The idea of working with a coach is perhaps something that hasn’t occurred to you before. You’re busy in your day job, you have a great mentor and your organisation has invested in your development so why would you need a coach?
First take a step back
When it comes to career progression, I find it helpful to take a step back to reflect on what you’ve achieved so far and then ask yourself where are you currently heading? To help you assess your current trajectory, a personal audit or review can be a helpful exercise. To help get you started I have shared some questions below that will kick start the process…..
- What are your long-term career goals and objectives?
- Are you on track to meet your goals and objectives?
- Do you have the right development plan in plan to achieve your goals and objectives?
- Are you happy with the current pace of your career progression?
- Do you fully understand your development areas and know how to effectively close them?
- How would you assess your current progress to date?
- Have you received independent challenge on your current progress?
Understanding your trajectory
Once you’ve undertaken this review, you’ll be in a stronger position to truly understand where you are current heading and whether you like this trajectory? If this answer is yes then keep going but if it’s a no, then working with a coach might be something to consider.
The role of a coach is to help you reflect on your career goals and identify what’s currently stopping you achieving them. The coaching process is designed to help you achieve clarity and understand how to effectively accelerate your development in way that’s tailored to you.
Why not try a discovery session?
The objective of this article isn’t to sell you on the virtues of coaching but help you reflect on your current trajectory and pose the question are you happy with the pace of progress / trajectory? The vast majority of coaches will offer you a free discovery session where you can talk through your current position and help you understand how coaching could benefit your future. With this in mind you’ve got nothing to lose exploring…..
About the author
Tomas Mason is an experienced Executive Coach specialising in leadership development. He trained with Henley Business School and is accredited by the EMCC. Prior to coaching Tom was a senior leader in the financial services sector.
