There are few things I enjoy more than teaching and learning. I feel enlivened by the process whether I am the teacher or the student, perhaps because in either role I am assured of learning something new.

In just a few days I will begin a meaning coaching course with Eric Maisel. It is the first ever according to Eric. It will be an extension of the creativity coaching training I have done in the past.

Although I have taken many courses from Eric and I have read the course material, I do not know quite what to expect from the course. It seems to me that it has the potential to be a deeply moving experience. After all, creating personal meaning seems to be an essential human task. While we learn to coach others we will no doubt be examining our own meaning issues.

In this on-line course I will meet people from far flung places. As I read the introductions that students have begun submitting I wonder if this person or that will become a new friend. I am curious to find out what surprising things I will learn from them

In previous courses I have developed strong friendships with several people. Some of us continue to communicate on an almost daily basis. I think of these women as professional colleagues, mentors and dear friends.

The excitement I feel when I begin a new course has the “new crayon” excitement of my youth. I see possibilities and I am filled with optimism. I am confident that I will be up to the challenges ahead of me. However, I confess that I also feel a tiny bit of anxiety about beginning something new.

To manage the anxiety I actively prepare for learning. For instance, I have printed off the course manual and had it bound. I have identified the times during the next six months when I may have scheduling conflicts. I have organized my schedule so that I know I can keep up with the course work. Sadly, crayons are not required for the course, but I have bought a new journal for notes, ideas and random thoughts.

Part of the course will include developing a web page to promote myself as a meaning coach. I have already begun to consider how I will fold meaning coaching into my creativity coaching practice.

I often say to my own students that the learning has already begun once you make a commitment to a course. I certainly feel that. I have shifted into “learning mode.” I look forward to this opportunity to learn. All of the parts of it seem exciting – new material to digest, new friends and a new chance to grow. I am up to the challenge.

© C O P Y R I G H T   2 0 0 9.  Mary Sullivan Holdgrafer ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.