The Balance Doctors

As chief financial officer for World Wide Credit, Jim Kabellis was interested in improving business and increasing his leadership skills, so he hired a professional coach to help him reach those goals.

The coach began with some curious questions. How did Kabellis get along with his wife? Did Kabellis spend much time with his son? Did the San Diegan follow a spiritual calling?

Though those questions didn’t focus on his work, Kabellis took them to heart and nearly a year later, reports some interesting results.

He is not only experiencing greater prosperity at work, he now has more loving relationships with his family.

“Life seems to be flowing easier for me,” Kabellis said. “Jim helps me keep my life in balance with less struggle.”

“Jim” is Jim Gahen of Kensington, Kabellis’ coach and one of a new breed of personal trainers.

These coaches – sometimes called “success coaches” – are the Richard Simmonses of life; part mentor, part cheerleader, part counselor and part spiritual advisor.

Rather than training his or her clients to shape up physically, a success coach encourages them to tone their personal and business dealings to reach goals and experience overall well-being.

“I’m their co-pilot, their partner, the person who is always on their side,” Gahen said. “I’m the one who believes in them.”

As such, Gahen is part of a growing business trend of the ‘90s. Success coaches are now at work in New York, San Francisco and Houston, as well as in San Diego, and many more are in training. Gahen himself is coaching a number of clients to become coaches. (For more information, call the International Coaching Society, 282-5760.)

Though each success coach has his or own style, the majority follow a similar game plan. They guide their clients in studying the areas of their lives – health, money, family, recreation, personal growth, romance and career – then assist them in seeking balance where it’s needed.

Gahen shows his clients a diagram of a wheel, divided into the areas of their lives, and asks them to rate each area. He explains that all of the areas are interdependent. “If that wheel is out of balance, it’s going to be a bumpy ride,” he said.

Gahen’s clients include dentists, authors, business managers and entrepreneurs. He helps them deal with business and personal issues and brings a spiritual component to every session.

“It’s not denominational or religious; some people experience spirit watching a sunset at the beach,” Gahen said. “Spirituality is a place where balance occurs, a place where we can stop and breathe.”

 

Motivational background

Anyone can become a success coach – there is no such thing as a coach’s license, and there are no set standards for the profession, yet.

Still, most coaches have previous experience as motivational speakers, sports coaches or unpaid mentors.

“I did it for years without getting paid for it,” said Mike Hernacki, a former attorney and stockbroker who now makes a living as a freelance writer and success coach.

Hernacki, who lives in San Diego, used to mentor other writers for free. Today, he coaches writers and people from other professions for a fee.

“I help people discover what they want and how to get it,” Hernacki said. Gahen formerly worked as a medical-supply salesman and sales trainer, but found that work unfulfilling. He got into coaching after realizing how much he enjoyed mentoring other men and how much help he had received from his own mentors.

“I enjoy partnering with a person and moving them forward,” Gahen said.

Gahen believes that while previous decades produced consultants or “people with all the answers,” America now needs coaches, or “people with all the questions.” A consultant comes in, helps briefly, then leaves, Gahen said. “A coach sticks by you.”

The cost for retaining a success coach ranges from $150 to $500 a month, Gahen charges $250 a month for weekly, 30-minute phone-coaching sessions with each client.

Kabellis said his sessions with Gahen generally cover what has happened during the previous week, as well as the steps needed to reach his goals.

“Jim is very intuitive, and his ability to listen goes beyond just hearing words,” Kabellis said. “He helps me reach goals in an accelerated fashion.”

 

Helping to focus

Chris Thompson, owner of Thompsonian Empire, a San Diego advertising firm, also retains Gahen as a coach.

“It’s easy for me to get caught up in the craziness of business,” Thompson said. “Jim reminds me of my goals.”

Thompson said that, at work, Gahen has helped him focus on the products and services he truly wishes to represent – those that are in line with his personal values. His coaching sessions have also improved his relationship with this wife, who is also his partner in business.

Thompson looks forward to his weekly call to Gahen.

“At the beginning of my sessions with Jim, I’m all over the place,” Thompson said. “By the end, I’m feeling great joy.”

Like a therapist, Gahen promises to keep everything he is told in confidence. Unlike a therapist, he does not try to heal personality disorders or health problems.

“I am connected with therapists and health-care professionals, and I can make referrals,” he said.

Gahen has also started a group called the International Coaching Society, so that coaches from across the country can exchange ideas and support.

In addition, he retains a success coach of his own.

“I need a co-pilot, too,” he said.

“I believe inside every person is a plan, and it’s usually bigger than what that person is doing now. A coach helps you identify that play, to share it, and to experience hope around it.”

 

The San Diego Union-Tribune
San Diego, Calif.
Author:  Barbara Fitzsimmons
February 22, 1996
Copyright Union-Tribune Publishing Co. Feb 22, 1996