The VIBE Coaching Model

A Coaching Model By Ivana Braam, Overseas Filipino Workers Coach, NETHERLANDS

VIBE – Verification, Impetus, Ballgame, and End Goal

Growing up in a culture where people judge and treat one another based on their status in life, looks or outer appearance, popularity, power, and other external factors is challenging. I have observed people, including myself, being excessively self-conscious about how to physically look and dress up, what life’s success looks like, and even what behaviors are appropriate or not. These are all being dictated and influenced by society. 

To always look for the validation and approval of others is exhausting. Over time, it has created a gap between who I am versus what other people want me to become. At the age of 21, I decided to leave my home country to be freed from this feeling but also in search of better opportunities abroad to be able to help my family financially. I managed to get a good-paying first job which was always my number one goal. I traveled and explored the world and lived in many different cities. Thus, I got exposed to many of my fellow citizens living and working overseas. Their love for family back home is the common denominator as they get any job that they can get to provide remittances to their family. Their positivity, patience, resilience, and industry continuously inspired me.

Many of these overseas Filipino workers, despite their impeccable work principles and ethics, end up in blue-collar jobs. While they have some levels of dissatisfaction towards it, they continue working as they bargain with themselves. Common responses from them include: “This is better than not having a job” or “I just need to be patient so I can send money back home. In the Philippines, I cannot get this salary.” Meanwhile, for those overseas Filipino workers working corporate, a common challenge is finding it hard to get promoted. Moreover, for those who are ambitious and want to get higher ranks in the corporate ladder, getting opportunities in leadership roles is close to impossible.

As such, as a life & career coach focused on overseas Filipino workers, my vision is to see fellow overseas Filipino workers be successful in their careers – however, they define success – wherever they are in the world. I have created this VIBE coaching model, named after my coaching practice, VIBE Coaching and Consulting, to allow every overseas Filipino worker to be where they want to be by identifying and embracing who they truly are while intentionally planning, acting, and following through based on their heart’s desires.

The VIBE Coaching Model

The VIBE Coaching Model is a coaching model focusing on appreciative inquiry and positive psychology principles. Through the VIBE coaching model, one will be empowered to think of their strengths rather than weaknesses and celebrate these unique strengths. It will bring about a shift in viewpoint from negativity to a more self-assured optimistic approach. It is a model focusing on different moments of truth in a person’s journey in a coaching session. VIBE Coaching Model is an acronym for four different moments of truth in a person’s life namely: verification, impetus, ballgame, and end goal. It is non-linear which means that experiencing these moments of truth in a coaching session may not necessarily be in chronological order.  It is also not just limited to overseas Filipino workers.

Verification

This is the moment when you truly accept yourself based on your increased self-awareness and reflection. Through questions that will uncover looking into your deep self and evoke your awareness, it will guide and help you understand who you truly are and what you are good at. This is an important part of the coaching session as self-reflection is like a superpower. It helps drive growth, change, and the feeling of confidence about yourself. However, it doesn’t stop with self-reflection and being aware of oneself. This should be complemented by acceptance. Without self-acceptance, self-awareness can lead to an internal struggle to oneself resulting in self-denial or avoidance of one’s strengths and feelings. Hence verification is the moment to verify for yourself the insights you learned about yourself through self-reflection and accepting those insights to embrace your genuine and authentic self as well as to help you in other areas of your life going forward.   

Impetus

This is the moment when you realize your heart’s desires and inner motivations that keep you going. Many of life’s decisions go back from your perspectives which is a combination of your experiences, upbringing, beliefs, and values. This is another significant part of the coaching session as you uncover what moves you. The insights uncovered during this moment often solidify one’s purpose and value in life values which are often either never verbalized or have been forgotten over time. Some would be driven by loved ones surrounding them like family and children. Some can be motivated by their own life’s struggles or the societal issues that they face every single day. Each individual is unique and no matter what it is, what is important is to be driven by your heart’s desires and inner motivations in life. In that way, you can truly feel authentic and be your best self from within and to the world.

Ballgame

This is the moment when you decide to plan, act, and commit to your desired outcomes. While having inner motivation, purpose, and goals is important, it is equally important that these are in parallel with planning, taking action as well and being committed to it. Without these, your motivations remain to be aspirational and distant rather than reality.  Creating a concrete plan of action provides you with a sense of direction and structure as well as the power to translate your ambitions into actionable steps or milestones. This action planning part of the coaching session will help you draw your commitment to executing through consistent action which is a key to making your dreams come true.

End Goal

This is the moment when you know what you want and when you can see yourself in that goal. Setting a goal guides your coaching journey. Having an end goal helps you to be grounded and centered on the outcome of a coaching session rather than being engrossed in the details of the story. Some people always know what they want. But some find it difficult to come up with a goal. No matter the type of person you are, knowing what you truly want is a journey of continuous self-exploration and learning that only you can think and feel about. Through this moment of the coaching session, you will be able to feel that you have control of what outcome you will have by the end of it as well as the excitement of seeing yourself accomplishing that goal you have in your heart and mind.