I started the coaching journey as a way of finding an efficient and effective way of supporting parents that have, had or are currently dealing with mental health challenges either directly or with one of their children.
The idea behind the initiative was to walk with them side by side through the challenges that life throws at us every day. I believe that we should learn to be open about our struggles with others.
It all started from a need that I couldn’t personally meet and therefore needed to create my own platform, both to help myself and others in similar scenarios. Together with an amazing partner, Greta Henrion, we founded Sunbeam For Life, a non-profit organisation that encourages an open and honest stream of communication between parents on mental health topics with a “parents talking to parents" approach and with a vision of launching an accessible, resourceful and hands-on platform to all parents.
Sunbeam is based on coaching and NLP techniques that facilitate open discussion. We design and organise talks led by specialists on specific difficult topics relevant for parents (anxiety, online safety, body image, dealing with adolescence, etc)
Following those talks, we work with parents in smaller groups where through the use of open questions, non-judgemental and active listening coupled with fun hands-on exercises we aim to empower them.
We strongly believe in the message that we should regularly look after our mental health the same way we look after our physical one and to normalize the bumps on the road and reassure the parents they are not alone.
Our mission is to deescalate the stigma attached to mental health.
1. Trust your instincts
It’s not always possible to have all the details but by listening to your intuition and your inner Coach, you might get there. Trusting your intuition is the ultimate act of trusting yourself.
Every good instinct has to be supported by a lot of dedicated work. Immerse yourself in the world around your idea. Listening to your intuition helps you avoid unhealthy relationships and situations.
2. Never stop learning
Never stop learning as you fight through everyday challenges, big and small because life never stops teaching. One of the best things about life is that there are always new skills to learn and techniques for us to adopt.
For us to live life fullest, we must continually look for ways to improve and when you stop learning you stop growing.
3. Enjoy the journey
Your destination will become clearer as you travel. If you love the path you are on, your passion motivates you to keep taking the next step. Be flexible and allow yourself to fail with a self-compassion and mindful spirit.
4. Your company matters
Surround yourself with positive people who believe and share your vision. We often pick up on their energy and this is also true the other way around meaning that they’ll pick on our energy.
One of the best ways to find happiness is to find those who know how to nurture and create their own happiness and share it freely. Spend time around these people and you’ll find yourself seeing the world differently.
5. Be open to new relationships
Be open to meet great people along the way. Both myself and Greta had the pleasure to meet Lorraine Thomas during the coaching within education training and immediately connected with her coaching style. She was an inspiration to us and for our workshops.
I will conclude by saying that I strongly believe that by keeping the conversation flowing, both with our children and with each other, we will be better equipped to tackle any challenges that might come our way.
Our motto is “ Sometimes just talking about it can make a difference” and by learning coaching skills as a parent it definitely made a difference in my life and my children’s one.
If you would like to know more about what Coaching is and how it can benefit you and the lives of others, or if you feel that Coaching could be a potential full or part-time opportunity for you, join us in this live training. Choose from available dates here.
The Coaching Academy was established in 1999, and is now the world's largest coaching school.
In that time we have trained over 14,000 people to become life coaches.
We are accredited by the International Coach Federation and the Association for Coaching, and we're rated 4.8 out of 5 on Trustpilot.
