When I decided to change career, I wanted to help people with wellbeing, but in a less judgmental and directive way than I had within education. I came to coaching feeling intrigued and also needing to support myself. I discovered there were a lot of misconceptions and I now earn my living helping people discover how they can use their strengths to hack growth and transform. Who couldn't love that?

When most people think of the word 'coach' they think of someone in sports helping people improve performance in the game, or in business helping improve productivity. Both things are true. People who are coached will experience non-directive growth and the coach is trained to help them find their full potential. Tennis is where it all started, but business increasingly benefits from a range of coaches all helping to hack growth, helping restructure and even supporting staff going through audit evaluations such as the 360 progress report.

But it turns out, coaching is a far more flexible structure than that. Coaching can deeply impact on people who desire improvement in their personal development. And here's the five things you might now know about coaching:

1. Coaching can help with general wellbeing

It's perfectly possible to set goals to improve your overall wellbeing. It is also possible to find tools that enable you to reach that aspirational healthiest state. Meditation, CBT techniques, journaling, creative outlets, increased social interactions to name a few. It's all up for grabs and your coach will be equipped to help scaffold that improvement and help it to stick!

Take a meditation as an example. There is the common mistake of thinking it's all about sitting on the floor and focussing on your breath. Many people can't, don't want to, or are too time-poor to sit for long periods. In reality, there are many different ways to meditate. One client of mine used to get into a meditation mindset when he was out running. The sound of his feet pounding on the floor became the thing he concentrated on to help calm his mind.

CBT is a form of therapy but lots of the exercises used are perfect for improving wellbeing and you don't need to be in therapy to benefit from them. The approach in coaching is a simple one:

• catch yourself in a way of thinking that's not aiding your wellbeing
• give it time to 'cool its heels' and its hold over you
• replace it with something that's more positive and that really works for you
• be patient and persistent enough to give the new habit a chance to embed. And wow! The results can be dramatic!