A couple of weeks ago I did an article on how to choose a career coach and I wanted to do a follow-up on the results you can expect from working with a career coach and whether or not it’s the right choice for you to help you reach your career goals.
If you’re dissatisfied in your current career, or if you’re returning to work and want to transition to a new career that better aligns with your values, interests and passions, working with a career coach is a great first step. But, I understand that it’s a step that requires faith because as coaches we’re selling something that doesn’t exist in your life right now. It’s not something you can touch or feel, it’s a promise of opportunity and possibility and that can feel scary. So let me answer some common questions about working with a career coach.
What are you looking for?
Before we start, the best way to make sure a career coach meets your expectations is first to get clear on what are you looking for. What do you need out of the coaching? Do any of these sound familiar?
- Are you at a career crossroads and looking to explore your options?
- Perhaps you aren’t sure what you want or what to call it?
- Do you want to improve as a leader and find your own leadership style?
- Would you like to feel happier and more balanced in your job?
If so, then career coaching could be a good option for you.
What’s it like to work with a career coach?
A professional coach has specific tools and training (certified) to help you navigate your career in a holistic and empowering way that can change your entire career trajectory for the better. Whilst most career coaches will do specific assessments, review your CV and help you create a career search strategy, that’s not all we do. You can expect a career coach to support you to do things like:
- Open up new, previously unimaginable, career options
- Combine your strengths and interests in new ways
- Talk about yourself with confidence and clarity
- Understand where you’re putting up barriers and holding yourself back
- Give you tools and a plan that last well beyond your next career move
- Help you take consistent, real-life steps towards your goals
Sounds amazing, but how does it work?
A career coach creates the space for you to discover your own insights and decisions…which leads to taking actions in your career that feel good and sustainable.
We do this by asking you questions to enable your own thinking. This might feel like opening a can of worms but it helps you build new patterns and habits. It helps you uncover your best self and then take intentional and aligned action. This might be in your career, your life or both.
Let’s take an example:
If you lack self-confidence or always put others’ needs before your own, you’re going to take those habits right into that next job. As a career coach, I help you understand what’s underneath those patterns. And help you change them. So you can start acting with confidence, and self-compassion, and minimise those doubts in order to find the right work environment for you.
This may result in changing your external circumstances, but most importantly it means doing the inner work that gets at the heart of what’s holding you back.
What results can you expect from working with a career coach?
The following insights come from my own experience as a coach, as someone who has had career coaching and from the feedback I get from my clients after their programme is finished. These are the top five results you can expect from working with a career coach:
Clarity
The most common reason people come to me for career coaching is that they feel unable to make a decision on their next step. They come for coaching so that they can be told which is the best option for them…but this isn’t exactly what happens. I won’t tell you what to do but I can help you choose for yourself.
Process: Through questions and reflective exercises you will learn more about yourself, your beliefs, perspectives, strengths, talents, values and passions.
Result: This greater self-awareness allows you to understand yourself, others and the world with more gratitude, meaning and purpose, thus enabling you to understand what you need in your career in order to find fulfilment, balance and grow your potential.
Getting unstuck
Many people feel stuck in a job they don’t enjoy, trying to justify the reasons they should stay. The stress of making a decision and the fear of making the wrong decision can make it seem easier to stay where they are.
Process: A big part of this is learning to see through the shoulds, the weight of expectations and the limiting beliefs from others (and yourself) that are keeping you stuck and settling. We do this by open and honest communication in our sessions. I create a safe space for you to be vulnerable and courageous.
Result: Once you can see what’s keeping you stuck, and why, you can start making informed choices for yourself.
Choosing the right career for you
So many people aren’t sure what the best career option is for them, the options can feel overwhelming and most people don’t know where to start. The other common part of this dilemma is knowing which skills to use and how to apply them – especially if it’s been a while since you used them.
Process: I like to start with your values – what’s important to you and then what do you need to have e.g. location, hours, commute etc and then we look at your skills and what you want to do. From here we can apply this knowledge to job profiles.
Result: You will be able to more effectively navigate the overwhelming maze of possibilities, bringing you to a sense of “knowing” which career path is right for you and creating a personal career road map designed to achieve your long-term goals.
Develop your skills
Let’s be honest, finding a new job is a bit like a game and you need to play the game to be successful but it’s hard to know what the current rules are.
Process: I help you with how to network, interview, give a presentation and negotiate. In addition, I will help you leverage your experience and strengths to find the most authentic ways to apply these new skills in a focused way.
Result: You will feel confident in your job searching and application skills. You will also be able to measure the results.
Achieve better work-life balance
No matter what your current or desired career is, striking a balance between your professional and personal commitments and goals can be a major challenge.
Process: I can work with you on reducing stress levels, better managing time, learning to say “no” more often, and setting and sticking to priorities.
Result: This work will show across your whole life, not just your career. You will notice greater satisfaction, better sleep, enhanced relationships and improved mood management.
I hope this has given you an insight into the type of results you can expect from working with a career coach. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to get in touch!
step by step course
Get Career Confident
Applying for a new job can feel hard at the best of times, but it’s even harder when you feel like you have forgotten all of your skills and you have no idea or confidence about how to start.
The Get Career Confident course allows you to build confidence in your skills and abilities, especially if you’re feeling overwhelmed at the thought of moving roles, getting a new job and/or setting career goals.
