Photo of Michelle and Cadi

The following guest blog post was written by Cadi Lambert of Shine Life Coaching, introducing our ‘Conversations With’ discussion.   She joined me for a discussion about coaching, counselling and nature, including how we each got into our counselling / coaching professions.  And somehow along the way, I found myself agreeing to go wild swimming…

The nature of coaching

‘You need a niche.’ The internet had spoken. When researching how to make my new Shine Life Coaching business successful, other than the obvious element of actually being good at your job, having a niche seemed to be the next top tip. 

On many a dog walk or long run I pondered this. What was my niche? I wasn’t sure I had one. I was happy coaching people of all backgrounds, ages, genders etc, to a wide variety of life goals. Honestly, I didn’t want to pigeon hole myself to specialise in one area. 

As a coach I work with a person centred approach. This means I assume my clients have all the answers they need inside themself. My role is to ask the right questions and use the right tools and techniques to help these answers present themselves and become clear. So, I just needed to find the right answer inside myself. And actually it was staring me in the face all along. 

I spend a lot of my life outdoors; trail running, wild swimming, hiking and cycling. I do it for the challenge, for fitness but mainly I do it for my mental health. Because nature, the countryside and the great outdoors make me happy. They give me the time and space to process. Stunning views and little discoveries create in me a greater appreciation of life. Shared experiences; whether with friends or my trusty dog, give sparks of joy. Time in nature has helped me through the death of a partner and my Mum. At times when it was hard to dig through grief, great lungfuls of fresh air and vistas of mountains and sea, allowed space for emotions to ebb and flow. 

So there it was; my niche. Coaching in nature. Helping others to harness the power of their natural surroundings to create positive emotional resources. Yes, there are times when sitting in a quiet room is perfect for coaching. And Covid has taught us all that video can be a great way to communicate when we can’t be together. But we have also learnt to appreciate what is around us and the freedoms our local open spaces can give. I decided to develop something which introduced people to coaching whilst outdoors and the Light in Nature package was born. I also devised mindful walking and running sessions, which weave elements of coaching together with gaining a greater connection and understanding of your own body and surroundings. 

But no one’s niche is theirs alone and there is nothing more amazing than meeting others who share your passions. So, when I met Michelle from Counselling West Bridgford, it was only natural (see what I did there?!) that we would click. Michelle shared with me her own vision of taking counselling into nature. We began to discuss the similarities and differences between counselling and coaching and our journeys into creating our businesses. Great conversations but even greater shared again. Which is why we decided to have a chat on camera and share it with you all. If you’re interested in coaching, counselling, nature or just learning more about what brought us to where we are in our lives please do have a watch.

Watch the video here: