Executive Coaching
What is coaching?
Coaching is partnering with clients in a thought-provoking and creative process that inspires them to maximize their personal and professional potential.
Professional coaches provide an ongoing partnership designed to help clients produce fulfilling results in their personal and professional lives. Coaches help people improve their performances and enhance the quality of their lives.
Coaches are trained to listen, to observe and to customize their approach to individual client needs. They seek to elicit solutions and strategies from the client; they believe the client is naturally creative and resourceful. The coach's job is to provide support to enhance the skills, resources, and creativity that the client already has. (...from the International Coaching Federation)
What can coaching help you do?
Clarify your vision.
Stay on track with your work.
Align your goals with your values.
Figure out what you really want.
Create a pathway to achieve your goals and greater fulfillment. Identify and break through obstacles or negative patterns. Maximize your leadership potential.
Increase your overall impact.
Types of questions addressed in coaching:
How can I achieve everything I'd like to in life?
How can I deal with a stressful dynamic or person more effectively?
How can I reduce the stress in my life or job?
What is my best next career move?
How can I better manage my employees?
How can I manage my work/life balance so I have more time, friends or activities?
How can I reach Goal X, which I've had for a long time?
More about coaching...
Coaching is based on the idea that the client always has the most knowledge about themselves and their situation. The coach's role is to help the client achieve forward motion. They help facilitate greater awareness of blocks, identify inhibiting beliefs, energize clients, increase action-taking, encourage goal setting, accelerate the reaching of those goals. Coaching is a positive experience for people who want to pursue change individually and make the greatest impact possible. It is a one on one conversation, the topic of which is chosen by the client.
Professional coaches adhere to a set of standards put forward by the ICF (International Coaching Federation). Those standards include high bars for training and certification, the use of formal contracts with clients, and application of a code of conduct.
Who gets coaching?
Coaching is useful for people interested in making a positive shift in their lives or who want to accelerate pursuit of certain goals. Anyone can benefit from coaching, and many organizations use coaching as a way to invest in their personnel as well as the bottom line.
Executive Coaching for...
Career & Transition
Coaching provides the time and space to think strategically about your work and life ambitions. Smart, creative people who care about the world and the people around them usually have many priorities and can pick any number of different goals should they choose to. Coaching gives you focused time and support to think through your choices and pick the balance that will help you achieve your goals. Imagine talking openly about the full range of your options and interests with someone who is not only trained to do just this, but who does not have a "dog in the race." It's delightful to enjoy the process even when the questions are big. The point is to find the path that makes the most sense for you right now, and for you in the future.
Executive Directors, Artistic Directors & Non-profit Board Directors
Leading a mission-driven organization is one of the most challenging and important roles you can take on. You're making the world a better place afterall. If it were easy everyone would be leading a not for profit. Balancing the day-to-day demands, keeping your people inspired and thinking strategically before every meeting can get overwhelming. The staff and key volunteers surrounding magnetic, charismatic directors are often counting on the leaders to be unflappable. Leaders, however, must discuss their options, challenges, and frustrations. Doesn't it make sense to do this processing with someone trained to provide positive structures for decision-making, knowledge of human and team dynamics, and an understanding of the non-profit landscape? Executive coaching provides a critical thought partner who recognizes that personal and professional energy are integral to success, and who helps you stay motivated to keep your efforts and communications on mission.
Entrepreneurs
Coaching helps entrepreneurs clarify their goals, circumvent obstacles and get into action mode. It is your company -- of course you are motivated! You started it for heaven's sake! But maybe you're a sole proprietor? Or a small LLC? Or working from home? Perhaps cashflow is a problem or you have a high-risk/high-opportunity moment at hand? Entrepreneurs can often feel alone when they have major opportunities or decisions to discuss. At the same time, they need to consider all the variables to be successful. Could I sell my business? Do I want to shift focus and invest in a different market? Does the team need to change? It's critical that you're able to talk honestly about your trajectory, but not first with staff who's next step may be to get their resume up and ready, or a client who could move to a different vendor, or a spouse who has a few strong opinions. Executive coaching provides a private space to vet the questions and struggles, and to think strategically about your best next steps. Executive coaching also provides a positive, regular check-in helping to keep you motivated, and keep you and your company on track.