Animas Centre for Coaching

Can nature become part of the coaching process?

For Tracey Robinson, the answer is yes.

After more than three decades working in mental health within the NHS, Tracey discovered that bringing coaching into nature created a different kind of coaching experience—one where people could quieten the noise of everyday life, reconnect with themselves and uncover fresh perspectives.

In our latest Alumni Journeys conversation, Tracey shares how coaching transformed her own life, why she followed her intuition to create Mother Nature Coaching, and how nature itself can become an active part of the coaching process.

If you're curious about coaching outdoors, walking coaching, or how nature can deepen the coaching experience, this conversation is full of thoughtful insights.

Watch the full interview here
https://eu1.hubs.ly/H0xxW0K0

What happens when we let go of knowing the answer?

One of the temptations in coaching is the feeling that we've worked the client out, and we understand what they need.

Sometimes we may even be partly right.

But what happens when that sense of knowing begins to shape the conversation before the client has fully explored their own experience?

In our latest article, we explore the Unknowing Principle - one of the 12 Principles of Transformative Coaching - and why holding our knowledge lightly may be one of the most important disciplines a coach can cultivate.

Rather than abandoning expertise, the Unknowing Principle invites us to suspend premature conclusions, remain genuinely curious, and create space for the client's own meaning-making to emerge.

In a culture increasingly driven by certainty, instant answers and confident opinions, this is a timely reminder of what makes transformative coaching different.

Read the full article below.

https://eu1.hubs.ly/H0xyb3C0

Can your own personal growth lead you towards becoming a coach?

For Bahar Boostani, coaching wasn't simply a career change.

It was the natural outcome of years of personal exploration—following her creativity, attending transformational retreats, questioning what success meant, and gradually discovering work that felt more aligned with who she was becoming.

In our latest Alumni Journeys conversation, Bahar reflects on that journey with honesty and warmth.

Bahar also shares what came afterwards: building a coaching practice from the ground up, finding her first clients, learning to value her work, and recognising that growing a business often mirrors our own personal development.

It's a thoughtful conversation about becoming a coach—not just as a profession, but as a continuing journey of self-discovery.

Watch the full interview here:
https://eu1.hubs.ly/H0x8PBX0

Have you noticed a shift in the way you lead?

Often, leaders begin exploring coaching after noticing a subtle shift in how they work with people.

They may still value strategy, direction, and organisational outcomes. Yet the moments that feel most meaningful often look slightly different. A conversation where someone reaches a new understanding. A leader recognising a pattern in their own thinking. A colleague approaching a challenge with greater clarity.

Transformative coaching invites a different kind of influence. Rather than directing action, the coach creates space for reflection so that others can arrive at their own insight and decisions.

For many leaders, this doesn’t replace leadership. It gradually reshapes how they contribute to the development of others.

In this article, we explore the identity shift that sometimes unfolds as leaders move toward transformative coaching.

https://eu1.hubs.ly/H0x8PmM0

If coach training has been on your mind for a while, our free Introduction to Transformative Coaching is an opportunity to explore it in more detail.

This 2-hour live virtual session covers the principles behind transformative coaching, the format of our Accredited Diploma in Transformative Coaching, and the professional pathways for a coach.

You can find the upcoming dates on the free Introduction to Transformative Coaching, and book your place, here:

https://eu1.hubs.ly/H0sD_F60

What does it really take to build a successful coaching practice?

Many aspiring coaches wonder what happens after qualification. How do you find clients? Should you pursue credentials? And when does coaching start to feel natural rather than something you're trying to "get right"?

In our latest Alumni Journeys conversation, Alisa Salamon shares an honest account of building a coaching career after leaving corporate leadership.

Rather than presenting an overnight success story, Alisa reflects on the realities of the first few years, developing a portfolio career, progressing from ICF ACC to PCC and ultimately Master Certified Coach (MCC), and why confidence comes through experience rather than certainty.

The conversation explores:
• Building a sustainable coaching practice
• Developing confidence over time
• The value of ICF credentialing and mentoring
• Creating a portfolio career
• Learning to trust yourself, your clients, and the coaching process

If you're considering coach training, working towards your next credential, or wondering what it really takes to build a coaching career, Alisa offers practical, thoughtful and refreshingly honest reflections.

Watch the full conversation below.
https://eu1.hubs.ly/H0x7VYQ0

What does transformative coaching actually look like in practice?

Transformative coaching can sound abstract until you see what actually happens in a conversation.

Clients often arrive with a clear situation they want to resolve: a relationship difficulty, a leadership challenge, or a recurring pattern in their work or life.

Rather than moving quickly to solutions, transformative coaching slows the enquiry slightly. The focus shifts to how the client is interpreting the situation – the assumptions, meanings, and beliefs shaping their response.

As those interpretations become clearer, new possibilities for action often emerge naturally.

In this article, we explore what transformative coaching looks like in practice and how this deeper form of enquiry can lead to lasting change.

https://eu1.hubs.ly/H0wWvKc0

Can you build a coaching practice without trying to fit someone else's model?

Many aspiring coaches wonder whether they have to choose between being a "pure" coach or bringing together the wider experience they've developed throughout their career.

In our latest Alumni Journeys conversation, Julie Creffield shares how coach training helped her build a coaching approach that reflects the breadth of her experience.

Now an innovation strategist, business coach and author, Julie reflects on how Animas helped her develop the confidence, language and frameworks to create a coaching approach that genuinely reflected who she is, rather than forcing herself into a predefined style.

The conversation also explores coaching in the age of AI, building a sustainable business around your own strengths, and why understanding yourself remains one of the most valuable foundations for coaching practice.

If you're considering coach training, already combine coaching with another profession, or are curious about how coaching and AI may coexist in the future, this conversation offers plenty to reflect on.

Watch the full interview below.

https://eu1.hubs.ly/H0wWVys0

Have you ever wondered why some clients know exactly what to do, but still struggle to make lasting change?

Many personal trainers, fitness instructors, and wellness practitioners eventually encounter the same challenge.

Clients understand what they need to do. The programme is clear. The goals are realistic. Yet something still interrupts progress. Motivation fluctuates, and old patterns return.

Conversations begin to move toward mindset, identity, and the way someone sees themselves in relation to change.

Transformative coaching offers a structured way to work with that deeper layer. It allows practitioners to explore the assumptions, beliefs, and interpretations shaping behaviour, while remaining within a clear professional coaching role.

For many wellness professionals, this becomes a natural extension of the work they are already doing with clients.

In this article, we explore why transformative coaching is increasingly becoming an important complement to wellness practice.

https://eu1.hubs.ly/H0wstGB0

Free Introduction to Transformative Coaching!

If you’re ready to move from reading about coaching to exploring it properly as a career choice, our free Introduction to Transformative Coaching is the next step.

This 2-hour live virtual session provides a structured overview of our approach to transformative coaching, an overview of our Accredited Diploma in Transformative Coaching, and space for questions.

This month’s dates for the free Introduction to Transformative Coaching are available for you to book here:

https://eu1.hubs.ly/H0vjjJR0