Getting unstuck with a life coach

SPARTA — Helping everyday people with everyday problems is the goal of Sparta resident Aliisa Hayes, life coach and owner of Coaching For Life, a new business in town. Aliisa is pronounced A-Lisa, which is Finnish.

As a wife and mother of three and a long time elementary school teacher, Hayes can often personally identify with her clients’ challenges.

But in addition to her own life experiences, Hayes is certified through the World Coach Institute and is a Certified Professional Coach, Certified Life Coach and Certified Relationship Coach – including bereavement.

She is also a member of the International Coach Federation and the New Jersey Professional Coaches Association.

Hayes explained her profession as providing a little extra assistance — somebody to help people get out of a rut or break through the roadblocks of life.

Those roadblocks typically include relationship issues, transitional issue, work/life balance, losing weight or pursuing a dream.

She starts with a free 30 minute consultation. Although the issues can vary, the process is the same. Hayes’s goal is to help identify what a person really wants, set realistic goals, develop a plan of action, and stick to it.

Hayes described part of the process as pinpointing “the tiny components needed to reach your vision.”

Checking in weekly helps keep everything on track.

Hayes said her success comes from her ability to ask the right questions, since it's the client who actually does all the work. She is quick to note that she does not provide therapy and does not diagnose. Therapy often deals with the past -- she focuses on the present and moving forward.

She offers sessions on the phone as well as at her new office on 46 Main St. Call 973-440-9018 or see www.coaching-4-life.com for more information.