What coaching is not: buzzwords & truth behind them

One of my early clients once said:

 "𝐼 𝑤𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑛𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟 𝑠𝑖𝑔𝑛𝑒𝑑 𝑢𝑝 𝑖𝑓 𝑖𝑡 𝑤𝑎𝑠 𝑠𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑜𝑛𝑒 𝑒𝑙𝑠𝑒. 𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝐼 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑒 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚, 𝑐𝑜𝑎𝑐ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑖𝑠... 𝑠𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑑𝑖𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡."

Oh yes, have I seen this "something different."

While I used to laugh at that, as I continued to learn, I discovered that some of the strange things I’ve seen on the internet actually exist in classical coaching too—though in specific contexts. Let’s take a closer look at some of them!

𝟏) 𝐄𝐟𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐒𝐮𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬

Reaching any height with no effort invested, just because you and the universe align perfectly. Sounds amazing, right? And with (some version of) String Theory indicating the possibility of 10^500 universes, aligning with the "right one" doesn’t sound entirely unrealistic.

𝐆𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐓𝐫𝐮𝐭𝐡: Success and effort indeed do not always correlate. Also, Some activities feel burdensome due to internal resistance. It’s possible to reduce this resistance or find new ways of working that require less energy. Then, things do become more effortless. 

𝟐) 𝐌𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐱𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐲

That idea "if you’re friends with five millionaires, you’ll be the sixth." Sounds great—but often, the challenge begins with finding those five millionaires in the first place. The choice of currency might change a lot, though.

𝐆𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐓𝐫𝐮𝐭𝐡: our environment does affect us. In coaching, we often explore who can help the client achieve their goals and who can be their support team. That said, the number one person in this team is always the client themselves.

𝟑) 𝐄𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐲 𝐑𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐬

These often involve elaborate steps and a long list of items you need to regularly buy from a specialized website. Or a 4 am ice plunge that was definitely designed and marketed to eliminate possible rivals. 

𝐆𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐓𝐫𝐮𝐭𝐡: Routines and rituals can be powerful tools when establishing new behaviors or bringing comfort into unfamiliar situations. However, they need to be relevant and aligned with the desired behavior.

𝟒) "𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐌𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐃𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐂𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐘𝐨𝐮?"

And other vague language about energies, awakening, and inner beings.

𝐆𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐓𝐫𝐮𝐭𝐡: Coaches often adopt the language their clients use. Some people genuinely benefit from exploring topics that may feel abstract or unfamiliar to others. As long as it serves the client’s goals, the coach adapts. However, this language typically originates with the client—not the coach.

Those were my top favorite ones. What other weird thing have you fished out from social nets?

Unicorn in an ice bath