The Roots to Branches Coaching Model

A Coaching Model By Kristen Webb, Decisions Coach, AUSTRALIA

Roots to Branches

My entire coaching practice is inspired by nature and the power of its connection. 

I grew up roaming the wildness of Vancouver Island. Nature and weather were constant companions and the seasons were the heartbeat and rhythm of life. The trees sheltered,  the ocean danced, and the sky opened to hear my thoughts. Nature doesn’t judge. She listens and whispers inspiration on the wind, reassures you with her daily sunrise, and accepts you under the stillness of her stars.  

My youth was spent outdoors and nature’s presence was a humbling reminder that there was something more powerful in the world than my internal struggles. All you need to do is stand on a rocky shore during a winter storm and close your eyes and you will feel in your bones that we do not have the ultimate power.

Eventually, I got cut off. After getting married my husband and I moved from Canada to Lima, Peru and my free wandering and unlimited access to nature came to an end. My walking routes were now along busy streets, the parks were loud and the beaches crowded and sometimes dangerous. The coastal fog blocked the sun and grey heaviness followed. Normally tolerable stressful situations became difficult and burdensome. I felt untethered and exposed, yet suffocated. Relief came when we got out of the city and into the countryside when we could explore the Andes and drop into the tangled mess of jungle vines, when we could fall asleep to the sound of insects singing and monkeys howling. 

It has taken me years to make this connection, to see the greyness that this move presented as more than just a cultural adjustment. It was a complete disconnection from my power source. 

Coaching outdoors while walking and being surrounded by nature’s power is my commitment to supporting myself and my clients who are looking to reconnect to themselves and recharge their innate decision-making talents.

The Roots to Branches Coaching Model

When researching various models I connected with the GROW model  – but it was missing the forward motion I require so I expanded it and added my own personal touch.

GROWTH

Gratefully Realising Opportunities While Walking Together Head and Heart

Gratefully

We do not have to understand nature to be grateful for her truth and beauty. 

We do not have to understand every aspect of our past to be

grateful for this very moment and excited about our future.

Realizing

Every step forward we take is our choice.  While walking, we can observe our

agency in action, connect to its power, and create momentum

to keep going when new obstacles appear. 

Opportunities

Life is a series of opportunities and a series of decisions about how we handle them.

The opportunity to be heard by someone who doesn’t judge inspires trust and creativity.

While Walking

Walking reduces stress and being outdoors promotes good health and well-being.

Coaching invites action and you choose your steps one at a time. 

Together

Connection with self and connection with others.

Connection is so powerful for the clarity that we crave.  

Head and Heart

We need to connect to our whole selves to find our inspired action

that will create our truest and most beautiful lives.

Working with this GROWTH Model and applying a pure coaching style while walking in nature will be an exciting opportunity. 

I now walk under twisted Australian gum trees with peeling skin and perpetual leaves that shade me from an aggressive sun. The disconnection I felt in Peru has now been felt globally during the covid pandemic when so many of us were forced to adapt and find new ways to connect to our lives and to our loves. So many of us also wondered, When this is over, how do I want to live?

I want to live bravely. I want to leave my eyes open and face turning towards a soft morning sunrise. I want to trust that my roots have grown strong and carry the wisdom I need to grow forward. I want to decorate myself with blossoms of all colors and have birds and butterflies tickle my skin with inspiration. I want to sit on a log in the silver sparkle of the moon and be alive.

We are simply the sum of all our past decisions; those imposed on us, those made by others, and those made by us.  When we accept and embrace who we are – right now, in this very moment – we free up our energy and empower our innate decision-making ability. We can then explore how we want to live our future and our future is waiting for us, out on the trail and around the corner. We just need to make the first decision to start walking towards where we want the rest of our lives to go. 

References

Walk it off! The effectiveness of walk-and-talk coaching in nature for individuals with burnout- and stress-related complaints
Author: Agnes E. van den Berg,Femke Beute
Publication: Journal of Environmental Psychology
Publisher: Elsevier
Date: August 2021
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0272494421000943