International Coaching Week 2025 Session Summaries
Thank you for an incredible International Coaching Week! I’m grateful for my amazing collaborators and participants. Below are a few takeaways.
Get it Done! ADHD Accountability Session! with Amila de Saram-Larssen (pomodoro image)
It was motivating to join so many others on 30 minutes of focused work. Many of us found the timed group session to help overcome procrastination and perfectionism. We worked on presentations, updated resumes, compiled to-do lists, wrote, edited videos, organized notes, replied to emails, calendared, worked on goals, organized desks and other spaces, and more!
Activate Your Brain Team to Overcome Obstacles! (Brain Team bus image)
A group of us worked to identify our Brain Characters and discussed how to be aware of who was in control (see the Brain Team blog post for more information and reach out if you want the workbook). The key, we found, is knowing which one serves us and when. Participants found the exercise helpful for identifying that there are advantages to each of the characters. Recognizing our dominant characters allows us to also think about how to utilize the strengths of the others.
"I'm noticing for mine... that I really enjoy being in Character 3 and 4 energy like, it's 70% of my day, and when Character 1 and 2 shows up they usually show up in a way to like, hurry up so I can get back to where I was before... So character 1 and 2 protect my peace, protect my oneness. They allow me to be light and energetic in a world that's very, very heavy... I need character 1 and 2, so that I can maintain living 70% of my life in 3 and 4 energy."
Alter Your Inner Script, A Self-Hypnosis Journey With Lucy Seligman
I was the demo for this session and loved creating a script I could use for the future. I learned that I should repeat my I am phrase three times throughout the day. The grounding exercise made me calm and I’ve been practicing. Lucy and I are running another session on Wednesday, May 21 at 1 pm. Reserve your spot!
Career Group Coaching (Group of cartoon animals image)
We exchanged group coaching ideas, starting with a preferred future day exercise where we reflected on activities, relationships, and pursuits to uncover core values. These values can then be used in career conversations.
We clarified that team coaching serves individuals with shared goals who typically work together, while group coaching supports individuals pursuing personal development who may not interact outside sessions. We discussed the importance of clear agreements and offering multiple engagement options (video, audio, chat). Group coaching sessions are helpful for career transitions. It’s important to help normalize change, acknowledge identity shifts, and identify intentional approaches based on whether the transition is self-directed, where the individual can set the pace, or externally imposed.
Rewrite Your Story: Powerful Tools for Transforming Internal Narratives with Laura Reid (Caterpillar image)
We explored a story we tell ourselves, identified narrative components, used the 24 VIA Character Strengths to focus on strengths, and developed an inspiring phrase to replace negative narratives.
For example one participant started with the words enthusiasm, perspective, leadership, love, hope, forgiveness, developed the phrase, "Shifting my perspective has taught me that challenges are often opportunities in disguise waiting for me to grow" and then we condensed it to “Shifting perspective leads to opportunities”.
Another participant went from the words enthusiasm, curiosity, creativity, leadership, kindness, gratitude, humor, and forgiveness to “love yourself first, so you can love others better.” Some of the other phrases we created were "By loving to learn, I learned gratitude.", "I recognize that I don't also have to be the answer", "Beauty and learning in everything”, “Learn with passion. Lead with fairness. Live with integrity.”, “My curiosity can take me to places I long to go”, "I find beauty and learning in everything.”
Group coaching focused on normalizing challenges for those with ADHD (Stimulating vs fun image)
We discussed supporting those with ADHD, focusing on emotional regulation and time management. We emphasized understanding individual needs and recognizing body signals—finding what works best for sleep, hydration, nutrition, movement, and task timing. Accepting one's current state emerged as a crucial first step before attempting change. For time management, making tasks enjoyable and setting deadlines proved helpful, along with assistance in estimating time requirements. Practical tools like checklists, Pomodoros, dedicated workspaces, and accountability sessions can enhance focus. When tasks seem overwhelming, breaking them into smaller components often helps—if something isn't getting done, the first step might be too large. Above all, authenticity matters—what works varies greatly from person to person.
ICF San Francisco Bay Area Chapter Coaches' Coffee Lab on Pivoting with Richa Chadha (Coffee Lab image)
Many people are pivoting right now and it was fun to interview Richa about her PIVOT Framework. We talked a lot about our purpose, being able to pause to reflect on why we’re pivoting and then being intentional about how we pivot. Participants talked about being true to who you are, leveraging strengths, being flexible, and acknowledging the loss. It’s helpful to recognize that there may be grief as we deal with identity change.
I hope these summaries are helpful. Reach out if you want to talk about any of them!
