The Story

When East meets West… when Lao Tzu wrote down the 81 verses of the Tao Te Ching 2,500 years ago in ancient China, he may not have realised the impact its philosophy would have millenniums later in the West and the newly-emerging profession of life-coaching.

When Julia from Taiwan met Nick from England on a coaching course, they didn’t realise at first that they had a common interest in the work of Lao Tzu. This joint interest soon became a course project. As we explored a few verses of the Tao, we began to see how Lao Tzu’s teachings could be related to personal development and coaching principles.

On this blog we intend to continue this work by exploring one verse of the Tao Te Ching each week. We invite you to join us on our journey and add your own thoughts to deepen our learning. How do you interpret Lao Tzu’s message? And how does it speak to you as a coach?

Friday, December 4, 2009

Verse 74

When the people do not fear death,
of what use is it to threaten them with death?
If the people were always afraid of death,
and if those who did wrong would always be arrested and put to death, who would do wrong?

There is always a Lord of Execution whose duty it is to kill.
If you try to fill that function it is like trying to hew wood
in place of a master carpenter.
You will probably cut your own hands.

[For Personal Development]
  • It is not the death itself that’s threatening; it is our perception of death that makes it threatening.
  • What happens is not as important as how you react to what happens.
  • If we realize that all things change, there is nothing you will try to hold on to.
  • Be present. Leave the control of future to the master- the universe.
  • Playing God, leaves blood on your hands.

[For Coaching]

  • Coaching = "who" + follow-through
  • The art of reframing is to maintain the conflict in all its richness but to help people look at it in a more open-minded and hopeful way.
  • Invite the client to let go of their limiting beliefs.
  • The client is accountable for his/her own growth and development. A coach cannot handle it for them.