We are a layer of complexity. What people see and are aware of are our external behaviours. But actually, our behaviours are the results of a complex process about how we interpret the world.

We filter the world through mostly our beliefs, values and assumptions.

Assumptions are what we think the pre-requisites for something are. Beliefs are what we hold as being true, whether it is or not. Values are what is important to us.

Every piece of information we receive is analysed through these and an output, in term of a behaviour, is created.

The problem is that we are mostly unaware of our beliefs, values and assumptions. They are so ingrained that we lose sight of them. The second problem is that they can be wrong or unhelpful.

For instance, if you believe you are not a technical person, this will prevent you using effectively anything technical because you set yourself to fail with this belief.

The topic you bring to coaching is likely to have been driven by some of your values or beliefs and assumptions. When this is identified, it is important to identify these values, beliefs and assumptions. You will discover that most of them are not really yours: beliefs and values have mostly been given to you by your cultural environment. Then, ask yourself how they help you. Again you will discover that some are unhelpful, even plain wrong. If they do not help you, your coach will help you finding strategies to change these values and beliefs into more helpful ones, that will drive you towards your goal instead of hampering you achieving it.

This can be a difficult experience. After all, getting rid of what you had thought was true is not easy. Discovering that values you have taken as important are actually unhelpful is unsettling. But this is what coaching can help with: removing your self-created blockages.