There once was a man named Akiva. Akiva was a Jewish teacher who lived a few thousand years ago, and one night Rabbi Akiva missed his turn while walking home and ended up at the gate of a military camp.
When he arrived a guard yelled down, “Who are you and what are you doing here?”
It was late and Rabbi Akiva didn’t know where he was, so he asked the guard to repeat himself.
“Who are you and what are you doing here?” the guard asked again.
Akiva replied with an unexpectedly personal question, “How much are they paying you?” he asked.
Understandably, the guard was confused, but after giving it some thought he told Akiva how much he was paid, to which Akiva responded: “I’ll pay you twice that much if you come to my house and ask me those two questions every day.”
…………………………………
This might seem like a strange story to share, but it has had a significant impact on my understanding of coaching, to the point that I was originally planning to name my business Akiva Coaching.
You may have already read this elsewhere on my site, but I believe you possess the wisdom and strength needed to face all the choices, challenges and changes in your life. My role as your coach would be to help help you reclaim the direction of your life, which is not something you can do without answering Akiva’s questions…
Who are you? and What are you doing here?
I’d consider it an honor to help you consider these important questions.
