FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
WHAT IS COACHING?
In coaching, you as the client identify the focus and the goals, and we partner in a thought-provoking and creative process to help you achieve your outcomes. My role as the coach is help you clarify your goals; encourage self-discovery, elicit solutions and strategies; and hold you responsible and accountable for implementing your plan.
HOW IS COACHING DIFFERENT FROM COUNSELING OR CONSULTING?
Coaching focuses on certain goals and looks forward with the goal of self-improvement. In a coaching relationship, the coach and the client are equals. As your coach, I believe you are whole and resourceful and do not need “fixing.” I am here to help you clarify your goals and take action to achieve them.
Counseling focuses on certain problems and often looks backward to understand how the past influences the present. In a counseling relationship, the counselor and client are not equals in that the counselor is expected to be a resource for the client, offering treatment and advice. Counselors offer their patients strategies and sometimes medication to cope. Coaches are not qualified to diagnosis or treat any medical conditions.
Consulting focuses on a specific objective, typically business-related. In a consulting relationship, the consultant and client are not equals in that the consultant has subject matter expertise that the client wants to tap. Consultants identify a client’s problems and offer solutions, which the client is expected to implement. As a coach, I do not give advice but rather help you develop your resourcefulness.
Here is an example of the differences between the three. Let’s say you’re dissatisfied with your job. Coaching would be appropriate if you want to develop a game plan for figuring out your next career move and how to best approach it. Counseling would be appropriate if you want to figure out why you’re drawn to toxic work environments and have never had a job you’ve enjoyed. Consulting would be appropriate if you want a resume overhaul and advice on how to interview.
WHAT HAPPENS IN A COACHING SESSION?
Each coaching session is generally 45 minutes long. We will spend the first 5 minutes celebrating the progress you’ve made since our last session and identifying the focus for the current session. The bulk of our time together will be you talking through the issue you brought to the session and formulating an action plan with me asking clarifying questions along the way. We will end our time recapping the key take-aways from the session, reviewing the action items, and agreeing when to meet next.
YOU SAY YOU’RE CERTIFIED. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?
I’m certified as an Executive Coach by completing my coach training program, Knowledge Based Coaching in the Workplace. The program included 175 training hours. I’m certified as an Professional Certified Coach (PCC) through ICF, the International Coaching Federation. To obtain PCC level ICF certification requires a minimum of 500 coaching hours, passing the Coach Knowledge Assessment, and submitting and passing a recorded coaching conversation.
WHAT DOES “KPM” STAND FOR?
My initials. I am blessed with a Finnish name, Kirstin Pesola, and my husband’s Scottish last name, McEachern, which very few people can correctly spell or pronounce (KUR-stin PES-uh-luh Mc-ECK-ren).
WHY THE HUMMINGBIRD LOGO?
My father’s mother used to hum all the time, so I’ve always associated hummingbirds with her, and this association is what prompted me to have a hummingbird tattooed on my foot (ah, college!). However, a tattoo does not a logo make! I have since learned many fun facts about hummingbirds that are appropriate to my coaching business. For starters, hummingbirds symbolize joy, freedom, healing, and good luck. They also have the proportionally largest brains of any other bird (4.2% of its body weight…compared to 2% for humans). For some saucy hummingbird education, check out this video!