The benefits of obtaining professional coaching are immense, especially when your client is suffering from physical, emotional or psychological distress.
By Allison Pescosolido, Divorce Recovery Expert
Individuals in the midst of a divorce are commonly suffering from some amount of physical, emotional and/or psychological distress. Separation from a spouse —particularly when the couple is acutely co-dependent or emotionally entangled, can be a highly upsetting, unnerving and discombobulating experience.
Experienced divorce attorneys know all too well how the stress and emotional baggage that typically accompany the separation process can negatively affect their clients. Due to the hardships and uncertainty that go hand in hand with divorce, those seeking the services of a lawyer rarely do so with a completely clear mind or a reasonably constructive attitude. It is hard to be at one’s absolute best when you feel as though your whole world is crumbling down around you.
Don’t let your clients’ delicate and confused mental state get in the way of the important legal business that you need to discuss. By encouraging them to obtain professional life coaching before delving into the myriad nuanced details necessary to divorce, individuals will be far better equipped to work efficiently, engage cooperatively and face the realities of their situation head on.
Seeking the advice of a coach can help your client:
1. Be better equipped for your meetings
Armed with a bit of information and knowing approximately what to expect, your client will be bound to feel more prepared and less intimidated to confer with the legal counsel. This general feeling of acclamation and familiarization can make things infinitely easier when it becomes necessary to conduct important legal business.
2. Feel more comfortable discussing legal matters
A good life coach will help your clients compartmentalize their emotions so that they can more effectively discuss the matter at hand. By acquainting them with common divorce proceedings and generally preparing them for what lies ahead, the coaching process helps to put clients at ease in a legal setting.
3. Focus more clearly on the necessary details
Many meetings with an attorney are often a blur because of the emotional and psychological trauma that goes along with the separation process. The brain is simply working slower and less efficiently. Coaching can help your client concentrate on prioritizing what’s important and what isn’t.
4. Communicate more effectively with legal counsel
When a client becomes unhappy with the way his or her divorce case is being handled, the most common complaints revolve around issues of communication. Open access and stable interaction between client and attorney is an absolutely essential part of the divorce process. When the lines of communication break down, the client is bound to become dissatisfied…even if he or she is partially (or even more than partially) to blame. A professional life coach or counselor can help to eliminate communication problems by enabling clients to reach a clearer, less-troubled emotional and psychological outlook. Through effective coaching, an individual can more readily assume a frame of mind that is conducive to open communication.
5. Separate the emotional issues from the financial issues
The divorce process is typically more expensive than many clients anticipate. This extra expense can significantly exasperate what is already an extremely stressful situation. With the help of an experienced divorce coach, however, your legal clients can prevent emotional turmoil from affecting crucial financial decisions. And conversely, they will be better able to approach financial assessments in a manner that doesn’t lead to further psychological anxiety.
6. Take advantage of a coach’s expertise to assist with ongoing daily management and strategy
Attorneys are not life coaches. Yet clients in fragile emotional states often try to treat them as such. In the eyes of an individual who has little or no outside support system, a divorce lawyer can appear to have all of the answers. By acquiring the services of an experienced coach in addition to the legal services provided by an attorney, your clients will be better equipped to check their emotional baggage at your office door, giving you the time and space that you need to do what you do best: practice law.
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Allison Pescosolido M.A. and the Divorce Detox™ Team are frequently featured in the media for their expertise on the subject of divorce, and their unique treatment approach for divorce recovery.
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