Alistair Hawkes is one of the coaches that we found this month and we did a little interview with her. She impressed us with her innovativeness and expertise.
She has a master of arts degree in Somatic Counseling Psychology and she is licensed as a professional counselor in Colorado. Her professional training is vast and she currently spends her time as an educator who helps students and clients learn the basics of psychophysiologic self regulation. She dedicated her life to helping others find happiness within themselves. From mentoring disadvantaged teens to providing clinical counseling, her path has been anything but conventional, yet it has uniquely equipped her to guide others toward self actualization.
Her coaching style is as innovative as it is effective. At the heart of her approach lies a self development process she calls HIKE4evolution, a series of practices designed to transform individuals from the inside out. By combining ancient wisdom with modern techniques like biofeedback and neurofeedback, Alistair offers a holistic model that not only enhances mental health but also promotes emotional well being. Her clients, whether in person or through online classes, consistently report reduced stress, increased self esteem, and more fulfilling relationships.
She developed a unique philosophy and perspective on life. Her teachings, referred to humorously as the “gospel of Alistair,” emphasize the power of positive thinking, mindful movement, and conscious awareness. Through simple, daily practices, she empowers her clients to ground themselves, focus their minds, and stay present in the “most wonderful NOW moment.” Here is what she said.
Meet Life Coach Alistair Hawkes:
Name: Alistair M. Hawkes
Pillar: The Mind, The Heart
Who is this coach for: Anyone, especially professionals and therapists who want to recover from burn out, improve their mental and emotional wellbeing, and improve the relationship they have with themselves.
How they can help: By using various coaching tools, techniques, and methods like the HIKE4evolution, as well as assessments like the Burnout Check up, just to name a few.
First of all, how are you and your family doing after these Pandemic times?
I have a college aged daughter and my whole family (sister, two brothers and my mom) lives nearby on the front range of Colorado.
We are all doing mostly great since the Pandemic times.
Certainly there have been ups and downs but for the majority of the time we are all highly functioning people who like to spend time together having fun.
Except for the fact that it happened I don’t think any of us are experiencing long term affects, or negative ramifications from the Pandemic that we know of.
Things during the pandemic were stressful on many levels and I watched myself ride an edge on self regulation.
We all supported each other and we were lucky to have one another so close by.
But I saw people and community members struggling, in my office and online, lots of regular folks challenged by the stress of isolation, lockdowns, job losses, kids at home for school, the fear about getting sick, the media frenzy and all the political turmoil, were rocking a good portion of the population’s worlds.
I saw a lot of service providers burning the candle at both ends providing services to the community during the Pandemic.
Flexibility is a thing and everyday I saw through my clients and my family that the more flexible people are, and can become, the more easily they are able to navigate the challenges of life.
When people can’t successfully manage the stressors of life they often see a professional.
Hundreds of those people come to me.
How did the coronavirus pandemic affect your clients? Did it affect you at all?
The Pandemic affected my clients in different ways, just like with everyone on the planet.
What I noticed first is that the clients I had before the pandemic who were mostly high functioning perceived, at least initially, that the lockdowns and work from home orders were a reprieve from commuting, etc. and they relaxed on therapy and stayed home and rested.
This actually resolved some stress.
What I experienced next is receiving a huge influx of inquiries from new clients, people who weren’t doing so well before the lockdowns and the lockdowns really affected them, stressed them more, and therapy became the “new thing”.
My practice grew to overfull in a matter of months and I tried to keep up best I could until I realized I couldn’t help everyone who called…
And I put the brakes on so I could figure out a way to help more people without wearing myself down.
That’s when I started teaching classes to other therapists who were drained as well, from the influx of new clients.
I’ve also had a significant increase in teachers and nurses on my caseload.
So the burnout recovery series I teach now came into being through those experiences with clients in my office during the pandemic.
What are the biggest lessons that you learned in this pandemic?
There were lots of big lessons to be learned during the pandemic.
To start I have to say “don’t work so hard that you lose sight of what’s most important in life.”
My daughter is a treasure and I was working so hard during the pandemic that I didn’t notice when she was struggling with online high school and the isolation of lockdowns.
That was awful to realize.
Now I’m focussed on helping other helpers remember what’s important to them besides helping others.
Another thing I learned during the pandemic is that even though families may disagree it’s still really awesome when we can love each other in spite of our differences.
The Origin:
Tell us about you, your career, how you started with your coaching career?
I “coach” people on how to have healthy relationships with themselves and how to actualize their potential so they can be all they want to be.
This can be tricky business.
I’ve worked on the illness side of things for some time, mentoring disadvantaged teens in my youth, counseling teens in my 30s and then providing clinical counseling following my graduate education in my 40s.
People struggle.
This is true everywhere.
I’ve always “coached” people to be happier, and over time I’ve realized that the best way to help others be happier is to teach them how to be happy within themselves.
What was your biggest obstacle that you had to overcome in your life that made you who you are today?
Probably the biggest obstacle I’ve had to overcome in my life is the period between late childhood and early adolescence.
During that time there was a lot of chaos in my family and unfortunately I was neglected and had a deficit of guidance and containment.
My late teen years and early adult life was spent kind of spinning out because of early life and I made a lot of mistakes.
I also had a lot of great learning experiences throughout that time that opened doors for me to mindfulness, meditation, and holistic medicine which led me to do the work I do today.
This gives me some perspective on the silver lining concept of life.
The Coaching Style:
How do you innovate with coaching your clients?
The way I innovate students, in my office and in online classes, is to teach them a self development process called HIKE4evolution that helps them transform themselves from the inside out.
The process is a series of practices that are learned step by step, and they build on each other creating greater focus and concentration, reduced symptoms of stress, anxiety and depression, increased self image and self esteem, and overall more optimal function.
Over time the practices and the understanding generated by learning about the concepts builds flexibility in self expression and in relationship to self and others.
What’s unique about your coaching approach?
My coaching, or education model is unique because it combines ancient wisdom with modern concepts such as biofeedback and neurofeedback.
Because I have a therapist background there’s a level of mental health support and emotional wellbeing support in my coaching and teaching that can only be offered because of the education I have combined with my lived experience.
What benefits do your clients get after working with you?
My clients have said funny and wonderful things to me like, “I really try to put the gospel you preach to me to good use.”
That made me think, hmmmm “the gospel of Alistair” and then I laughed at myself.
Clients have thanked me for teaching them the power of positive thinking and the benefits of mindful movement and conscious awareness.
In addition, my clients and students report feeling less stress, more joy, more self acceptance, healthier and happier relationships, and better boundaries.
Do you use any specific tools to be efficient with your clients?
The best tools I can offer to people to transform themselves on a daily basis are simple and multidisciplinary, meaning they are found in many traditions.
6 ways people can heal and transform themselves on a daily basis:
- Ground, stay grounded in yourself, in your life.
- Know how to center yourself and what that feels like.
- Hone your senses, stay awake to them but detached from them.
- Spend time focussing your mind. Practice focussing.
- Move your body.
- Be aware.
These concepts are simple and when applied for a short time on a daily basis have a profound affect on one’s ability to be present in what I like to call this most wonderful NOW moment.
And, for those of you who want to check your burnout versus vitality level you can take the Burnout Check up which will give you some data on your level of optimal function.
The Impact:
If you had a super megaphone that, when you speak into, the whole world will hear your message, what would you say?
Have peace in your heart.
Work toward the greater good.
Solve problems without violence.
Manage your energy and your life with openness, detachment, and discernment.
Have a daily practice of inner work that transforms you from the inside out.
Do what you can to evolve.
Do the work you love.
Enjoy!
What is the greatest lesson you have learned in your life?
I’ve learned a lot of great lessons in my life… one of the best is to keep learning, no matter what.
To set goals regularly (thanks, Anne!), have grace with myself, and practice self acceptance.
Other lessons that feel important are to stay open to conflict resolution and to people’s differences and needs.
Also, be mindful, do my inner work, and care about things that are bigger than me like world peace and humanity’s evolution.
I want this for everyone.
Your final thoughts?
Thank you for this opportunity to share myself with your readers.
I look forward to reading more about the many coaches who read and contribute to your publication.
Really live every moment, break the patterns that keep you stuck and savor life.
See you on the path!
Where Can You Find Alistair Hawkes?
If you liked this interview and if you’d love to recover from burn out, improve your mental and emotional well being so you can improve the relationship you have with yourself, go to https://www.alistairmhawkes.com/ and see how coach Alistair can help you.
If you’d like to check your burn out score, you can get your free 2 minute assessment here.
If you’d like to peak a glimpse of her coaching, follow her Facebook and Instagram accounts.
And if you’d like to connect with her more personally, you can do that through LinkedIn or by sending her a direct message on her Email [email protected]. It was an honor having this interview with her.