What do the Wonder Twins & coaching have in common?
At first glance, nothing. But last night, I woke up in the middle of the night with an epiphany.
I grew up to become a real-life Wonder Twin.
Seriously? Yes. I’m not joking. I’m a coach, and being a coach is just like being a Wonder Twin.
As a kid, I was absolutely obsessed with the Wonder Twins. If you don’t know what the Wonder Twins are, you need to find out! They were a brother/sister superhero duo on Hanna-Barbera’s The All-New Super Friends Hour whose powers were activated by touching hands and saying the phrase “Wonder Twin powers, ACTIVATE!”My brother and I ran around the yard fighting battles. Whenever we came upon a challenge, we would scream “ACTIVATE” and fistbump each other with our handmade superpower rings beneath the hidden cave of the Japanese maple, in our matching “King & Queen” pear trees in the backyard, in the secret hideout we built-in garage that led to the alley filled with imaginable “real-life crime.”
and fistbump each other with our handmade superpower rings beneath the hidden cave of the Japanese maple, in our matching “King & Queen” pear trees in the backyard, in the secret hideout we built-in garage that led to the alley filled with imaginable “real-life crime.”Just like the Wonder Twins, my superpowers aren’t activated without a client connecting with her own superpowers.
To our work together, I bring the superpowers of insight, curiosity, empathy, powerful questions, the coaching process, and a different perspective while my client brings her point of view, resources, background, and expertise. Together, when we metaphorically fistbump with our superpower rings, we “ACTIVATE” the power for a huge change.
the power for a huge change.
Just like Jayna, the female twin in the Wonder Twins, I’ve got to know how and when to use my special powers. Jayna’s superpower is the ability to turn into any animal she wants as long as she knows their common name. For me, as a coach, it’s the same. First, I check with my client to identify what she needs and then name it and call on my powers of empathy, curiosity, or laser-focused questions to powerfully expand her current mindset so that she can reach her goals. Ok, maybe I don’t yell out the name, but I identify them and use them.
Wonder Twin Jayna knows what animal form to take to solve a problem and knows to pay exquisite attention and stay curious about what’s going on.
Dog? Snake? Horse? Bear? Mosquito? Jayna chooses what’s needed at the moment and doesn’t use the same animal for every battle because each time requires a different type of ability. It’s the same with coaching. If I ignore my client’s needs, I won’t choose the right power, and my effectiveness is diminished…and ultimately, my client won’t see the results or support she’s looking for.
When this happens, all superheroes, Wonder Twins included, have a fallback. Jayna and her brother, Zan, have a pet monkey, Gleek, who serves as a conduit when they can’t connect or are too far apart, causing their powers to be reduced or missing. I don’t have a monkey, but I do have the courage to self-reflect, circle back, and find ways to reconnect to re-ACTIVATE.
This is good because courage and connection are most important in breaking through challenges (things you can’t control) and villainous mind control (limiting beliefs).
This is good because courage and connection are the most important components in breaking through challenges (things you can’t control) and villainous mind control (limiting beliefs).