The Lamp post Effect
I first heard this term from Michael Neill, well-known Coach and Author, who used this analogy to refer to the value of coaching.
He said that part of the value of coaching is in what he calls “the lamp post effect”. In other words, if you tell your hopes, dreams, and problems to a lamp post each week, the simple act of unburdening yourself and leaving your mind free and clear will lead to more inspired ideas and a better life.
So, let’s picture it:
Imagine you stop by a lamp post on your way home from work and just start talking to it to get something off your chest (let’s say that it’s evening and no one else can hear or see you!). After your talk, you feel a bit lighter and so you start doing the same thing every evening, letting go of the day’s problems and voicing the possibilities and options for the next day. The lamp post obviously doesn’t reply, but it remains calm and still, just being there for you, no judgement or criticism.
Imagine that, thanks to your habit of talking to this lamp post, you find that life is getting better. You feel less burdened and heavy, more optimistic. You’re even developing new ideas that just seem to occur to you during your talk.
Now, if a mere lamp post could have that effect, imagine what you could gain from talking with a qualified coach?
Some people think coaches are just for athletes and actors. Or they just don’t want to invest in their own wellbeing.
And some people know that they don’t need a coach, but they want one. They want to experience being coached and seeing the difference that it can make in their lives and in their personal and professional projects (language learning, leadership, communication etc.).
Which person are you?