Last week I attended a social event as a guest speaker with my keynote about Living A Meaningful Life.
Most people expressed their sincere interest in 1-2-1 mentoring on this topic, especially in the form of online Skype sessions. One participant though had a real concern and was wondering if online mentoring/coaching/counselling – or whatever buzzword is used – can create the same results as face2face sessions.
Well, every coin got two sides.
Finding a qualified mentor/coach/counsellor in some places can be a challenge, and in remote areas, it might just not be possible. Skype mentoring/coaching/counselling puts clients in touch with mentors/coaches/counsellors from all over the world. Mentoring/coaching/counselling via Skype also permits a greater amount of confidentiality as well as being more convenient in terms of time than conventional mentoring/coaching/counselling.
Skype mentoring/coaching/counselling enables you to find a day and time that works with your busy schedule. Because there is no travelling required to a physical office, Skype mentoring/coaching/counselling saves you the time you could be spending in traffic. Online mentoring/coaching/counselling also has the convenience of allowing you to remain in the comfort of your own home.
And, you can benefit from the mentoring/coaching/counselling services from the comfort of your favourite chair. 🙂
On a technical note, mentoring/coaching/counselling online requires only an internet connection and a net-enabled device on which you can send and receive e-mail, and use video programs like Skype.
The disadvantage?
The parties need the right environment in which to work. They need privacy and – especially – the opportunity to develop trust in each other. Therefore a decision for working together should only be taken after 1 or 2 “test”-sessions or a longer Discovery Session.
BUT!
Regardless if one prefers face2face or online mentoring/coaching/counselling, doing nothing, not to at least see if and what possibilities there are to live a meaningful life, really is not an option.
Smile, breathe, and go slowly,
Dieter
