Integrating trauma-informed practices has become increasingly important in the ever-evolving field of coaching. As coaches, our goal is to facilitate growth, development, and transformation. However, without an understanding of trauma and its profound effects on individuals, we may inadvertently overlook crucial aspects of our client's experience.

It's common knowledge that reducing stress and living happier, joyful lives can improve health outcomes in a multitude of ways. This can be easier said than done however when we get bogged down in the responsibilities and stresses of life, and they all too easily dominate our time.

It's a delicate balance to care for others and to make sure one is caring for themselves at the same time. We think giving from the heart is commendable, however it gets tricky when a person's cup doesn't get refilled enough, and then they find themselves suffering from compassion fatigue.

Work-life balance can be tricky to maintain, particularly when we move into fall and get back into the swing of things after summer. Some of you may have children going back to school, and you are dealing with an empty nest, or maybe you are going back to school yourself!

Creating your niche involves conducting a competitor's analysis. This might be one of the most time-intensive things to do. However, it can be as complex or as simple as you like and easily tracked with a spreadsheet or online template.

In last month's newsletter, we discussed how to develop your coaching brand by focusing on your niche. Narrowing in on your niche seems to be one of the most difficult questions to answer for our coaches, so we thought it was important to expand on the topic this month.

As many of you know, Dr. Linda Bark likes to celebrate Interdependence Day on July 5th each year (one day after Independence Day in the United States). Interdependence Day is a day to celebrate connection, collaboration, and working together to form the whole.

The American Holistic Nurses Association's Lifetime Achievement Award is to given to celebrate the outstanding lifetime achievement in the field of holistic nursing. It is a way of saying Thank you for all the holistic nursing work accomplished through sustained participation in AHNA and in advancement of the specialty practice of holistic nursing.  The 2023 recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award is Linda Bark of Black Mountain, North Carolina.

In today's competitive coaching industry, it's crucial for coaches to develop a strong personal brand. One effective approach is to focus on a specific niche, allowing coaches to differentiate themselves from broader markets.

Imagine you're starting a business as a holistic coach, and you're standing at the foot of a mountain. This mountain represents your journey as an entrepreneur, and it's a symbol of the challenges and opportunities you'll encounter along the way. The most important step to start climbing this mountain is to choose your path wisely, taking small steps in the right direction.

Ruby Whalen has been a nurse for over 30 years, and throughout this time she has been a bedside nurse in pediatric cardiac intensive care, a Cath lab nurse manager, clinical research nurse and a nurse clinical in congenital heart disease. Throughout her career, Ruby has maintained a passion for nursing education and research and promoting health and wellbeing.

Our graduates often comment on how their new coaching skills improve their relationships, not only with their colleagues, but also with their friends and family. This comes as a welcome surprise; the unexpected applications of coaching are tremendously beneficial and far reaching. It has us wondering, what would the world be like if there was a Wisdom of the Whole coach in every family?

There are different forms of shared governance that can be applied in organizations, businesses, government, and healthcare. Dr. Linda Bark, our Founder and CEO was trained in one form of flat organizational structure called Sociocracy 25 years ago. She has used it during the last several years in her consulting work and with Wisdom of the Whole. Holocracy is a similar approach that empowers employees and sets up a circle governing system.

Unless you have been living under a rock, you have probably noticed how divided and polarized our society has become. Without even being dramatic, we believe this is one of the most pivotal points in human history that will determine the fate of humankind as we know it.

My career in nursing spans 20-plus years and includes roles in clinical practice, teaching, research, and nurse coaching. My bedside nursing practice has a strong foundation in the Emergency and Trauma setting. I credit this experience and a
significant amount of reflection on what changed my professional and personal trajectory, gravitating toward holistic nursing and the coaching profession.

Once fear sets in it can be all too easy to just get more and more afraid; this is part of the dynamic of fear. But how do we get out of fear once we are in it? Let’s explore choosing love over fear. Making this choice and raising your vibration can be a difficult task, however it’s imperative to consciously engage with your thoughts and actions and ask yourself some important coaching questions:

Brooke currently works as a health coach on a University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing study (funded by the National Institutes of Health), to test a virtual health coaching intervention. The study is designed to support heart failure caregivers and was recently expanded to include frontotemporal dementia caregivers to help improve their self-care.

For those of us that have taken our coach training, we know all too well how easy it is to forget and/or get out of the habit of deep listening…because deep listening really isn’t the norm in our society; it’s up to us to make it the norm.