I have just returned from Montreal after attending the International Coach Conference with 1200 other coaches from 43 countries around the world. This was a an amazing experience for me for many reasons.
I have been to a conference of this size before for a home-based business company and it was not the same. The feeling there was more about hype and making money while also trying to focus on helping others. There was an underlying fear about, “How am I going to make this happen when I get home?”
The Coaching conference has a sense of unified strength to it in a peaceful, yet powerful way. It all started in the first 15 minutes….
We began with a Navajo chant. First singing as a group and then in a round, all 1200 voices lifted together in song. The words are simple yet powerful and I continued to sing them in my heart and out loud for 4 days.
When you were born
You cried
And the world rejoiced
Life your life so that
When you die
The world cries and
You rejoice
Hearing 1200 people sing anything simultaneously is cool, but this little song had such impact on a crowd of coaches; people in the work of impact on the world.
Then there were the introductions of the countries. Each country’s name was shown on the huge screens going in alphabetical order from Argentina to Venezuela. My personal experience of having a large group of people introduced from countries around the world is in the two previous Olympics my husband Jeff has attended (www.jeffpain.ca). I have found those times very moving. A sign of hope that we can come together in a common game to give our best though competition, not war. As I sat in the huge room and each of the countries was read out loud, the coaches from that country would stand and we in the crowd cheered for every one. I had tears streaming down my face and no idea why at first. Then it hit me. I was, in that moment, part of something much greater than myself. A global movement that came together to learn even more about how to create awareness and unity. This was a group that was going beyond how to get rich in money to how to get rich in our spirits and lives, including the lives of our clients.
I am so proud and moved to be part of a group that is first and foremost about the betterment of people from the inside out. A group that is committed to a greater consciousness and transformation in the world, that we might still have a world to enjoy for centuries to come.
A large focus of our convention was the state of the world from an environmental and economic perspective. I felt truly naive as our first two keynote speakers brought forth the facts of where we are at on the curve and what that means to us. Did you know we are currently consuming the equivalent of 1 and 1/4 worlds?? Did you know that current debt of the world is 60 times larger that the value of what actually exists? This was eye opening for sure!
We had many small and large unscheduled discussions as to what our role as coaches is around the global climate. It seems we collectively decided to have an agenda. Now a coach is not supposed to have an agenda, because that comes from the client. However, I am adopting the agenda of the earth with my clients from now on. I am asking my clients to participate in the longevity of our earth in some way, whether they are individuals or corporations. I can no longer stand by and wait, while doing my part here at home.
Can you imagine the impact on the world of 1200 coaches from 43 countries asking their clients to stand up and play a role in the transformation of the environment and economy of the world? Now that is an awesome group to be part of and an exciting prospect.
What are you willing to do that is even more than you do now? How will you consume less and love the earth more? I have shortened my children’s shower times to conserve water (they would stand there for 20 minutes usually) and I am going to cut my material spending by 50% in the next year. I am also going to look for recycling symbols before I purchase anything and use only reusable grocery bags.
I challenge you right now to make a difference!! This world is counting on you.