Coaches from different walks of life have their own reasons for getting into coaching. Dan Ferrato is a fitness coach at Club Sweat Fitness, looking to inspire people in their own fitness journeys. Dan’s personal fitness journey was one of the main catalysts that influenced him to become a coach…

“I was really overweight when I grew up and I lost a bunch of weight and I wanted to help people do the same.”

It takes a lot of character to proactively make changes to your lifestyle to become fit and healthy.

Coach Dan’s ongoing experience of his fitness journey makes him an asset to anyone he trains because of his extensive experience in the matter. Ferrato has a refreshing perspective on coaching through his years spent in the gym with his clients…

“It’s opened my eyes to the world to be honest with you. It’s taught me there’s all different walks of people and different walks of things and people learn differently and you’ve to coach them differently and so it’s taught me that I can kind of adapt to anybody.”

National Coaches Week is a chance to appreciate all the great things that coaches do for their students and it is also an opportunity to give them their flowers. If a coach has helped you change your life for the better, they deserve to know that their work makes a difference.

This week, coaches are appreciated for all their hard work and dedication. A week does not seem like it does them justice. Coaches need to be recognized and commended for their role in shaping a person’s mindset. It is such an important part in a person’s ability to improve and be better at what they want to do. A life coach who goes by the name Kohei offers a unique approach and safe environment for people to realize their true potential…

“What I love about about coaching is, I guess it really comes down to helping people to realize their full potential and actually providing the environment so they can start really tapping into their skills and potential.“

A coach has a responsibility to their disciple. An unspoken obligation to look out for their best interests and to help them reach their true potential. Even if the disciple doesn’t see it for themselves.

To learn more about Kohei, click on this link: https://www.knowyourselfconsulting.com/

Coaches have such a rich experience with creating the right mindset in a person. Coach Kohei has found that coaching is an exchange of experiences between a coach and student…

“To be honest, every time I coach, I learn. The fact that how much impact I could make. Every time I have a coaching session with people, I see the results in people, I realize how much improvement I can make in this world as an individual.”

Coaches who are constantly learning on the job like Kohei are the reason why people benefit from coaching. The guidance of coaches at the developmental stage of a person’s career or relationship is a major tool in the way they view their lives.

In honour of coaches and all their hard work, this week is celebrated as National Coaches Week. Coaches exist in different fields, not just sports. Kamantha Naidoo a.k.a Coach Kam is a confidence and acting coach who takes her job seriously and is more than qualified for the gig…

“Well I have a background in psychology’s education. So, previous to coaching, my background was psychotherapy and then I decided to practice a more holistic manner and transform my practice to coaching.”

Coaching has different approaches and a psychological one can prove to have its own benefits.

Every coach has different parts of the job that they cherish. Coaches are responsible for the success of their students. Coach Kam enjoys helping people become more skilled at achieving their goals…

“I enjoy helping people discover parts of themselves, they didn’t know existed. And helping them transform makes me really happy.“

It’s because of coaches like Coach Kam that people are able to reach the next step of their transformation and strive for success. Take this as an opportunity to reflect on a coaches role in a person’s success.

National Coaches Week is a time to celebrate the positive impact coaches have on athletes and communities across Canada.

Coaches play a vital role in a teams performance. A volleyball coach and current volleyball player at UBCO, Téo Ardanaz says that playing sports his whole life inspired him to start coaching…

“I got into coaching honestly through playing my sports. So growing up as a club volleyball athlete, I always had a lot of impactful coaches around me who gave back to the community.”

Coaches inspire athletes to play to their true potential and at the same time, they build a special bond.

Happy National Coaches week to ALL the outstanding Coaches across ALL levels. Who give their time and effort in support of the betterment of sport but most importantly people. pic.twitter.com/V5KUPPDCdN

— Brian Hutton (@Coach_Hutton) September 24, 2022

The expertise and confidence instilled in an athlete through a coach is a sensitive process because they are teaching them so many skills that can transfer over to their personalities as well. Ardanaz certainly believes that coaching has many layers to it…

“Coaching has taught me that sports is really larger than a competition itself. I think it’s a great way to get to know people, interact with others, have friends, to learn life skills, to learn leadership skills, and on top of that it’s also taught me I guess how to be patient with kids, how to provide better feedback, I think it’s also taught me how to be a better athlete because sometimes I might be trying to help teach a skill or correct a skill and I can kind of make some better links for myself.”

This week is to recognize and appreciate all coaches. Take this as a sign to check up on your coaches and tell them how much you appreciate them.

The shortage of physicians In hospitals is a cause for concern as many of them are feeling burnt out. There are many people that play a role in finding a solution to the shortage of physicians and other problems that the healthcare system faces. A data scientist who works for the Medical Association of Canada, Ayush Joshi describes his role in finding solution.

“In my role, I come up with models for predicting, for example, demand and supply shortage of physicians in hospitals and then we come up with policies that address them.”

Finding a solution to dire situations like a shortage of physicians is a big responsibility that data scientists are entrusted with. There are challenges to face in any field of work and the field of data science is no different. There are unpredictable dynamics that play a part in the responsibility of a data scientist and Joshi describes this as one of the challenges.

“It is challenging because a model always won’t have 100% accuracy in real life because there are some variables that models just can’t predict just because of the human element.”

https://twitter.com/kevin_coderKE/status/1571711992875859968

It seems like AI machines are not completely in charge of finding solutions for the issues that the Medical Association of Canada face but that doesn’t feel like a terrible thing. There is a sense of comfort knowing that people like Ayush are constantly trying to find solutions for major problems.

The changes to your daily schedule when you start a job is expected and it’s something that takes time to adjust to.

Recent graduates are finding the transition from a college or university schedule to a 9-5 work schedule to be challenging. A recent employee of a software company NCOL, Ahmed As Sami expresses his thoughts on how he would feel more connected to the new workplace.

“Maybe if there was more in-person work. Maybe at least like two days a week would be good but it’s like one day in two weeks. So, it might cause a bit of a disconnect.”

This concern is certainly understandable considering the limited time spent in an environment with co-workers.

#WorkFromHome advanced to a new level in the past years. Employees were worried about the efficiency of remote working, but it turned out, that having a work-life balance can be a greater challenge.

Grab a few tips on how to be productive and don't burn out 👇#RemoteWorking pic.twitter.com/EPpGGFcX6R

— BeInCryptoJobs (@beincryptojobs) September 17, 2022

Working and studying remotely is certainly a reason for feeling disconnected to your colleagues or peers because most interactions with them are over a screen. Sami thinks that being in a physical space with your co-workers, as opposed to working remotely can benefit everyone.

“ …you know when people are near you, you can ask them a question immediately but when it’s like remote then when you message them sometimes they take thirty to forty minutes to reply,” Sami said.

Working remotely has its upside, like picking your own time to work and in the comfort of your home, but the downside of feeling disconnected to a workplace is the double-edged sword here.

Students and staff at BCIT have an opportunity to connect with each other outside of a classroom and share a bond through their mutual sporting interests.

Intramurals is a formal league of sports that BCIT Recreation Centre offers. The intramural coordinator, Justin Lee runs the intramurals and enjoys the experience and atmosphere offered in the ten week schedule.

“Pretty much just being around anybody who likes to play sports. I’ve studied sports and been involved with sports my entire life so it’s nice to be around people who actually want to be involved in sports.”

Students and staff who are interested in playing sports and not spending tons of club or league fees can enter a league with a team of their own or a team created for them by the Intramurals Coordinator.

Not in the Face celebrates another win at BCIT Intramurals. #recwithus #dodgeball pic.twitter.com/Cxp9jAlu4X

— BCIT REC (@bcitrecservices) November 5, 2015

Justin says that, Intramurals are helpful to many staff and students because of the temporary escape it provides from the daily pressures of life. It offers people an environment where they can forget about a bad grade on a quiz or an argument with a friend or family member. Not to mention, it is a physical activity that can help boost people’s serotonin levels and their mood.

“ It’s nice to see people have an opportunity to get away from stress of school, stress of studying, stress of you know.. whatever, maybe they have something going on at home. Recreation is just kind of a temporary escape or stress relief of any of the daily pressures that students and staff may face.”

New students and staff should consider joining a team at the Intramurals if they have a passion for playing sports or if they enjoy meeting and spending time with new friends.

At the start of a new semester, people make new friends, they take on a new journey (or continue the journey that they’re committed to). As you walk around the campus grounds at BCIT, it becomes easier to spot a new face.

It’s easy to spot new students because they usually have a look of confusion on their faces with their phones glued to their hands. They might be trying to find their way to their class or trying to fit into an unfamiliar environment.

Digital design and development student Cory Rodd is a new face on campus who quit his marketing job to start a new journey. “I tried to get a job in (marketing) after I left the company I was working for and all the jobs without (an) education weren’t paying very much. I want to start my own business.”

September is ushering bright and fresh energy✨ Welcome back to all new and returning #BCIT students!

Photos from Kickistart are now up on our Flickr album: https://t.co/aeXaDw8wzQ pic.twitter.com/XZS4OV6j26

— British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT) (@bcit) September 13, 2022

Everyone at BCIT has a story. There are people who have a similar one to Rodd but are on their own journeys. “Everybody seems either very friendly or new, nobody is really talking to each other yet, we’re just kind of like breaking the ice and stuff,“ explained Rodd.

There are many people at BCIT who understand what Rodd is talking about because they are in the same boat as him or because they have been in the same boat. A new chapter of your life with new people and a new environment can be intimidating and challenging, but in the weeks to come, the feeling of unfamiliarity will slowly pass and be replaced with a feeling of empowerment.