Several people have asked me lately about what I do to help people adjust to their home country. Or they weren’t clear that it is something I do. So I thought I would try to spell it out in a blog so you have a clearer idea.
Re-entry or resettlement coaching is about accompanying you through your re-entry (I was going to write repatriation, but thought that was just being too clever!). It’s about supporting you through the roller-coaster of ups and downs that come; helping you find confidence in who you are now and what you bring to the world; and navigating your transition to what comes next.
Why resettlement coaching?
Why would anyone need coaching support during their re-entry? There are a number of different reasons why people have come to me for support:
- wanting to make the most of the opportunity provided by re-entry to change career path
- not knowing who they are anymore or where they’re trying to go
- having struggled with their organisation whilst overseas and needing support to work through their responses and how to move on
- lacking confidence in how their skills apply in their home country
- struggling with wider family issues and how to relate to their extended family or friends who just don’t get them
- working out how to put the pieces of the jigsaw that is their life back together in a meaningful way
- not wanting to lose sight of the “them” that was different and adventurous and daring
- seeking a new adventure for the next stage of their life.
There is normally a whole mixture of things going on, and not just limited to those things in the list above.
What does resettlement coaching involve?
Typically, we meet together for six sessions, spread over a time of up to six months. We can meet face-to-face or by skype / zoom, according to your location. The sessions are pretty different according to what the client is looking for – they’re very much tailored to the individual. Having said that, here are some of the things / characteristics that may be involved:
- various tools / exercises for you to look at initially on your own and then together
- chatting about the things you are finding challenging or energising at any point in your re-entry
- looking deeper inside yourself and the way you work with the help of the enneagram, a self-awareness tool. This can bring a lot of insight into how you operate and why you do things in a certain way
- working with what emerges for you during the coaching process. I may make suggestions, but it’s very much driven by you
- reflecting on what you’re learning through your transition
- looking at what you want for the future (and helping you work out what that is!) and setting goals to help you achieve that
- it is very much a holistic process, involving not just your mental wellbeing, but emotional, physical and spiritual too.
When is a good time for resettlement coaching?
Again, this question is hard to answer, as it is very individual. Some people come to me for debriefing within a few weeks of coming home. They then start coaching sessions after that.
A few people have tried to start coaching before they actually return, but this is normally counter-productive: they are often in so much turmoil with finishing and packing that they don’t have the brain-power to take on something else as well.
Many people come to me within a few months of returning home – and sometimes many months or a year after returning.
The main advice I would give about timing for resettlement coaching is that it has to work for you. You need to be in a place where you have enough time for reflection and processing to gain as much value out of the sessions as possible. This is about you after all!
We can stagger the sessions so that they work with the capacity you have – whether weekly, bi-weekly or up to monthly. There is a high degree of flexibility in the sessions, to make it work for you.
My vision
A word or two about my vision for you through my coaching – I guess you could say it’s my mission statement. As you know from my company name, it’s about helping you find your own pathway through. But it’s more than that. It’s about helping you to thrive.
Imagine a plant that has become a bit pot-bound and really can’t grow any further without re-potting. This is what I aim to do for each of my clients: help you find a bigger pot; taking whatever still serves you from the old pot; giving you some tools along the way to fill the new pot; and seeing you thrive and grow in that new setting.
Sound exciting? Get in touch!
When I returned to my passport country following living overseas for nearly 10 years, I decided to take the opportunity to do the re-settlement coaching with Helen & found it very helpful. I was seeking help to re-settle & also wanted help figuring out what direction to go in for the next season of my life. It was great to be able to work though these things with someone who has experienced having a “whole other world” in another country & gone through the re-settlement process herself as Helen has. There is so much that is unique to this experience that many others can’t relate to. Helen’s application of the Enneagram together with other tools was also very useful in continuing to grow in my understanding of myself & helping me to move forward. I highly recommend this coaching to others who are going through the journey of re-settlement.
Sandi, July 2019
17th July 2019
