FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What is life coaching?
Life coaching is for individuals who want to succeed and bridge the gap between where they are and where they want to be in their personal, professional, spiritual and relational lives. Coaches help their clients design the life they want, bring out their clients’ own brilliance and resources so that they can achieve excellence and create purposeful, extraordinary lives.
With a coach beside you, you will:
* Clarify your vision.
* Create and meet purposeful goals.
* Define specific action steps.
* Build accountability.
* Take sustainable action.
* Work through fears, obstacles and self-doubt.
* Develop a more balanced life.
Life coaching is the fastest growing profession in the world, with thousands of people regularly using a coach to develop themselves and turn their dreams into reality. It combines thinking and talking with concrete actions to move you forward, right now.
Click here to learn about Marcel's coaching specialties.
Is life coaching a form of counseling or psychotherapy?
No. Psychotherapy generally deals with emotional/behavioral problems and disruptive situations – and seeks to bring the client to normal function by focusing on his dysfunction.
Coaching deals with functional persons who want to move toward higher function in order to quickly reach goals, remove obstacles and achieve excellence in their lives.
Dialogue between a therapy client and a coaching client differs in this manner:
THERAPY CLIENT: "I just don't know what is the matter with me--I'm so depressed."
COACHING CLIENT: "I'm not sure where to go next; I want to have more time with my family, but I'm just not sure how to make it work and keep this job."
Does life coaching involve any religion?
Unless you specifically requested life coaching sessions to support your religious or spiritual beliefs, then, no. However, Marcel Schwantes does offer spiritual life coaching if you’re looking for guidance and direction with your spirituality and faith. Visit the bio page to learn more about Marcel's spirituality and faith life.
Who is a typical client?
Any individual seeking to explore their innermost desires, and experience life-changing breakthroughs. Clients come from all walks of life: CEOs, entrepreneurs, IT professionals, teachers, real estate agents, actors, musicians, stay-at-home moms, college students, pastors and church members.
What makes a life coach so valuable?
Life coaches are valuable to the change process because they have training in facilitating change. Life coaches follow a process that brings immediate improvements in your life while building the foundation needed to more easily implement future improvements.
While you could just ask advice from a more successful or better-adjusted friend, a life coach who has never met you before can give you an entirely new perspective to examine your life with. And because many of the coaches were on the receiving end of life coaching in the past themselves, they make excellent guides along the road to change.
Simple. After we agree to work together, we will meet weekly by phone (unless you live locally). Sessions take up to 50 minutes. See the packages page to choose one that works for you.
Typically, an initial free assessment will be taken of your personal strengths, interests, values and the goals you want to achieve. This is used as a "road map" that will help you identify and clarify the future and life you really want.
In each meeting, the client chooses the focus of conversation, while the coach listens and contributes observations and questions. This interaction creates clarity and moves the client into action. Coaching accelerates the client's progress by providing greater focus and awareness of choice. Coaching concentrates on where clients are now and what they are willing to do to get where they want to be in the future.
Results are a matter of the client's intentions, choices and actions, supported by the coach's efforts and application of the coaching process. As you and your coach dialogue together, the coach will continue to facilitate a framework to help you create new possibilities, support your ideas and overcome obstacles.
What's the length of a coaching term?
Most clients prefer to spend between 3-6 months in the coaching process because change takes time. Clients in long-tern coaching agreements naturally experience far greater clarity, breakthroughs and achieve more results. Marcel's packages are designed to offer a good value to enable this process to happen for clients. Click here to see which packages best fits your needs.
What are your qualifications to coach me or my organization?
Marcel has fifteen years experience in the areas of personal, career, leadership and organizational coaching.
Marcel
has a Masters Degree in Organizational Psychology and is a graduate of the Institute for Life Coach Training, an accredited training program by the International Coach Federation. He is also a Certified PeopleMap™ Trainer, currently training companies and organizations of all sizes.
What if I decide not to finish it, can I get a refund?
Yes. We'll both know if you're not getting value for coaching. You'll get a full refund for any unused portion of a monthly package.
What are some of the benefits of coaching?
1. It helps clients take new action in their lives.
2. It helps clients generate incredible results consistent with the life they want to live.
3. It helps clients develop self-awareness and emotional intelligence.
4. It gives clients a greater clarity of their mission, values and purpose.
5. It helps clients evaluate where they are from a "whole life" perspective--career, health, finances, relationship, spirituality, personal growth, leisure, family, education.
What are your fees?
Marcel works to tailor each package to the individual's needs and financial situation. In general, fees will be anywhere between $89.00 for an individual session up to $300.00 for multiple monthly sessions. Long term monthly retainers (3-6 months) work the best because they are discounted heavily, sometimes up to $135.00 from the standard rate. See the packages page for one that best fits your needs. Since Marcel is flexible and looks at every individual on a case-by-case basis, just call him if you're serious, and he will work with you!
I'm not sure life coaching is for me. Do you offer free sessions so I can try it out?
Absolutely! Contact Marcel with possible days and hours that work with your schedule (include your time zone). Marcel will set up a complimentary 30-45 minute introductory phone consultation that will help you assess your situation and identify some steps to take.
You may also want to take advantage of free assessments Marcel offers to help you determine if you need life coaching. Click here for more and check back for new assessments.
I'm ready to go now. How do I get started?
Click here to choose the right package for you. Once you decide, contact Marcel to discuss fees. After that, you'll be sent a secure PayPal transaction link for payment (optional, as you can also pay with a check by mail), then you'll receive your Welcome Packet by email.