Finding the Magic Pill: Psychoanalytic Perspective on Client Perceptions of Coaching

The main goal of the research was to study the peculiarities of clients' perception of psychoanalytic coaching as a "magic pill" and to identify the possibility of overcoming this perception during the process of psychoanalytic work. The authors have analyzed the concept of a "magic pill", the main areas where this phenomenon is most often encountered and the psychoanalytic aspects of this phenomenon. In this work some details and possibilities of the psychoanalytic coaching method were analyzed in theory and practice, influencing the possible perception of coaching as a "magic pill" and the possibility of working on this perception. The main research task was to study those fantasies about "magic pill" which are a manifestation of magical thinking, which every person has to some degree and which stems from the earliest stages of personal development. Clients' desire to find quick and easy solutions to their problems can be recognized as the dominance of an 'infantile omnipotence' that seeks immediate gratification of its desires and from this position the request for a 'magic pill' can be seen as a defense reaction aimed at avoiding frustration and responsibility. The research resulted in the following conclusion: psychoanalytic coaching can be perceived as a "magic pill" for problems and wish fulfilment, but at the same time it can help a person to move from fantasies and distorted perception of reality to a more mature and realistic view of things, to find his or her true self and to strengthen his or her self-value through reliance on real relationships and success.