Who are you? What are you all about?
I am a disgruntled self-improvement aficionado and certified Life Coach. Early on in life, I graduated from the University of Denver with a major in Finance & Marketing. Self-improvement and instructional design (the creation of learning experiences and materials) are my passions. Unfortunately, there’s no self-help major, and the instructional designer degree wasn’t offered until years later.
Like anyone interested in being better, living with purpose, and going after dreams and turning them into reality, I started reading books and completing the question/answer exercises. Then I bought audio/video programs. Sometimes I would complete them. Sometimes I wouldn’t. I attended workshops and conferences. My enthusiasm and motivation lasted about a week.
I created affirmations, set goals & SMART goals, started journaling, designed vision boards, planned, meditated, and tried to overcome procrastination. Sometimes I changed my behavior for a month. (No, it doesn’t just take 28 days to form a habit) That’s just one myth I discovered on my self-improvement journey. Many myths float around as self-improvement gospel.
I found the exercises to be informative. I made discoveries. I experienced “Aha” moments. However, none of this changed my behavior long-term or ultimately resulted in my ideal life. I had lots of knowledge, but it didn’t translate into changing my behavior or setting me on a course to “be, do, or have” what I wanted.
I believe this is common. Self-help junkies, like me, have a ton of knowledge and information. Information isn’t training. Knowledge doesn’t always translate into change.
Finally, I realized all the books/tapes/CD’ s/DVD’s/workshops/conferences were not working. I thought it was me. I must be defective. I WAS WRONG!
One day I started to realize I wasn’t alone. A lot (and by a lot I mean the majority) of people didn’t succeed with these programs. I, inadvertently, heard a self-help workshop host talking about her success rate. She said, “Only 3% of our attendees will be able to use this information to change their life.”
WHAT?!
She actually said, “They will use it to change their life,” as though the other 97% were choosing not to use or engage with the material to change their life. She took no responsibility or accountability for the material or the program’s design structure failing to change lives.
I thought, “Why is this okay? Why is it okay with the course creators and program designers to leave 97% of their paying customers in the dark? They are paying money for results too. Why are they blaming the attendee, or the customer, instead of their program for life change?” “That sucked”!
So, I set out to change it. I would create different strategies and rework tried-and-true techniques. I would approach self-help from a learning perspective instead of an information transfer perspective. Hence, the DIY Life Coaching website and Facebook page and group.
To Contact Robin King use the Contact Us page.