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Potential Coach: Ultimate Guide for Success [2024 Edition]

What does a potential coach do?

A potential coach helps clients to set goals and upgrade their body, mind and life. This helps the clients realize their potential.

How will you know if you have it in you to become a potential coach?

Well, let me ask you a few questions.

  • Do you feel inspired to coach others in becoming the best version of themselves?
  • Do you feel accomplished when your clients report that they are happier in life?
  • Do you see coaching as a rainbow that touches all aspects of a client’s life, both personal and professional?

Have you answered “yes” to the questions above?

Congratulations! You may have the aptitude to become a potential coach!

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According to Wikipedia, “human potential is the capacity for humans to improve themselves, to reach the limit of their ability to develop aptitudes and skills.” They can improve themselves through studying, training, and practice.

How do you unlock human potential?

An interesting definition shared in a Deloitte report answers this.

“Unlocking potential is a process of unlearning and learning. The interplay between Roots and Shoots and the focus of the practices themselves help us unlearn mental models.” People unlearn habits and overcome beliefs that are no longer useful. Instead, they learn skills and capabilities that are relevant to their future lives.

A potential coach helps a client to navigate through this journey of self discovery and growth.

What happens when a person unlocks his fullest potential?

He is living his true life’s purpose!

Such an existence sounds magical, does it not?

What is the magic pill that potential coaches prescribe for this magical existence?

Well, it is simple.

Potential coaches believe that one can move towards a wholesome life. To do this, they need to adopt the following four pillars.

  • A healthy lifestyle
  • Nutrition
  • Exercise and sleep
  • Mindfulness

This sounds too good to be true and easy, does it not?

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What Does A Potential Coach Do?

You may have several questions about potential coaching. Well, you have come to the right place!

In this article we will study the following elements:

  • What happens when a person unlocks his/her full potential?
  • How can a potential coach help clients achieve their goals?
  • How does one upgrade the body and mind?
  • What aspects of life can one change?

Why is it so important that people go through this process of unlearning and re-learning? In this context, it is important to study how a potential coach can help a client’s personal growth.

This article talks about the co-relation between personal growth and unlocking human potential.

Financial, social or external success cannot measure personal development. Instead focus efforts on developing one’s intellectual, physical and spiritual aspects. This in turn motivates human beings to reach the full human potential.

Personal Growth and the Human Potential Movement

Personal development is the process of striving to be the best that you can be. This will help you reach and realize your full potential. It is a journey of self-discovery, self-improvement and self-realization.

The emphasis on personal development began to gain popularity in the 1960s. This happened through the Human Potential Movement. This movement had its roots in existentialism and humanistic psychology.

It advocated that human beings can experience an exceptional quality of life. Such a life is full of happiness, creativity and fulfillment. This happens when they aspire to reach their potential.

Abraham Maslow, a humanistic psychologist, was the main force behind this. He established that self-actualization is the highest expression of a human’s life. The term meant the fulfillment of self through reaching one’s potential.

Those who are self-actualized also have an appreciation for what life has to offer. They experience deep concern for others. They are able to enjoy close, meaningful, personal relationships.

He advocated a list of behaviors that he felt lead to self-actualization. It is important to know the basic of this as it will form the basis of what you can offer your client.

According to Maslow, the behaviors that such people indicated were:

  • Curious: Maintained the curiosity, attention and wonder of child
  • Open-minded: Ready to try new things
  • Honest and self confident: Willing to risk unpopularity
  • Intelligent and hard working: Ready to complete tasks
  • Self-exploratory: Ready to discover who you are, what you want and what’s important to you
  • Brave: Not afraid to open yourself up to new experiences
  • Take responsibility: For your life and your actions

Humanistic psychology emphasizes the importance of attending to and developing the “whole” person. It encompasses those aspects that make us human. These include the physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual.

But, in today’s materialistic world, it is easy to forget the essence of what brings happiness. In today’s world instant gratification is the norm. So working towards this process of self actualization is a lot tougher. This is where a potential coach can have a huge role to play.

Potential Coach: Ultimate Guide for Success [2024 Edition] potential coach
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Potential Coach: Impact

The range of a potential coach extends across every sphere of an individual’s life. Of course there is the personal and professional life. But it also touches upon better physical and emotional well being of the clients.

The noticeable changes that you can ask your clients to look out for are:

  • Increased energy
  • Noticeable change in physical and mental health: Losing weight, gaining muscle, staying happy
  • Better relationships
  • Higher emotional intelligence, clear thoughts and better productivity

Potential Coach for Work Life Balance

What happens when employees engage fully and give their best at work?

According to a Gallup poll result, more than 70% of American workers are not engaged at work. The number of disengaged workers in the world is at 85%.

This is a huge drain on resources for a company from a human talent and finance perspective.

An article in Inc.com studied the way in which one can unlock the potential of employees at the workplace. The author spoke to five experts in human behavior and organizational performance. And came up with the following formula to unlock the potential in people at the workplace. Read the whole article for details.

I have taken the main points from the interview. But I have added my thoughts around each. This will help you as a potential coach when you get hired by a large organization.

Focus on purpose

Lack of communication and inability to let values translate into reality is a problem in many companies today. However, the way to break this vicious cycle is to build an environment that fosters innovation. And how is that established? By allowing three things, says American management expert Gary Hamel. Hamel. “Initiative, so that people see ideas and problems and take responsibility. Creativity, so people use their innate imagination to solve problems. And passion, so that they are bringing all their energy and all of themselves to their work.”

Build on focus

Speaker and Coach Tessa Todd Morgan explained this concept: “It is very hard to stay focused these days with all of the distractions in the world. Studies have shown that, on average, we typically work as few as 3 minutes before we get interrupted and it takes more than 20 minutes to get back to the task at hand.” This really resonated with me. I have earlier written a blog on mindfulness so I understand the power that meditation can have on people’s minds. It is also a practice that you can use during your session as a potential coach.

Get in the flow

Human performance expert Jamie Wheal explained what this means. “Flow is the peak performance state where you feel your best and you perform your best.” Why does this matter? “Humans have an innate desire to learn, grow explore and develop. Being fully conscious of and understanding your reasons for being and doing – these contribute to the ‘flow’ of an individual. With flow, there’s a chance of optimizing human potential.”

Have faith in the power of hope

Coach Libby Gill said that the value of purpose is its ability to inspire hope and belief. When the organization exudes a strong faith in its employees, it trickles down to each individual. Each person then plays an important role in achieving a single purpose. This belief, or hope, drives each individual to do their best work.

Align purpose, values and actions

“Purpose helps companies align values and actions when making big decisions,” says Bertice Berry, an American sociologist, author, lecturer, and educator. “What you value is where you put your resources. How you live out your values determines whether you really are the person or organization you claim to be. When purpose, values and actions don’t align, you’re either lying to yourself about what your values are or you have forgotten your purpose.”

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Unlocking human potential is all about aligning purpose, values and habits in a way that creates engagement with the purpose. It’s about helping people see the important role they play in achieving purpose and gives them hope that their work makes a difference in the world.

That is a powerful way to explain the way human potential works, is it not?

Potential Coach versus Life Coach

Is a potential coach the same as a life coach? No, not really. Although there are several points at which the two coaching niches may align.

Let us first look at what life coaching is.

Life Coaching

A life coach helps a client identify goals and develop an actionable plan to achieve them. This can be in any aspect of their life.

In my earlier blog I have referred to life coaches as catalysts. This is because life coaches help clients get “unstuck” from whatever circumstance is worrying them. Life coaches can help a person move towards a fulfilling life. They do this by:

  • Helping clients discover their true life purpose
  • Being a strategist or motivator
  • Keeping clients accountable
  • Helping clients create and maintain meaningful relationships

You may read this blog How To Become A Life Coach: All About The Life Coaching Business for more details.

I have written about life coaches in several of my blogs. You may find some helpful pointers here and here. This blog on life coaching niches may also be of help to you.

Potential Coach

Now let us study who a potential coach is.

By the way, there are several names that potential coaches have coined. Some call themselves the “high-performance” coach. There is also a bullet proof coach!

The reason for this is that coaching is still an unregulated industry and anyone can claim to be a coach.

What are the main areas that potential coaches look at?

There are some broad categories that a potential coach will look at. These include health and nutrition, increased energy and productivity and alignment of goals with values. Health has a large role to play when it comes to unlocking a human being’s full potential. And this means both physical and mental wellness. A potential coach will advise clients on how to make lifestyle changes to rewire the brain towards a better outcome.

Sleep, exercise and nutrition are key factors in this process towards having a healthy body.

A potential coach knows that the health and happiness of a client will have a direct impact on her/his productivity. Increased energy and happy hormones will lead to increased performance, better engagement at work. And this has a direct impact on the company baseline, does it not?

As a potential coach, you are not limited to the range of impact unlike say an executive, spiritual or success coach. This means that your coaching will have a direct impact on a person’s personal and professional life.

Are you ready to become a potential coach and guide people towards increased energy, performance, productivity and happiness?

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Keep Updating Yourself as Potential Coach

Are you familiar with the latest research in your niche? Do you know how you can harness technology to boost your career as a potential coach?

Perhaps you are worried about staying relevant and winning clients? Or you want to expand your coaching business or find a new niche. Will it be challenging to get noticed and advertise your services?

Are you looking for formal training from an ICF-accredited institute? In that case, you may also want to read my blog How to Select the Best Coaching Training Program in 2021.

Are you just beginning your coaching practice? Then here is an article to help jumpstart your career. You may also check out my blogs here and here that will work as a great resource for online coaching.

Even the best of us need refresher courses to stay updated!

A collection of books. A little time. A lot of learning.
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Books for a Potential Coach

There are several books written on coaching that you may find helpful.

Some of them listed on GoodReads are listed below. I have not picked up the exhausted list. So do go through the link for a full list.

  • Coaching for Performance: GROWing Human Potential and Purpose – the Principles and Practice of Coaching and Leadership (People Skills for Professionals) by John Whitmore
  • Unlocking Potential: 7 Coaching Skills That Transform Individuals, Teams, and Organizations by Michael Simpson
  • Empath: An Empowering Book for the Highly Sensitive Person on Utilizing Your Unique Ability and Maximizing Your Human Potential (Positive Psychology Coaching Series 12) by Ian Tuhovsky
  • Unlock Your Full Potential with Limitless Growth by John M. Hawkins
  • Christian Coaching: Helping Others Turn Potential into Reality by Gary R. Collins
  • Leadership: Essential Skills to Motivate and Influence People Around You – Maximize Your Leadership Potential by Anthony Jordan
  • Unlock Your Potential: Coach Yourself to a Life You Love, and Discover the Secrets of Success in Career and Relationships by Liz Wilde
  • Coaching Your Kids to Be Leaders: The Keys to Unlocking Their Potential by Pat Williams, John Wooden
  • Coaching for Emotional Intelligence: The Secret to Developing the Star Potential in Your Employees by Bob Wall
  • The Seven Secrets of Successful Coaches: How to Unlock and Unleash Your Team’s Full Potential by Jeff Janssen, Winning The Mental Game (Editor), Gregory A. Dale
  • Evolutionary Coaching: A Values-Based Approach to Unleashing Human Potential by Richard Barrett
  • Unlock Your Personal Potential: A Self-Coaching Workbook by Richard R. Bisiker
  • Leadership Development: If Steve Jobs was Coaching You: Charismatic Leadership Lessons Borrowed from Steve Jobs for High Potential People and Leaders. (The Leadership Series Book 1) by Life Hacks Books
  • Creative Coaching: New Ways to Maximize Athlete and Team Potential in All Sports by Jerry Lynch
  • Pulling Together: A Coach’s Journey to Uncover the Mindset of True Potential by Jason Dorland, Michael Gervais (Foreword)
  • Imagine Potential: Imagining Your Possibilities and Reaching Your Full Potential, a Life Coaching Guide to Success by T. Denise Manning
  • From Stuckness to Growth: Executive Coaching. Unlock you Leadership Potential with the Enneagram and Adizes PAEI roles by Yechezkel Madanes, Ruth Madanes, Ichak Kalderon Adizes (Goodreads Author)
  • Coaching: Unlocking Performance Potential With Habits, Triggers, And Mindset by Daniel White
  • Life Coaching for Writers: An Essential Guide to Realizing your Creative Potential by Sarah-Beth Watkins
  • Stretched! Unleash your team’s potential by coaching the « rubber band » way! by Anna Tan

Another list is available here.

Some common life coaching books are listed here.

Podcasts and Videos for a Potential Coach

There are several YouTube videos and podcasts relevant for you as a potential coach.

One podcast that I enjoyed is here. Another one is here. Yet another is here.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Who is a Potential Coach?

A potential coach is an individual who works with clients to maximize their potential and improve their productivity and performance levels by leaps and bounds.

What does a Potential Coach do?

A potential coach maximizes the productivity of his/her clients by working on their strengths. Such a coach helps clients to overcome any limiting beliefs and unlearn habits that are sabotaging their success.

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