Working as a Health and Life Coach for career-driven women who are used to having everything ‘all figured out’, I regularly recognise the frustration that arises when things don’t go according to plan.
That’s why I developed my 9 Phase Arc that illustrates the typical journey from problem to solution. Adapted from my experiences and observations of supporting others through change, the framework can offer two important things:
- Guidance on how to make the changes you desire.
- Comfort in knowing that despite what you think, you’re on the right track!
If you’re wanting to achieve new goals in your work, life or health, the following 9 Phases will guide you through the changes you desire.
1: AWARENESS
This is where you recognise that something isn’t right. You experience red flags that have become increasingly hard to ignore, accompanied by a desire to feel better.
‘Red flags’ may include things like physical pain, health concerns, continuous low energy, emotional hardships, unfulfillment or a lack of motivation and inspiration for your life, work or relationships.
Any attempt at change are only hitting the symptoms or surface level issues. You may be in denial about what’s really going on, and feel attached to what you hope the solution will be.
2: CURIOSITY
You are now ready to consider new ideas and feel motivated to honestly look at what’s happening in your life. You are willing to be open-minded and search outside the box. You may already have an intuitive pull towards something you’ve been feeling or you are curious to explore.
A commitment to change may look like googling things, seeking out new source for information to read, watch or listen to, and start following new coaches or experts on social media.
3: KNOWLEDGE
You are set on learning and understanding, and experience a readiness to take action and further explore your new curiosities. You feel stable and confident within yourself to reach out for support or enter into new environments.
You may book appointments with doctors, therapists and coaches, try out new classes or social groups, invest in online courses or programs and start confiding in people outside of your usual circle of friends.
4: EXPERIMENTATION
You begin testing out new approaches and feel a desire and motivation for real change. You are ready to take the knowledge and new experiences you’ve gathered from phase 3 and bring them into your everyday lifestyle. You are being called to proudly claim what you’ve been testing out in secret.
In this phase you may start implementing new routines, communicating intentions and boundaries to others, invest in new supportive resources and/or start practicing the actions that you set with your coach.
5: DEEPENING
This is where you start to really refine and settle into your new routines, and feel excited by the prospect of the ‘new you’. You become a little more flexible in your approach and feel attached to ensuring your commitment to yourself remains strong.
You may start making your new habits more ‘your own’, experiment with variations and variety and find creative ways to incorporate your new goals when your schedule brings potential conflicts.
6: RELAPSE
This phase is inevitable, and can happen at any point but is more likely to arise when your commitments start to form into new routines. Relapse is when you fall back into more familiar habits as you experience challenges and frustrations.
Your behaviour may become unconscious and unintentional because you end up back in reaction mode; simply being pulled around and influenced by your environment.
7: RECOMMITMENT
Due to your relapse, the same bad or flat feelings return that you experienced before. However, unlike other times, you now recognise the pattern and get motivated to recommit to your goals and new routines, usually with a more long-term, realistic or gentle approach.
You feel wiser and start taking an open, honest look at what did and didn’t work in your previous approach. You recommit in a more aligned way.
8: AUTOMATION
Your routines have now become habitual and unconscious. You just do them without thinking and they have become part of who you are. Old ways of being feel like a thing of the past, and maybe you don’t really remember what used to hold you back.
You no longer stress or have to think about doing what feels good. Instead you go about your new routines rather automatically and are free to use your energy elsewhere.
9: EVOLUTION
You are now experiencing a totally new perspective of life. The ‘bar’ has been raised and you feel inspired to go even deeper into your new lifestyle, or expand your self-awareness into new areas.
This is the phase after a habit change, where you re-enter the arc for a new goal or shift, this time with new wisdom and awareness.
So these are the 9 Phases that I work through with my clients. If you’re in the process of trying to create a new habit, I’d love to know which phase you’re currently in!
And remember, nobody can do it alone. If you’re ready to jump-start your development and get the support that you require, I offer a range of coaching options for all kinds of goals.