Holism in Executive Coaching: Possibility, Meaning, Agency

When you’re anxious and frustrated by a persistent problem, you tend to become very small in your thinking. Every part of you wants to get rid of it or fix it. You focus on eliminating ‘that’ problem.

Your thinking becomes circular in ever tighter circles, honing in on the fix – as if you’re training a weapon on your enemy. Atomistic thinking in this context is understandable.

But it doesn’t work, does it?

We’re all wired to over-focus on perceived threats – as if they were separate from everything else in our lives.

I had an executive client who wanted to keep her private life entirely separate from our conversations about her career. She was insistent on this part! But it was only when she was willing to see the connections between her behaviours in all parts of her life that she awakened to new possibilities.

The Gifts of Holism

Subjective human experience cannot be understood in a silo. It can only be understood in context. How you start your day only matters in the context of your other responsibilities. How you receive feedback from your CEO this year will be impacted by how you perceived it last year.

Holism sees human behaviour as part of a system, not a discrete thing in itself. You make choices based on what you know. You influence others and they influence you.

It is in this bigger picture that we find wisdom, meaning and agency.

Holism is all about context and relationships. When the whole is taken into account, one failure is not a problem. It’s a celebration of the process we’ve bravely undertaken to grow. When you see the situation as a whole, your challenge with needing validation from others is an invitation to  deepen your relationship with yourself.

When you first come to coaching to solve a problem or create a better future, you’re asking for coherence between all parts of your life. Coherence is “the state or experience of being aligned with one’s purpose…”

Holism and Wisdom

Wisdom is about insight and discernment. These gems are not found in atomistic thinking.

Wisdom is found in the larger field in which we can see how everything relates to everything else. In this more expansive space, we find possibility, meaning and agency.

In this space, holism reveals the wisdom that spirit is essential for our well-being. Even though spiritual practices cannot be reduced to a scientific method, spirit is nonetheless valid. Albert Einstein famously stated: “Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind”.

All spiritual practices are about connecting with something larger than ourselves. They lift us out of atomistic thinking. These holistic practices nurture the essence of who we are.

Holism honours subjective and empirical information. The wisdom you gain from both allows you to make the choices that better lead you to a more ordered, consistent and harmonious life.

In her book “Playing in the Unified Field”, scientist and author Carla Hanniford wrote: “When in a coherent state, there is a feeling of wholeness, a sense of being fully integrated within the present moment…”

Possibility Explored: Holism in Executive Coaching

In holistic executive coaching, we focus on creating a safe container to expand our current way of thinking. It challenges us to consider what may be possible.

The sense of Possibility is literally the expansion of what we hold to be true. It tests our current understanding of what we think is true, so that we find a deeper knowing of what is actually true.

Possibility is what allows you to find a new perspective. You get to shift and sort your beliefs so that they align with what matters most to you.

Possibility drives creativity and human development. We grow towards what we sense would be meaningful – even if we haven’t experienced it yet. When we’re feeling Possibility, there’s a physical sense of openness in our space. It’s as if there are no limits.

To maximize the freedom inherent in Possibility, we invite ourselves to play outside the box created by the issue. Instead of looking out from inside the issue, we peer in from the outside.

Possibility supports you in seeing that you are more than the problem you’ve been experiencing. You are the one witnessing it. You are the one who sees the issue in the context of your life.

Holism and Meaning

Meaning is what holds everything together. Why would you do anything if nothing had meaning to you?

The key is to know what matters to you and why. When it feels like meaning has disappeared from your day, you know you’re out of integrity with what matters.

Holism is the vehicle of deeply understanding what’s meaningful to you. You can only understand what’s meaningful to you when you look at the relationship you have with all of your parts.

In holistic executive coaching, we look at the relationship between your actions, your history, your context, and your beliefs. We look for patterns. We get very curious.

Test it out for yourself.

When you have an unpleasant task to do and you think of it as an annoying unpleasant task, you might avoid it. Your relationship with the task is contentious. Tight. But if you look at yourself as the driver and what it means to you to get it done, then the relationship shifts. You’re in charge. You’re living in your integrity. Suddenly it’s all meaningful. Suddenly it all has value.

Holism and Agency

Holism recognizes that a fully integrated human being, with all of our strengths and weaknesses, will be a successful one. We’re more conscious, happier, resilient and curious. We’re better able to learn and sustain our own learning over time.

As a holistic executive coach, I know that short term fixes may create change, but they certainly don’t create transformation.  Looking at your life holistically will.

What you do in one place is what you do everywhere.

Holism allows you to see that under every problem, you’ll discover valuable information about your values, self-perception, and your agency. This is where true transformation occurs.

Holistic Executive Coaching: It’s About the ‘Who’

The issue is not the issue. Underperforming at work is not the issue. Losing your temper with colleagues is not the issue. The issue is in the ‘who’ you believe you are, who you want to be and how conscious you are with all of this.

More than 95% of what drives our behaviour is unconscious.

Holistic executive coaching is about bringing forward all the golden information about yourself that you don’t currently see.

Ask yourself:

• What are my values?
• What am I believing about myself and others?
• What irritations have I not been giving voice to?
• Who do I believe I am?

When you reflect in this way, you can live in alignment with what truly matters to you.

Can Holism Really Fix My Problem?

If you’re asking yourself this question, you’re inside the issue. You’re in fear-based thinking.

You may be looking for guarantees, rather than trusting that you as a whole have limitless potential to grow.

Be willing to shake things up a bit!

This flurry of snow thoughts

inside my mind-globe is continuous

no room for sunlight, warmth, peace.

I’m stuck inside a pattern I can’t control

unless I see the woman trapped inside

and the one holding the globe–

the choice to shake it up again

or cradle the scene in her hands,

till all the cold flakes have settled

and quiet serenity abounds.

– by Kaveri Patel