Off 2017 Success, ICF Sets Date for 2018 International Coaching Week

For nearly two decades, Dr. Sandra Schiff has served as the president of Health Mate, Inc., in Southeast Michigan, where she provides career goal training as well as consultation in matters such as transitions and corporate leadership. Working to stay at the forefront of coaching science, Dr. Sandra Schiff remains active in her field through professional organizations such as the International Coach Federation. 

Based on the most successful and influential International Coaching Week (ICW) in the history of the International Coaching Federation (ICF), Vice President of Global Development and Membership Colmon Elridge recently announced that the event will be held again May 7-13, 2018. During this celebration, ICF coaches and chapters worldwide promote organizational awareness by offering free services in their local areas so that people have the opportunity to see how beneficial coaching can be in their lives. 

During the 2017 event, upwards of 60 different ICF chapters across the globe participated, offering 300 different coaching opportunities to individuals in their areas. These types of services included workshops, webinars, joint efforts with local business, and coaching sessions offered at no cost.

Union Institute and University - Doctoral Degree Program

Prior to becoming president of Health Mate, Incorporated in southeast Michigan, Sandra Schiff attended Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan, where she earned a master of social work in 1981. Sandra Schiff also earned a doctorate in geropsychology and organizational development from the Union Institute and University in 1996.

Started in 1964, the Union Institute and University is a pioneer in adult education, helping to create the format of traditional classroom education along with online classes. The university offers doctoral, bachelors, and masters programs and has over 15,000 alumni. The university also provides students from around the world the opportunity to study wherever you are with its flexible distance learning program.

The flexible scheduling for doctoral students allows them achieve educational goals without having to alter personal lifestyles or work schedules. The program requires students to complete a 66-hour program within seven years. The doctoral programs feature seminars in foundational and research studies to enhance the classroom and online training.

NOW WHAT?(R) Seminars - Facilitating Life Transitions

A leadership coach and executive located in Southeast Michigan, Dr. Sandra Schiff has extensive experience in change management and facilitating organizational effectiveness. With a focus on executive leadership and transition coaching, Dr. Sandra Schiff has recently received authorization to function as a NOW WHAT?® facilitator. 

Based on Laura Berman Fortgang’s book, Now What?: 90 Days to a New Life Direction, and related workbook, each NOW WHAT?® Seminar encompasses a dozen teleclass sessions over a three-month period. Participants include parents considering returning to work and professionals contemplating career transitions. 

Led by Life Blueprint® facilitators, seminars are typically small and rely on an easy-to-use private telephone bridge. Discussion centers on helping participants determine what they want to be “when they grow up,” take action to achieve such objectives, and allow jobs to reveal themselves. Support extends to any major transitions, such as divorce. One unique aspect of this is the Life Blueprint® methodology for finding the DNA that leads to fulfillment and happiness.

Seeking out Companies That Offer Lateral Growth Potential

A Southeast Michigan executive and leadership coach, Dr. Sandra Schiff also functions as a NOW WHAT?® facilitator. As such, Dr. Sandra Schiff assists clients in career transitions by helping them define their skill sets and realize rewarding opportunities by finding their paths. 

Some companies encourage not just vertical movement, but also lateral movement. This recognizes the fact that performing the same job can turn into a dead end over the years. For some, it makes sense to seek out organizations that offer a variety of interrelated positions and actively encourage cross-functional movement over the course of a career. 

Rotational programs typically immerse employees in a number of departments and workflow settings and give them a well-rounded base of skills that they can take with them in better defining their capacities and talents. This is one aspect of a company that it may make sense to research before settling on a job, no matter how appealing it appears in the short term.

Wayne State University Receives Future of Nursing Scholars Grant

Committed to helping individuals and organizations alike achieve their potential, Dr. Sandra Schiff focuses on career, leadership, and transitional coaching. An alumna of The Union Institute with a PhD in organizational development, Dr. Sandra Schiff received both her MSW and BA from Wayne State University (WSU), where she serves as an adjunct faculty member.

WSU recently joined a select group of universities when its College of Nursing was selected as a recipient of the Future of Nursing Scholars grant. Along with fewer than 30 other universities to offer the scholarship, WSU will be able to provide more assistance to nurses who are looking to earn their PhDs.

Funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the scholarship will be granted in the spring to a student who will begin his or her doctoral studies the following fall. Via the grant, students not only receive financial support and mentorship, but also gain access to opportunities to develop their leadership skills in preparation for management roles within the nursing profession.

The Everyday Practice of Mindfulness

Dr. Sandra Schiff provides personalized life and career coaching to individuals and families. In a recent blog post, Dr. Sandra Schiff focused on the importance of mindfulness, which she characterizes as being employed in describing a variety of concepts and practices. 

Mindfulness can involve making a conscious effort to be in the present, taking deep breaths, or meditating. While many think of meditation as clearing the mind, there is more to it than that.

Another aspect of mindfulness centers on changing the emotional relationships one has with thoughts and accentuating the productive and positive. This may involve sifting through a myriad of competing thought patterns and settling on those that are most beneficial or productive in defining life goals. 

Mindfulness may take the form of an hour of quiet each day or involve taking time at intervals to focus inwardly throughout the day. It may also involve closing the eyes and concentrating on breathing or keeping the eyes open and focusing on a flower or stationary object in the distance. Whatever the process, undertaken regularly and with specific intention, mindfulness has been shown to have a significant positive effect on those who practice it.

How to Prioritize the Important Things in Life

The president of Health Mate, Inc., in Southeast Michigan, Dr. Sandra Schiff serves as a business development coach, consultant, and Certified Peoplemap™ trainer. Moreover, Dr. Sandra Schiff has worked with the YMCA of Metropolitan Detroit’s I Rise Family Empowerment Program, where she presented a Family Forum session on how to prioritize the most important things in life. Since prioritization is a challenge with which many struggle, here are some useful tips for practicing it.

1. After creating a list of the challenges you want to overcome, think about what is most important to you. Order the list on that basis.

2. Instead of spreading yourself thin, focus on your top priorities, as this ensures that those tasks will be completed quickly and you develop as a person.

3. Understand the purpose behind everything you do and ensure that the challenges you confront all serve that purpose. Doing so helps you to cut out the tasks that don’t actually move you forward.

4. Leave yourself some room to take time away from your work and life so you can enjoy the things that make you happy, such as hobbies or time with friends. This time will prove invaluable as it helps you to recharge and approach your challenges with renewed vigor.