What is Coaching?
It is customized, efficient professional development that improves your performance in the immediate future. A coach uses inquiry and self-discovery to help you become your better self. You identify the skills and behaviors you’d like to grow. You unearth what moves your forward and holds you back. You have an accountability partner to support you to follow through on goals you set.
Why Coaching?
Convenient and Impactful: One-on-one coaching sets up a dedicated time for reflection, problem-solving, and real-time learning, tailored to individual goals. You grow your skills and apply them to the issues you face today.
Develop New Habits and Accountability Systems: Coaching can help clients identify habitual mindsets or behaviors that impede their leadership. We will co-design change strategies, make commitments for practice and reflect on results.
Navigate Change and Transition: Sometimes, we invite change (such as a new job). Other times, change is forced upon us (such as a budget crisis, leadership transition or COVID-19). Coaching supports professionals to navigate change and develop new ways to lead. We try on new perspectives. We practice new skills. We identify the emotions that may hold you back.
Work Through Burn Out: Social change professionals tend to prioritize their cause over personal needs. That leads to burnout. World events are providing so many stressors these days. We can develop strategies to process emotions and diffuse stress. We will discover sources for renewal. Self-care is an act of social justice because it allows you to continue.
(More on the difference between a coach and consultant here)
For more details on types of people I work with and example activities, see my page on Typical Engagements.
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