Stop, Look and Listen: How to Get More Business Through Active Listening

Have you ever left a meeting and thought to yourself, "Oh, I should have said ____." Or, have you walked away from an encounter, scratching your head, wondering why it didn't go the way you wanted? How well do you listen? Why is it that "they" don't quite understand what you meant? Are they just not listening? Who is responsible for communication?

In this fun and informative session, you will learn:

• How to communicate (listen) more effectively
• What gets in the way of communication
• The answers to the above questions
• What you can do about it
• Things to practice

• Enroll more clients
• Achieve better results with your clients
• Enhance your relationships

In addition to coaching and speaking, members of the Pittsburgh Coaches Association conduct workshops and seminars and for several years have also conducted teleclasses on a regular basis. These teleclasses are now held monthly, and are an opportunity for Pittsburgh coaches to share some of their coaching knowledge and experience with participants, as well as their passion for helping others to move forward and reach new levels.

Teleclass topics range from sales and marketing to creating space, leadership, and finding your dreams, and can help people to make important changes and take steps to reach their potential.

This month we are featuring Chris Posti's teleclass: Finding a New Job FAST in a Tough Job Market on Feb. 18 at 4:00 p.m. If you are changing jobs or careers, whether voluntarily or involuntarily, you know it can be especially challenging during a recession. Join this teleclass to learn exactly how to get hired, fast, from Tribune-Review Careers Columnist, Executive Coach and Outplacement Counselor Chris Posti. There will be time to discuss your specific situation (if you wish to do so) if you email your resume and a description of your situation to Chris in advance.

Join us for a great learning experience with Pittsburgh coaches. Teleclasses take place throughout the day and are free to anyone who registers. Click here to register for one or all of the teleclasses. Registration takes just a few seconds and is FREE. A conference call number will be immediately sent to you via e-mail.

Suzanne Ferguson draws on a wealth of experience as a personal and business coach to empower and support her clients. Since 2001, she has coached business owners, employees and individuals in diverse professions as they pursue and reach their goals.

Regardless of where they work or what they do for a living, all of Suzanne's clients share one common attribute: They simply want "more" - more out of life and more out of business. Her pragmatic approach combines action with awareness, leading clients to powerful and measureable results.

Recognizing that one size does not fit all, Suzanne's approach is multi-faceted and highly personalized: "I view my role as a communication specialist, applying intuition and active listening to facilitate the coaching process. By building a partnership based on trust and integrity, I can support my clients as they open to their own innate wisdom, providing feedback that is both direct and caring."

Suzanne is a graduate of the Institute for Professional Empowerment Coaching, which is accredited by the International Coach Federation (the internationally recognized association of professional personal and business coaches). She has an Interdisciplinary Studies degree in Psychology, Sociology and Social Work.

A former social worker, Suzanne transitioned to coaching and training as she came to believe that the best "social work" begins with personal empowerment. She is proud of her accomplishments as a seminar and workshop facilitator, the owner of two home-based businesses and - especially - as the mother of two grown children.

After growing up in the Baltimore area, Suzanne has lived in rural West Virginia, upstate New York and a small town in central Pennsylvania. Each move presented additional adventures, meaningful relationships and the challenge of creating her "best life" in a new locale.

Since 2005, Suzanne has made Pittsburgh her home. She resides with her husband, Glenn, in an urban neighborhood where they volunteer for environmental and community planning projects. She also enjoys outdoor activities such as hiking, camping and gardening.

Suzanne is affiliated with the International Coach Association as well as the Pittsburgh Coaches Association. She is the past president (2007-08) of Three Rivers Rotary Club and is also active locally in the Monroeville Area Chamber of Commerce, The Small Business Network and Network of Excellence.

Please contact Suzanne Ferguson about coaching and training to fit your specific needs. Call 412-727-7299 or e-mail: sferguson@suzanneferguson.com.

Enough

By Sharon Eakes

"There comes a point where having more than we need becomes a burden."
        Lynne Twist

In de-cluttering my office this week, I realized that all the stuff I have saved - because I might need it one day - crowds both my office and my head.

Many of us are living a paradox. We feel as if we have too little time, too little energy, too little money, not enough love, sex, beauty or creativity, and diminishing amounts of clean air and water in our lives. And yet we have too many clothes, too many toys and gadgets and knickknacks, too much food, too much stuff. Is there a connection between this scarcity on the one hand and excess on the other?

I was deeply touched when I heard Lynne Twist (The Soul of Money) speak recently. She thinks that a primary driver today is a prevailing belief in scarcity. She was mentored by the great futurist and humanist, R. Buckminster Fuller, who taught an amazing and not-yet-believed truth. At this point in human evolution, he said in 1976, we can choose to move from a you-or-me world - a world where either you win or I win - to a you-and-me world, where all of us have enough food, enough water, enough land, enough housing and enough of the fundamental things for each one of us to live a fulfilling and productive life. How thrilling that there really IS enough! Bucky, as he was called, also predicted that it would take us 50 -100 years to make the required shift in the way we think and relate to ourselves and the world to grasp this truth.

Twist calls the idea of enough "exquisite," because our needs are met precisely. She says,

"When you let go of trying to get more of what you don't really need, it frees up oceans of energy to make a difference with what you have. And when you make a difference with what you have, it expands."

The truth is that most of us don't know much about "enough." We don't know when we've had enough to eat, or drink, when we've worked enough bought enough clothes or toys. We always seem to want more. And wanting more keeps us from enjoying what we have.

According to Lynne Twist, when we let go of trying to get more, we recognize that our needs are always met in miraculous ways. I was thrown back in memory to all the times as a young mother when I lost sleep because I didn't know how we'd pay the bills or eat. Yet - and it is miraculous - somehow we always DID pay the bills and eat.

Twist offered several ways to practice sufficiency. I pass them on with a few of my own as the coaching tips this month.

Coaching Tips

1. Declutter your life - once a week for one hour.

2. Realize that everything you bring into your life requires care and feeding. Think of this when you contemplate buying something new.

3. Practice appreciation.
    a. Shift any conversation turned to scarcity to sufficiency.
    b. Tell someone three things you appreciate about him/her.
    c. Tell the clerk at the post office and the grocery store that you appreciate them.

4. When you give gifts, give intangibles - quality time, for instance. Give a gift certificate for an overnight trip, three hours of gardening, or time spent doing something the recipient needs or loves.

5. Begin every meal with appreciation of where the food came from and pay attention to that moment when your body has had exactly enough.

6. Go through your check book and your credit card bills. Be more conscious of what you use, consume, spend. Contribute money to things you believe in, truly care about.

Duquesne University's School of Leadership and Professional Advancement has developed a new professional coach certification program. The program is designed for those seeking to become professional coaches within their organizations or as a private practice, as well as those who currently serve as coaches and seek certification or recertification. The program is also designed to benefit human resource and organizational development professionals seeking an enhanced skill set in coaching.

Offered through a combination of four weekends, teleconference and online coursework, the program is the only one in Pennsylvania affiliated with the International Coach Federation (ICF). Students have the opportunity to earn ACC or PCC certification (Associate Certified Coach and Professional Certified Coach) as defined by the ICF.

Professional coaching as a discipline is growing. In 1998, when the profession was in its infancy, the International Coaching Federation had fewer than 2,000 members. Now, a decade later its membership exceeds 15,000 coaches representing 92 countries. According to the ICF, "professional coaches provide an ongoing partnership designed to help clients produce fulfilling results in their personal and professional lives. Coaches help people improve their performances and enhance the quality of their lives."

The coaching profession is appealing to a broad range of individuals. "As a professional coach, you can specialize in an area of expertise such as executive coaching, nonprofit, small business, and many other areas," said Donna Billings, Professional Certified Coach (PCC) and director of the new program. "The profession is appealing to managers who want better skills in their current corporate positions and we're seeing a great number of retirees who, instead of actually retiring are rewiring their careers as professional coaches once they leave their primary career." Billings herself is a former Senior Manager of Training/Organizational Development for a Fortune 100 company who, after an early retirement, turned her experience and expertise into a professional coaching practice.

"I can't imagine a more satisfying career than helping people bring their dreams and vision to life," said Phil Sandahl, co-author of Co-Active Coaching: New skills for coaching people toward success in work and life. "It's the heart of coaching and the reason our profession continues to grow so remarkably. There was never a better time to make a difference in the lives of others."

Early response to the program has been favorable. "We've had interest from individuals who want to set up their own practice as well as senior managers who want to use coaching as a leadership development tool," said Dr. Dorothy Bassett, dean of the School of Leadership and Professional Advancement.

Applications for the session beginning on April 17 are now being accepted. A bachelor's degree is required. For additional details and application, please call the University at 412.396.5600; Donna Billings at 724.935.1397; or visit www.leadership.duq.edu/coach. Interested individuals are encouraged to apply early as space is limited.

Attend an informational meeting at Duquesne University on Saturday, February 21st from 10:00 - 11:30; or on Saturday, March 14th from 2:00 - 3:30 p.m. Call 412.396.5600 to register.

We invite experienced coaches, as well as those new to the profession, to join the Pittsburgh Coaches Association (PCA). This is an exciting time to be a member! We are a 501(c)6 professional organization, and an International Coach Federation (ICF) chapter.

Additional benefits for member coaches include networking opportunities with other professional coaches, a profile on PCA's 'Find a Coach' website directory, discounts for monthly luncheon meetings featuring interesting and relevant speakers, a forum to offer teleclasses on coaching-related topics of your choice, and special events to raise the profile of coaching within the community. There are many more benefits; please don't hesitate to become a part of one of Pittsburgh's best professional associations.

You can now register to become a member online at www.pittsburghcoaches.org. Join today.

We would love to hear from you! Just hit Reply to this newsletter with your ideas and feedback. Suggestions are very welcome, don't hesitate.

Not a Coach? Now you can join PCA as an Associate! We invite all professionals in the Pittsburgh area to join us. Are you interested in meeting coaches, supporting coaches but are not a coach? Join us now as an Associate Member of the Pittsburgh Coaches Association.