional moments during their life-coaching conversations with me. Moments when, for example, their perspectives and also sometimes their intentions unexpectedly change. Moments when they have to acknowledge emotions that were holding them back; when whilst facing their fears, they feel almost shocked on suddenly gaining new strength and insights; when what they have been hiding from suddenly surfaced; or when past events appear not to have been fully processed and needed some more care, time and attention. My clients can also tell you that they feel guaranteed that during each conversation they not only give themselves an opportunity to learn, understand, change, create and grow - but also to feel they are increasingly deciding how they want to live their lives. By allowing themselves to invest in explorative thinking-time with me, they experience overall self-empowerment. Here is where I return to the word courage. To you who is reading my profile in search of professional support I say: you are brave. Even if you do not feel or think this of yourself right now: your act of searching is very much an act of courage, self-care, self-love, hope, self-respect and inner strength. To bring yourself to face and explore within and acknowledge that you want something to change, you want something different - that is when you have decided to start living with and in honesty to yourself. No more hiding or delaying: you are taking charge, you are giving yourself power. At the very start, the definition described coaching conversations as holistic and comprehensive. This simply means that the conversations may involve not only one area of your life, but also a combination of areas such as work, family, business, mental health, relationships, well-being, career, emotions, education, spirituality, communication and recreation. Regardless of your age, background, culture, education, socio-economic situation, religion – as your life coach, I can successfully support you to move forward when you feel stuck, insecure, fearful, or doubtful. In a safe and welcoming space, you will have time to freely explore where you are at, where it is you want to be and how to get there. Together we will find positively empowering forward-moving steps in the area/s of your life you feel challenged by. Be assured that I will support you with a genuine professional, empathic and intuitive approach that can empower you to manage and overcome challenging situations with increased belief, resilience and courage. And to put your mind at ease in case you think that my life, because I am a qualified life-coach, is all sorted or struggle-free: it is not. My life, like yours, has experienced ups and downs. And it still is. Divorce, grief and loss, living away from family, toxic and manipulative relationships, parenting stresses, Covid trauma triggers, insomnia, career challenges, managing my mental health, menopause and anxiety, yoyoing energy and confidence levels. The list is not complete, but alongside the challenging experiences is also another ongoing list of my positive, successful, joyful and encouraging experiences. Like you, I too face the choice of what to do with each day and with the time given to me. My four key values and intentions are: Honesty, Joy, Trust, Growth. My values guide how I want to live and be. As I get up each morning, my aim is to create a positive day and one that connects with my honesty to myself and those I am in contact with. Living with and in honesty increases my sense and experience of joy and trust in my life and this combination inspires me to keep growing. In all honesty, the reality is that challenges are part of life. It is therefore vital to equip yourself with tools to manage challenging moments and events and to allow yourself to grow from these. As I said earlier, it is an act of courage and self-care to acknowledge when you face times of feeling unable to take the next step and find support. As your coach, I will be that helping hand, the respectful challenging push, the actively listening ear, the encouraging thinking and conversation partner who motivates you to move forward at your pace. I am new on Bark.com, but my experience of working and interacting with children, teenagers, adults active in all kinds of careers, unable to work, and retired - spans over 15 years. This together with my professional training and life experiences create the foundation of my effective support. I love my work and I feel grateful and privileged to work with each one of my clients. It is humbling to be trusted to help improve people’s lives. My clients find me easy to talk to, calm, warm, welcoming and approachable. Feeling safe and supported is the key for my clients to be able to understand, release, heal and change themselves and so too their lives. Being part of my clients’ journeys is a daily joy in my work as a life-coach. And being trusted to witness someone discovering or reuniting with their natural, real, whole inner self is a precious gift. If you, or the person whom you are finding a coach for, are new to the life-enhancing power of coaching conversations, I want to comfort you by saying that you do not need to do anything ‘special’; nor do you need to prepare, or feel prepared for your coaching sessions. You also do not need to have a specific goal, target, or issue ready for discussion. Life fluctuates and meanders. Therefore, life's concerns, events, emotions and questions are not always clearly identifiable or singular. Hence, I will support you from the point you are at, at any given time. After each conversation, you can experience an increased sense of living, thinking and acting with more consciousness, clarity, intention and confidence. During your initial explorative consultation take time to reflect on whether you are ready to commit to your brave and honest intent to improve your situation, life and future. And ask me the questions that will help you to find out if I am the right coach for you because reaching positive outcomes will depend on our interaction. Today can be the day you start living your life feeling more ready for tomorrow. I can't wait to work with you:) Yvo PS Until we meet, I give you a thought which hugely improved my life many years ago: replace the verb ‘should’, with ‘could’ each time you say, hear or think 'should' and enjoy experiencing what follows. Look after yourself and those around you:)