Effective coaching can lead to smoothly functioning organizations, better productivity and potentially more profit. In classrooms, better student performance can occur. Doctors or nurses can connect more with patients. So, understandingwhat effective coaching is would seem to be a natural goal, and it has been a major topic of research at Case Western Reserve University's Weatherhead School of Management since 1990.

Internally funded research at Case Western Reserve has documented reactions in the human brain to compassionate and critical coaching methods. The results start to reveal the mechanisms by which learning can be enhanced through coaching with compassion (a method that emphasizes the coached individual's own goals).

"We're trying to activate the parts of the brain that would lead a person to consider possibilities," said Richard Boyatzis, distinguished university professor, and professor of organizational behavior, cognitive science and psychology. "We believe that would lead to more learning. By considering these possibilities we facilitate learning."

Boyatzis and Anthony Jack, assistant professor of cognitive science, philosophy and psychology, have used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to show neural reactions based on different coaching styles. Their research builds on previous knowledge of Intentional Change Theory, which holds that positive and negative emotional attractors create psycho-physiological states that drive a person to think about change.

Boyatzis, a faculty member at Weatherhead School of Management, and Jack, director of the university's Brain, Mind and Consciousness Lab, say coaches should seek to arouse a Positive Emotional Attractor (PEA), which causes positive emotion and arouses neuroendocrine systems that stimulate better cognitive functioning and increased perceptual accuracy and openness in the person being coached, taught or advised. Emphasizing weaknesses, flaws, or other shortcomings, or even trying to "fix" the problem for the coached person, has an opposite effect.

"You would activate the Negative Emotional Attractor (NEA), which causes people to defend themselves, and as a result they close down," Boyatzis says.

What Boyatzis and Jack set out to do was to observe brain images which reflect coaching tone.

We are excited to announce that we have now trained over 2000 Wellness Coaches!

2011 Winter - Spring Certification Class Schedule

Live on Location in North Carolina

As the field of wellness coaching continues to grow there is more demand for coaches andhealthcare professionals to be trained in high quality wellness coaching programs. Real Balance Global WellnessServices is proud to announce that this Fall we have now exceeded the 2,000 mark in training wellness coaches! Wellness Mapping 360° Wellness and Health Coaches are helping people around the globe to create lasting lifestyle change in their lives. We’ve trained disease management nurses and dieticians to do more than just be medical consultants. We've trained physicians, physical therapists, health educators, counselors, psychologists, physician assistants, nursingpractitioners, fitness trainers, EAP professionals, diabetes educators, rehabilitation therapists, dieticians, life coaches, and many more. Using technology to reach around the globe we’ve trained people in Australia, Hong Kong, Dubai, Brazil, and various countries in Europe, as well as right here in North America. We’ve provided live training, telephonic training, and now inter-active webinar training which makes it easy for folks to engage in our training worldwide and not leave home or work. Speaking personally, it’s been a long and rewarding journey from the early days where I was presenting this new concept to eager listeners at the National Wellness Conference. While there have always been people trying to help others live healthier and more fulfilling lives,wellness coaching gave professionals in the field a effective methodology. As part of helping our young profession to grow with quality we continue to be active members of the National Standards and Credentials Team for Health and Wellness Coaches - helping guide and influence the process.

We Are Please to Announce:

• We have Licensed and are supporting Samia Simurro of Brazil, and Bob Boyd of Australia to deliver the Wellness Mapping 360 "Wellness & Health Coach" Certification Training in their respective countries.
• We are adding Annalise Evenson and Andrew Wood to our world class training staff here in the USA. Andy is a Physical Therapist, ergonomics specialist with 27 years as the Wellness Program Coordinator with General Mills. Annalise is ICF Certified coach with a background in Counseling and many years working in the field as a helping professional and trainer.
• Success Stories! To help us celebrate reaching the 2,000^th coach trained milestone, please send us your story of how Wellness Mapping 360° Wellness and Health Coach Training has impacted your life and professional work. We will post these stories on our website, our Facebook Fan Page (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Real-Balance-Global-Wellness-Services-llc/297219504575), and elsewhere. We look forward to hearing from you and seeing how we can continue to be of service to you! (Please e-mail your stories to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.).
• The Wellness Mapping 360° Wellness and Health Coach Training is now approved for continuing education by ACSM (The American College of Sports Medicine) and AHNA (The American Holistic Nursing Association). We have applied to the National Commission for Health Education Credentialing to provide CHES credit (Certified Health Education Specialist) and the International Coaching Federation (ICF) for “Core Competency” credit hours which can be applied directly towards the credit hours needed to apply to become a credentialed coach through the ICF.

“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.” Mark Twain.

September and October whirled by as I keynoted wellness conferences and provided training in wellness coaching in Brazil and the Azores Islands (part of Portugal, 900 miles out in the Atlantic!). Once again I was struck by how we human beings are more similar than different, how our needs and our challenges to be well are all basically the same. From the high-rise apartments of Sao Paulo to the coast of Portugal I saw that life is all about relationships, taking in energy through breath, food and more, and giving it out, even though it all takes on many different appearances.

It is fascinating how we all have the same needs and figure out such variations on how to get them met. Yet, helping people to improve their lifestyles, through a process like wellness coaching, seems to transcend many of the details. Despite what a person is eating, their metabolism still works the same way all over the world over. The challenge, as always, is about becoming conscious of what you are eating, how often, how much, and all the patterns of thought and environmental influences that affect the behavior of eating. My job is easy. I train a “local person” to coach others in the same culture. They know the cultural norms, traditions, taboos, influences and opportunities that their client faces far better than I do. I can teach the wellness coaching student the behavioral change skills, but they can relate to the challenges their own clients face because they are closer to the experience of that person.