David Wood Discusses the Importance of Personal Growth and the Role Coaches Play

Who Is David Wood? (:20)

David Wood is originally from Sydney but has called the United States his home for over 20 years.

He was one of the first 10 coaches certified with the ICF in Australia, the author of Get Paid for Who You Are and now does high-performance coaching and corporate speaking through his brand Play for Real.

“The best leaders aren’t the ones who have all the answers. The best leaders are the ones who ask the right questions, so others can come up with the answers.”

How David’s Brush with Personal Growth Led to Coaching (7:45)

David’s first encounter with coaching came about because of an unhappy marriage. Someone had suggested that his wife take a personal development course, which he ended up taking himself.

While he enjoyed the work he did on his personal growth there, he ended up spending more time helping others in the course work through their journeys. And that’s how he discovered his real passion – helping people have significant breakthroughs in their lives and their businesses.

David’s Personal Growth Framework (11:00)

David’s coaching model doesn’t really have a strict framework. As he explains in the podcast, he has a model for how he handles his own growth, something he refers to as: Truth, Daring and Caring. But when it comes to clients, he only applies the framework when it makes sense to. Otherwise, he works with them on what’s happening in the present and how to enact real change that brings them closer to their goals.

That said, what he says about Truth, Daring and Caring is quite fascinating… especially when you get to the Caring part. You’ll see what I mean.

Truth

This is the first step, the one you take to admit to yourself that this is what’s happening with me, this is what I think about it and this is how I feel.

It’s not just about admitting your truths to yourself either. You can choose to be truthful about what’s going on with others, too.

“You tend to attract the people and the clients that are right for you if you’re willing to tell more of the truth.”

Daring

This is the next step. It’s the risk you take that requires you to put something on the line.

He also says that it’s not just about bravery. To be daring is to enter into situations that are truly uncomfortable. For you, this might mean that you’re more honest with your clients or it might mean that you finally start charging clients higher fees.

David asks today’s listeners to do the following:

Where are you playing small in your life?

If you were fearless, what could that look like in your business and your life? Write it down. Then, make a choice: am I going to take on one of these things this week?

Caring

Caring is the bit that we’re all too familiar with — or at least the lack of it.

David explains how his own drive to do too much led to depression, anxiety and a deep fatigue that left him with a serious case of burnout.

“I realised, finally, that if I don’t care for my body, I can’t be successful at work and I can’t be successful in life.”

So, he advises everyone to live a life with zero regrets, which means taking care of yourself, your relationships and your business now and never sacrifice them in the climb to success.

What Writing a Book Was Like (18:50)

David is the author of Get Paid for Who You Are, a book about how to take your passion and make a living from it using the Internet.

Looking back, David says it was a lot of work, took a lot of time and isn’t quite sure the payoff (at least in terms of money) was worth it. However, it was a lifetime goal he set out to achieve, and he’s happy to have had the experience.

Something especially positive that came from the experience was how he was able to build relationships from it. Specifically, he mentions one with Jack Canfield, the author of Chicken Soup for the Soul, who ended up writing the foreword for his book.

How Burnout Changed David’s Life and Career (25:45)

David’s been at this for a long time, so it’s no surprise that he’s needed to change things up to stay engaged in what he’s doing.

In 2002, he was tired of repeating the same things to coach clients over and over. So, he turned it into a product. But then one product became ten, and he felt as though he’d lost touch with his audience along the way.

So, he moved to Bali for a semi-retirement — one he only just emerged from two years ago to begin high-performance, one-on-one coaching with an exclusive set of clients.

Wrap-Up

Personal growth is not an easy thing to come by on your own, especially when your focus is mostly on business growth.

But as many will attest to in the WP Elevation community, as well as David’s former clients, it’s worth it to make room for it. And with a coach’s help, you don’t have to stop when you get to however far you can make it on your own. You can continue to go on in your journey and make a better life for yourself and those around you.