What is orienting and when is it useful?
Joanna Harper
Lead Trainer at Integrate Training. Delivering quality Accredited Coaching & Practitioner Training Courses that people enjoy attending. Experience personal and professional benefits whilst gaining your certification.
What is Orienting?
Orienting is a term used to describe focusing on being in the present moment and current environment, which enhances your sense of presence and awareness.
This practice is useful to adults and children, coaches and their clients. Coaching clients to orient themselves in the present is a mindfulness technique which is a useful skill for people who frequently relive past events and/or worry about the future.
An example of a seated orienting practice:
- Place your feet flat on the floor, keeping your eyes open, and maintaining a soft gaze.
- Sense what you are sitting on beneath you, the floor or earth below you and the space all around you.
- Notice the temperature of the air on your skin, the touch of your clothes and the way your body is supported.
- Notice one object nearby – observe all the fine details, the size, shape, texture, colour, light and shade.
- Notice the sounds all around you, near and far. Notice the spaces between the sounds.
- If your mind wanders or any thoughts occur, simply notice this and bring your attention back to your grounded practice of present-moment awareness.
Notice your response to this orienting practice.
- What are you feeling?
- What are you thinking?
- Where would orienting be useful in your life?
- And your coaching practice?
If you attend our popular Discovery Day – you will learn more stress resilience-building practices, self-regulation and self-coaching.
Our next live online Discovery Day is 5 February 2023 – register now to secure your place.
You can also find out more about using orienting practices in coaching in Joanna Harper’s book – The Trauma-Informed Coach: Strategies to support clients when their past prevents progress. In the case study section of the book, you will learn how Joanna uses orienting practices for her own state regulation whilst coaching and how she enables her clients to do the same for themselves.
Did you know that a signed copy of The Trauma-Informed Coach can be ordered directly from Joanna.
It is now available widely as a printed book and ebook.
Waterstones UK
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Barnes & Noble/Nook – USA
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