[Andrew Wolff]

“With every passing day, I felt a layer of stress evaporate into the cold mountain nights. My breath became deeper and more fluid. My senses sharpened and my awareness heightened. Patterns emerged in the bark of trees and the sounds of elks bugling reverberated deep into my soul. I began to notice the weather patterns of clouds, wind, rain, and lightning. I became immersed in the natural world around me. Multiple times a day I experienced a sense of awe. I was in alignment. I was truly living and I will always remember the profound impact that two months in the wilderness would have on me.”

The excerpt above is from a journal entry in which I am reflecting on my 550-mile hike along the Colorado Trail several years ago. I enjoy revisiting this journal entry although in a way my “words fall short”, as nature connectedness is something that must be experienced by individuals to truly understand.

At the core of being connected to nature is being present to the frequency of the world AROUND us as well as being present to the frequency of the world WITHIN us. When we achieve this high level of presence, our consciousness expands and we experience the intersection of internal and external concentric frequencies. This is illustrated by Steven Harper in The Way of the Wilderness as he shares “My heart and belly felt expansive, and gradually I was overcome by the strangest sensation of webs connecting me with all that was around. I could sense webs of light extending out of me to every living thing and from them to me. I was sustained by all that surrounded me.”

As I think about this in the context of coaching, I am beginning to visualize the relationship between coach, client, and nature as an equilateral triangle. Coach, client, and nature are each points or vertices of the triangle, and each has a linear connection with the other two entities. Furthermore, each relationship benefits from and supports the other two relationships.
Coach <——-> Client
Client <——-> Nature
Coach <——-> Nature

Now that I’m writing this down it seems more like the proper geometric analogy between coach, client, and nature is a three-dimensional triangular pyramid or tetrahedron. When there are flow and communication in all directions between all three entities, a third dimension is created, and the center point of the two-dimensional triangle elevates to become the apex of the pyramid. To me, this represents synergies and an expanded container for “a thought-provoking and creative process that inspires the client to maximize their personal and professional potential.”

Practically speaking, what this means for me as a coach is that my effectiveness will increase as I become more intentional and committed to my sit spot and my nature awareness practices. Similarly, as I support my clients to increase their connectedness to nature, I expect for them to achieve improved results.