coach4good

On a day-to-day basis, I work with professionals who are, in one way or another, contributing to a more sustainable world. I have fond memories of my time working in Ghana to address the water-related challenges in the country. However, I also recall that I always felt I lacked the technical expertise to really make a difference. Upon my recent return from a wonderful two months of traveling and a long flight from New Zealand, I was confronted with my own ‘bad’ and conflicting behavior and values. Knowing how polluting flying is for our planet, I also felt it was important to visit family overseas. Feeling quite powerless, I decided to explore how I could do better. I found the Stichting Klimaatpsychologie, a foundation that was set up to bring climate-conscious psychologists together to help provide answers to difficult questions such as: How can we, as people, more effectively cope with the climate crisis? And what can we do to motivate people to demonstrate behavior that slows down climate change? And most importantly, why is it so hard to change our behaviour and break through unhelpful patterns?

Learn by doing

I had the opportunity to immediately dive in deep since the foundation was looking for people to help develop a 2-day course on climate psychology. Together with a team of very motivated professionals, we took it upon ourselves to develop a basic course for psychologists to boost their confidence as ‘climate psychologists.’ For me, it was a great process to be part of as it allowed me to learn by doing – an important convinction that guides how I like to work. Inspired by the questions we ourselves had, we shaped a course that allowed for: 1) a better understanding of what is actually happening with the climate, 2) a reflection on ourselves and others – how do we cope with the climate crisis and what do we see happening with others in our environment?; 3) understanding what we can do to influence behavior, and 4) exploring the changes at the systems level and what we can learn from transformative societal changes we have already gone through.

The process of designing a course from scratch was very fulfilling and made the delivery of the first pilot extremely enjoyable and insightful. We had quite high expectations and wanted to include a lot of information in little time, which is a common challenge for any trainer. We were very fortunate to have a very eager and knowledgeable audience who were able to co-create the content with us. We asked every participant to choose from a list of shortlisted theories and prepare a short presentation, visualisation, or exercise. This really helped participants to digest and enjoy an otherwise content-heavy two days.

My own insights from the course

Besides it having been a very pleasant experience to co-create and co-deliver this course, I have learned a lot about my own challenges to change towards more pro-climate behavior. A very clear and inspiring talk from Margot Ribberink (the first weather ‘woman’ on Dutch television) gave me more confidence to talk about the climate in technical terms (facts vs fables). Margot was able to demonstrate so clearly how climate change is affecting us in a highly unequal manner, and that it does not make sense to look at other global challenges such as migration in isolation from climate change. To me, this serves as an important reminder why I prefer to work with organisations who are at the forefront of social change and impact. It is all connected, and we need to do better for everyone, not just a small elite.

Experiencing conflicting emotions is ‘normal’

We talked a lot about the different emotions we experience ourselves and the resistance we see in others when talking about climate challenges. The different emotions can exist in parallel, and rather than fighting them, it can help to recognise them and even embrace them. I experience guilt: that I am not doing enough, yet I am finding tons of excuses why I can’t do better right now; Fear: of the rising temperatures and what that means for my family, friends, and colleagues who already live in more affected areas. Frustration: that other people are seemingly oblivious to what is happening on our planet. Fortunately, I also experience a sense of confidence: being surrounded by others who experience similar feelings, I really believe we can do better by being open (non-judgmental) and motivating each other.

Knowing your values can help to determine your actions

The course offered me practical insights and tips on what I can do to have a more positive handprint (instead of a negative footprint) on the planet. Buy less seems an obvious one, and at the same time our society is build around consumption. I also took inspiration from the power of ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy), a methodology I already work with as a coach: Determine what values are important to you and choose actions that allow you to live more closely in line with these values.

Change is hard

Finally, reflecting on how change happens (at system and behavioural levels), I experienced once again first hand that change is hard and takes time. We often encounter resistance to change, especially if the pressure comes from others. People like to maintain control and experience the freedom to choose. It is therefore important to be intrinsically motivated to change. Change is also difficult because we often do not know where to start: we are overwhelmed with choices or the changes feel out of reach. These insights help me stay humble as a coach and trainer. And yet I find it re-assuring to know there is such a thing as a social tipping point. This serves as a reminder that every step, even if it feels minor or insignificant, contributes and matters. Taking action, no matter how small, is always better than doing nothing.

Would you also like to learn more about climate psychology? The next course (in Dutch) will take place on 8th and 9th December in the Netherlands. You can find more information here: https://www.klimaatpsychologie.com/ik-wil-een-opleiding-doen

Do you experience conflicting emotions? Do you struggle with guilt or fear, and you don’t know what to do with these feelings? Do you also want to make a change, but you don’t know where to start? Join me for a no-obligation intake to explore whether a coaching trajectory can help you.

Would you like to better understand your own footprint and explore where you can make a change for a healthier planet? Complete the questionnaire and discover your hidden impact: https://www.mijnverborgenimpact.nl/en/

February 4, 2025 + Climate psychology, Coaching, Personal development

Walking my own talk

by Lisa Freiburg

What do you stand for? It’s a question I often ask coachees or training participants. It’s a powerful question for anyone who aspires to follow a clear purpose, and choose a career that matters. Knowing what drives you and acting in line with that I believe creates authenticity. That in turn promotes trust. It makes it possible for people to inspire others to follow them. Authentic people know where they want to be and act accordingly. They walk the talk. And dare to admit if they fail do to so. I firmly believe that it’s also these kinds of people that make a lasting (positive) impact on our planet.

I would question my own authenticity if I wouldn’t challenge my own intentions once in a while. What am I here to do? And am I actually doing what I say I do? Every year I spent time reflecting on the past year and looking ahead. What is my intention for this year? Inspired by GRIP, I increasingly ask myself these questions on a weekly basis too. Did I spent my week accordingly to what I value most? And if not, what can I change about it?

Last year, I created a new vision for myself, outlining what drives me, to what end and what I can DO to get closer to making this vision a reality. It resulted in the visual below and I would like to tell you a little bit more about it.

A fair, healthy and happy planet is what I strive for. I assume that we humans are merely guests to this planet, and our happiness is in a way secondary: we need our planet to be healthy and well taken care of. Reflecting on this, I concluded there are four major pillars that I wish to build my work around.

Striving for equality and understanding for diversity

I work based on the belief we are all equal but not the same. You are okay, I am okay. I strive for a fairer system where we share the same rights and opportunities, and where we also value differences. The autonomy to choose what you value and how you want to live, while also respecting others when they make a different choice.

Walking the talk

We all have to be and DO better now. We all have a responsibility to make this (again) a healthy and happy planet. With the rights and opportunities we are given comes a duty. I am responsible to deliver results, not just for myself, but for the wider community we are all apart of. We all ought to do what we can within our capacity. Talking is essential, but the proof is in the doing.

Open to new perspectives

The world is changing rapidly. Some developments are daunting and trigger us to withdraw or choose a familiar bubble. I wish to stay curious and ask questions. Continuously learn. Being open and have attention for my own development, the development of others and the development of the world around us. I consciously steer away from the word growth as I associate it with human’s insatiable drive to grow in a lineair way, a tendency I do not believe is sustainable nor desirable.

Care for yourself and others

It’s the commonly heard advice in case of emergency: first take care of yourself, and then help others. Taking care of yourself is part of taking care of others. I value practicing what I preach: setting boundaries, allowing space to breath and have a break, being kind to myself; it allows me to be there for others. I also find great value in connecting with others, and experience great joy and happiness in achieving results with others for others.

I share my thoughts here to organise my own thinking and also invite others to reflect with me. It’s a work in progress and while the pillars might evolve over time, I intent to use these as a way of monitoring whether I am really walking my talk.

April 17, 2020 + Coaching

Welcome to coach4good

by Lisa Freiburg

Go back and get it
Adinkra Symbol

It’s because of a love of learning that I decided to immerse myself in an intensive course to become a coach in 2019. I joined with a lot of preconceptions about what coaching is all about and I must admit, it was only during the course, that I realised and observed first hand what the value of coaching can be. I am very excited to take my coaching journey one step further by founding coach4good.

Growing up with a mother who is a therapist, reflections and discussions about personal development, relationships and family history were a common dinner table matter. It was not just once that my mother brought in her ‘gear’ (read: duplo and playmobil) to analyse the situation and ask critical questions that I wasn’t always prepared for. So, it’s with a little resistance I have to admit how powerful such reflections can be and how useful it can be to stand still, observe yourself from a distance and explore what might be necessary to take a step forward and really make a difference for yourself and others on this planet.

Over 12 years ago now, while living in Ghana, I was introduced to the Adinkra Symbols. One of these symbols stood out for me. It is called Sankofa and is derived from the Akan people of West Africa. It comes from the words “san” (return), “ko” (go), and “fa” (look, seek, and take) and translates as ‘go back and get it’. The symbol reflects that knowing your history is to know yourself. The symbol tells us that you must go back to your roots in order to move forward. It suggests we should reach back and gather the best of what our past has to offer us, so that we can achieve our goals as we move forward.

Sankofa is visualised as a bird that flies forward while looking backward with an egg symbolizing the future. It is sometimes represented as a heart-shape. These two symbols form the basis of the logo used for coach4good and symbolises my perspective on coaching. It is not always necessary to dig very deep, yet reflecting on our past and recent experiences, thoughts and feelings are a very powerful tool to help you understand yourself better, take steps and make the changes you desire for.

The logo for coach4good was designed by Adam Smith.