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Impactful Coach
Episode 51Interview55 min

Designing Strengths-based Journeys with the Sailboat Metaphor with Mirna Smidt from Trainers Toolbox

with Mirna Smidt

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Show notes

A coaching podcast with Mirna Smidt and Tobias Weghorn on coaching methods that make strengths work feel more intuitive, less “report-heavy,” and easier to remember. Mirna (Trainers Toolbox / Happiness Academy) shares how she uses positive psychology coaching tools in workshops and coaching, and why she prefers adapting frameworks instead of following them rigidly. You’ll learn the sailboat metaphor coaching model for combining goals, values, strengths-based coaching, and real-life constraints into one visual journey. They also connect strengths to flow state coaching—using strengths as a shortcut to more engagement, energy, and learning.


Key Learnings:

  • Use the sailboat metaphor coaching approach to balance “sails” (strengths/resources) with “leaks” (weaknesses/overused strengths), so strengths-based coaching doesn’t turn into ignoring problems—it becomes prioritizing what moves the client forward.
  • Build flow state coaching into your sessions by matching challenge level and motivation, then use strengths as a practical shortcut to sustain focus and resilience (especially when clients feel stuck or low-energy).
  • When debriefing a strengths assessment, make it actionable by translating the report into visuals (sails/leaks/other boats/weather) and adapt the method to the coaching goal instead of forcing a linear process—one of the most transferable coaching methods from this episode.


Resources:


Episode Chapters:

00:00 Permission To Adapt Frameworks (Not Be Rigid)

00:01 Positive Psychology, Strengths, And Flourishing

00:05 PERMA And Positive Psychology Coaching Tools

00:12 Flow State Coaching And Strengths As A Shortcut

00:16 The Sailboat Metaphor Coaching Model (Sails Vs. Leaks)

00:21 The Full Sailboat Map: Values, Goals, Weather, Other Boats

00:27 How To Use The Model In Workshops (Non-Linear Coaching Methods)

00:29 Strengths Assessment Debrief Using The Sailboat Visual

00:39 Goal-Setting Prompts: Ikigai, Ideal Day, Rocking Chair

00:44 Weather And Resilience: Control, Acceptance, And Resources

Transcript

Full transcript, edited for readability. Every timestamp jumps the video to that moment.

Mirna Smidt: The whole session or the whole course, step by step, going through all these different aspects. I rarely use it like that. I do sometimes, but rarely. Many more times, I will use it by starting from some bit, maybe sails and leaks, or maybe goals, depending on where we want to go, and then see what naturally emerges. I think we can give ourselves as trainers the permission not to be linear and rigid in following the framework, but to really dive into what emerges as most relevant in the context of our workshop goal or the coaching goal. It's easy for people to get tied into a framework: "I should use it like this or not use it at all." But I really want to say, "Hey, own it. Adjust it, adapt it, play with it. If some part you don't really understand or it doesn't really resonate, kick it out." Tobi: Our goal as coaches, as facilitators, as people working with people, to put it broadly, is to enable others to have a flourishing life where we can leverage our strengths, pursue our purpose, and achieve our goals. Mirna from Happiness Academy and Trainers Toolbox is all about this. She's a positive psychology expert. She loves working with metaphors, and in her main venture, Trainers Toolbox, she helps facilitators to use all of these tools. When the two of us connected, we obviously talked a lot about strengths psychology, where apparently we are both pretty big nerds. But one thing that became very apparent for me in the conversation with Mirna is how strengths are often a very cognitive and language-based concept. Mirna taught me a metaphor, the sailboat metaphor, Tobi: which is an entire workshop or coaching session flow that combines concepts like goal setting, working with values, and most importantly, also working with strengths. So in this episode, we dig into all the above: what makes working with strengths a powerful tool, both for working with groups and with individuals, and how you can use sailboats to make it much more memorable, intuitive, and structure your entire journey. Enjoy.

Read the full transcript

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