Be more Flamingo!

Did you know…

  that a flamingo only becomes its colourful flamboyant self when it is well nourished with the food it needs? Before that, is a paler, greyer version of itself?

Still cute but definitely paler.

I chose the flamingo as my logo for the coaching business not just because people kept buying me flamingo based gifts (!) but also because it felt like a great analogy for the human condition and the changes we hope to bring about through coaching – nourishing all aspects of our being.

Sometimes we all feel as if we are paler, greyer versions of ourselves and that is often a sign of a life out of balance. In this complex life, we juggle competing priorities, concerns and decisions, sometimes losing ourselves, our dreams and hopes in the process. If you are like me, you will have sometimes felt as if your thoughts, concerns or ideas are like clothes that are all tangled up in a tumble dryer with only the occasional stray sleeve to give you a clue as to how to unravel them.

Perhaps we are not feeling nourished physically, mentally, spiritually or emotionally. We can feel a bit like a grey flamingo when we are:

·      Overwhelmed with tasks at work or at home

·      Feeling like there is something missing from our lives but not sure what

·      Wanting to make some changes in our personal or professional lives but not sure where to start

·      Feeling like we should be catching up but not sure what with!

·      Feeling like an imposter with self doubt holding us back

·      Feel as if we have more to offer but nobody seems to notice

Sometimes we just feel ‘stuck’ and are unsure how to move forward. Other times, we feel we are being held back in life or work but cannot see how to break down those barriers.

Sometimes the person holding you back is YOU!

I have felt all of the above at some point over the last few years – although I occasionally shone ‘pink’, I often felt like a pale flamingo! That is...until I started to take notice and take some action.

As someone who left schooI with low expectations of what I could achieve, I always seemed to be doing things a decade after everyone one else! I always felt I was catching up with something but never sure quite what that ‘something’ was. Through trial and error I worked my way towards a variety of professions in health care that enthralled me, building up my qualifications professionally and academically. Yet, despite my achievements I always wondered when I was going to be ‘found out’.

Although imposter syndrome still rears its head from time to time, my experience of coaching both as a coach and a coachee has helped me understand my strengths, remind myself of what and who I hold important and what value I can add. Choosing courage to make changes assisted by supportive coaching conversations has helped me find my way through a maze of uncertainty and now I’m living a life that works for me with balance, a lot of joy and strategies for managing the various grenades that are inevitably part of life’s rich tapestry.

We are all experts in our own lives but in this complex and uncertain world, sometimes we all need support to release the inner resources and answers we already have within us but just need the headspace and a thinking partner to unlock that.

Life is not a rehearsal so why not live it in the most meaningful way for you?

As a coach, I support people to be brave with their life. That might mean choosing courage over comfort or challenging doubts and insecurities. Mainly though, it is a space for me to support people just like me (reason for choosing the business name!) to reflect, explore, dream and plan in actionable steps to make changes that are right for them taking them closer to the life they want to live.

This year, in each newsletter, I’m going to be sharing self coaching tips that I’ve found helpful myself to encourage you to reclaim some of your hopes and intentions whatever they may be. 

One of my favourite facts about flamingos is that the collective noun for a group of the birds is a flamboyance. How lovely is that?

Join me and lets work on being a flamboyance of flamingos together.

If you want to explore your potential for flamboyant brilliance in more depth then get in touch on flamingoplm2022@gmail.com