Coach, Mentor
Nature & Forest Therapy Guide
Céad míle fáilte
My name is Michael Keegan. Welcome to my little space on the internet.
So, what can I offer you?
Well, I offer a lifetime of varied and eclectic personal and professional experience that I am pleased to be able to share with you. As a coach, mentor and Nature & Forest Therapy guide, I have worked with many organisations, teams, individuals and small groups using an approach grounded in Positive Performance Psychology, NLP, Transactional Analysis and Biophilia. The word biophilia originates from the Greek ‘philia’ meaning ‘love of’. It literally means a love of life or living things. Humans have a deeply ingrained love of nature which is an intuitive and natural drive imprinted into our DNA. Although retired now, I still like to work on a part time basis sharing what I can and helping people.
1 to 1 personal coaching either online, in person or walking in nature, helping with personal life/work issues & concerns.
Continued mentoring support following coaching sessions or just being a mentoring advocate creating a developmental alliance providing empathetic, realistic and sometimes challenging guidance.
Nature and Forest Therapy: Guided slow, meditative walks in natural environments designed to engage with nature through our senses and embody our connection to the more than human world.
As an Association of Nature & Forest Therapy Guide (ANFT), our Core Premise is as follows:
All of our efforts to become an environmentally sustainable species must be rooted in a deep relationship with nature; without this relationship, all our efforts toward sustainability will be subtly flawed in ways that will eventually be our undoing.
Go raibh mile maith agaibh go leir
Nature Therapy
Nature and Forest Therapy or Forest Bathing is a practice based on the general principle that it is beneficial to spend time bathing in the atmosphere of the forest.
Coaching
My goal is to help individuals and groups to learn and effect change for themselves by unlocking their performance potential in whatever field they are in, be it in work, sport or performance.
Mentoring
My approach to mentoring is one of providing that developmental alliance, helping you to appreciate your value, build on your existing strengths and guide you to your very best.
What is Biophilia?
Simply put, it is our connection to nature, but it is more than that. Biophilic design has been found to support cognitive function, physical health and psychological well-being, as well as enhancing mood, creativity and productivity.
The word originates from the Greek, ‘Philia’, meaning ‘love of’. It literally means a love of life or living things. Humans have a deeply ingrained love of nature which is an intuitive and natural drive imprinted into our DNA. We have a physiological need to be in contact with nature and the more-than-human world.
My overarching aim is to share my knowledge and experience to enable people to be the best they can be, reconnecting with themselves and the more than human world. Western culture does not place much value in the ageing process, unlike many other indigenous cultures, where it is still considered a sign of experience and wisdom.