Executive Coaching – What’s Involved?

Executive coaching is often perceived as a mysterious and intrusive process from the outside, one in which many questions are asked, some of which may feel uncomfortable. This can often be off-putting, especially to business executives who typically prefer a concrete approach to solving problems. And for many, the idea that they may need coaching is equally objectionable. But the business of executive coaching has been steadily growing, and the case for its benefits is strong. So what does it really entail?

In fact, the process of executive coaching involves the use of specific and targeted techniques aimed at addressing a range of problems.

Here we give a brief overview of some coaching techniques and what they are used for.

360 Degree Feedback

Executive coaching in itself is about self-awareness, and being open to 360 degree feedback - from peers, from those reporting to the executive, and from those the executive reports to -  can help to form a well-rounded view of strengths and weaknesses, as well as how they are perceived.

This can form the concrete basis for changing behaviour and communication styles to improve performance and get immediate results.

Clearing Limiting Fears and Beliefs

A very focused process, in the course of discussing development needs, as well as changing behaviour executive coaching looks to identify the drivers for current behaviour – usually one or more quite specific fears or beliefs.

This stage then enables the executive to articulate these fears and beliefs, either spontaneously through discussion, or using specific techniques such as neuro-linguistic programming (NLP), to review them, and to adopt more relevant beliefs.

For instance, in the case of the executive always looking for approval, their belief may be that they are not good enough. Becoming conscious of this belief will enable them to let go of it, recognise their strengths and in place, believe in them.

Video Feedback

Allowing the executive to see how they appear and behave in a range of social situations, video feedback is particularly relevant in reviewing performance during public speaking and presentations, and it is equally effective in looking at interactions with team members and peers. Giving objective feedback, this can often help to counter self-perceptions and helps to identify specific improvement areas and techniques. A continual process, further video footage after coaching has started can show improvement and further areas of development.

Focused Problem Solving

While to the untrained eye this can appear to be simply an executive and their coach talking, this is a highly focused way of helping to reach a decision or solve a problem. Focused problem solving is particularly helpful when the issue is complex, out of the ordinary, or where there are high levels of stress or emotion involved, preventing the executive from seeing the situation in an objective way. And this process is especially valuable for senior executives who do not have peers with whom they can  discuss such matters within the workplace.

Within focused problem solving, the coach will ask the executive to clearly describe their issue, as well as identifying what may be preventing them from seeing a solution. Once the issue is clear, the coach helps to generate options and ideas around it, and then to select the best approach to solving it. If emotional aspects are also involved, the coach will bring in techniques to calm these.

The aim of this technique is to reach a decision, and if not, to create clarity around the issue enabling the executive to take tangible progress towards a decision – such as researching a specific topic or talking to a particular person.

Goal Setting

One of the keys to effective leadership and achieving results is having clear goals and working towards them in a planned way. Executive coaching in this area helps to achieve clarity and focus, and is especially beneficial when an executive perceives conflict between goals, or when there is an issue with priorities. The coach will use powerful questions to create awareness of what the executive wants to achieve, including any limitations that they may be inflicting upon themselves, and here, the GROW model may be used, to look at:

Goal – a clear view of where the executive wants to be.
Reality – where the executive is now – how far from the goal, and what challenges they face.
Obstacles and Options – defining barriers to progress and finding options to deal with them.
Way forward – taking the options forward to reach the end goal.

The Greater Value of Executive Coaching

With many techniques and tools at their disposal, experienced executive coaches tailor their approach precisely to the needs of their client and may use some, all or none of those that we have outlined depending on their brief.

In today’s demanding business environment, many companies place greater value on executives with coaches and mentors, who benefit from a holistic view of their own role, while inspiring and engaging others towards goals and productivity.

Find out more about the benefits of executive coaching with Inspiring Potential – helping you to achieve the results and success you want.

Inspiring Potential

Help needed with fear of presenting in public

I’m the CEO of a mid-size company, and as the company grows I am been required to do more presentations. These presentations cause me enormous amount of stress, and I feel very uncomfortable. Can you shed some light on this issue and provide some advice.

Dear CEO,

What you are experiencing is fear of public speaking otherwise called speech anxiety or stage fright. It’s that sense of fear that overtakes us when we have to present in from of an audience, and it doesn’t matter if the audience is large or small.

Many research papers show that fear of public speaking is among the most common fears along fear of death. The fear of speaking could be triggered by a past even in which you were asked to present, and you felt you failed or did not do as well as you’d like, or it could be a natural fear of inadequacy, rejection, being judged as incapable or incompetent. So how do you deal with this fear.

First of all realise that fear is natural. Whenever we are getting ready for a big event our body prepares us by getting adrenaline released, which causes all of the symptoms we associate with speech anxiety, including having sweaty palms, feeling flushed, increased pulse rate, etc. Everyone, including successful actor, sportsmen, and politicians experience the exact same thing before a performance. However, it is how you interpret and manage that fear that makes a difference. This fear can help you add energy and enthusiasm to the presentation or it can block your performance, if you let it. Most people who are afraid of presentations, see this fear as a negative indicator, and therefore start imagining negative situations in which they forget the presentation, the mind goes blank, people think they are incompetent etc. The key here is to use the adrenaline to your advantage and use the energy to connect with the audience.

Here are some tips on managing your nervousness:

•            Visualise the presentation from the beginning to a successful end, when everybody  applauds and congratulates you for a job well done, including some mistakes and recovering from them, and ending the presentation successfully. For example, many of us imagine thinking that our minds will go blank during the presentation, and it may, but the important thing is how you recover from it.  Instead of just thinking about whatever your fear is, imagine it happening and you gracefully recovering from it.

•            Breathe deeply , I know it sounds obvious, but it is important to take a several deep breaths until you feel calm and centered. By breathing slowly and deeply, you body starts to calm down, and  you can focus on delivering your message rather than on the fear.

•            Practice, don’t try to memorize the presentation word for word. It adds stress if you miss a word. It is better to have one or two word notes that may trigger the point, and rehearse the presentation several times before the actual presentation.

•            Another option may be to seek an executive coach (link to www.inspiring-potential.com), hypnotherapist, CBT provider, NLP practitioner that could help you tackle directly the fear. I had a client who asked me to help her with fear of skiing, she had been skiing for a long time, but didn’t seem to get better. We had one session, and she went on a skiing holiday, She later called me to say how dramatically she had improved , and she was now going down expert slopes.

Fear is natural, but it is also a learned behaviour, which you can unlearn. It is possible to give presentation and be excited and inspirational instead of worried and nervous. Executive coaching can help you deal with the fear and practice with someone that can provide you with feedback.

For more information on our executive coaching (links to http://www.inspiring-potential.com/executive-coaching.php) services to help with public speaking, please click here

Bullied at Work

Q: As an HR manager who’s just started at a large organisation, I’m concerned about a line manager who is considered a star performer. He is dominant, dogmatic and rude to his team but the organisation turns a blind eye, because he brings in so much money. I suspect he may be a bully, although no one has yet come forward to complain. What should I do?

Marielena Sabatier, Executive Coach with Inspiring Potential, writes:

This is a delicate situation. Certainly in organisations, there are ‘bullies in hiding’. They may be the ones who are control-orientated, who have a rigid way of thinking and don’t see anyone else’s point of view or who are constantly blaming others or using excuses to explain why targets have not been met.

In this case, it may be worth trying to provide a safe confidential forum where his team can speak up. As a new person in the organisation, you could try conducting one-to-one interviews with the team, as part of a process of getting to know people.

You may also consider introducing confidential 360 degree feedback as part of the appraisal process. As well as identifying if this manager is a bully, this should also provide you with beneficial information on the management and the culture of the organisation.

If the organisation is turning a blind eye to bullying, your bigger challenge would be to try to create a culture of dignity and respect in the workplace, by actively defining and promoting positive working relationships - and showing employees how to treat each other with respect - rather than simply trying to build a corporate culture where bullying isn’t tolerated. Citing the negative mantra that ‘We don’t tolerate bullying’ is not enough. It is critical to focus on the positive behaviours that are required to succeed in the organisation, such as respect, honesty and clear and open communication.

To do this, you need to get buy-in from other managers, run awareness training and establish a clear policy on how to deal with bullying.

Of course, it may be that the manager in question is not a bully. Some people are so driven by the task or challenge that they are unaware of their behaviour. They may have very little emotional intelligence or it could be the result of inexperience, stress-fuelled anger, fatigue or a lack of communication. Some line managers have an autocratic management style. Others occasionally become aggressive or snappy under stress. For these people, an accusation of bullying can come as a shock.

If this manager shows bullying tendencies, you might consider providing coaching to help him modify his behaviour. Coaching can also help individuals with issues such as aggression, lack of confidence and low self esteem.

Bullying is cruel and disrespectful and there are legal, moral, social and economic reasons why it should not be tolerated in organisations. If it does exist then everyone - bullies, victims and bystanders - should work together to stamp it out.

For further information about how our executive coaching can help your organisation, please contact us.

My job is meaningless

Q. I'm an HR manager in my mid-fifties. I feel my job is meaningless and I’ve got another decade to go before I can retire. I have worked for this company over 20 years and I don’t want to move. I feel valued and respected here. What can I do to re-motivate myself?

Marielena Sabatier, Executive Coach with Inspiring Potential, writes:

With the passing of time in a particular role, it is easy to get the idea that this is all you can do. I would suggest that you explore your options firstly within the role itself. Is there any option to adjust the scope of role so that you are incorporating some aspects that give you more meaning?

A job that has become meaningless can indicate that it is not aligned to your values. So the first step is to identify what would make your job meaningful. Bear in mind, that this is a very personal question. Everyone has different values and defines meaningful in a different way, so it is important that you do some soul searching and identify what is meaningful to you.

Ask yourself: What is important to me in my role? What would make my role meaningful? What am I motivated by? When I last felt really motivated, what was it about the situation created that state? How would I like to help others in the company?

Look for ways that will allow you to incorporate your values and your 20 years of experience into your role. For example, if you value creativity then look for ways of being creative. Or look for ways of utilising your experience in new ways, maybe become a mentor to less experienced HR managers. Only you know what can make a role meaningful to you.

If you cannot see options to bring meaning into your role then there may be some scope to do something else within the company or even to create a new role. The role that you dream up could be exactly what your organisation needs and it may be possible for you to make a case for it.

If this is still not an option, then you need to ask yourself: What is it costing me not to move? In other words, what are you missing out on by staying there until you retire? Is it fear that is keeping you there? This is a common factor as to why people stay in places that they don’t like.

Fear is often backed up by a belief that any new venture may not succeed. It is important to realise that such beliefs are personal and not universal laws. By being very clear on what you would ideally like to do, much of the fear can start to disappear and you can start visualising what you really want and make it a reality. Getting the support of a mentor, friend or a coach at a time like this can help you to clarity your options and re-energise your enthusiasm and motivation.

For further information about how our executive coaching can help your organisation, please contact us.

Lonely At The Top!

Q: I’ve just been made head of the HR department in a large organisation and I’m finding it ‘lonely at the top’. I feel I have no one to talk to internally. If I’m the boss, how can I ask for help from members of my team, on important decisions, without losing face?

Marielena Sabatier, Executive Coach at Inspiring Potential responds:

Feeling lonely at the top is common among senior executives. Many feel they don’t have anyone to talk to internally. It could be that other senior executives in your organisation have similar fears and concerns - and they may be surprisingly receptive if you’re able to ‘test the water’ and raise the issue of ‘loneliness at the top’.

These feelings are often driven by a fear of being found out or of not being good enough for the role, which is usually rooted in lack of confidence.

So, even though you are not alone in your thinking, it is important that you realise that a good manager can ask for help from his or her team and involve them in important decisions without feeling threatened or undermined. Your team provides you with support to ensure that important decisions are examined carefully and from different points of view.

In order for you to feel more comfortable, it may be necessary for you to:

• Understand what is the root cause of your discomfort in asking your team for help?

• Consider how you feel about showing vulnerability.

• Define what makes a good boss and ensure you develop the confidence to be one.

• Get some feedback on your managing style.

I would recommend seeking help from a coach or a mentor, so that you can:

• Understand the beliefs underpinning your feeling of isolation.

• Develop the confidence to be yourself.

• Become more self-aware.

Self confidence is a state of mind. People who lack confidence often focus too much on their weaknesses. It is important to have a balanced perception. Undertake an honest assessment of your strengths and how they help you perform your role successfully.

A coach can help you shift your focus and develop more confidence, in a safe environment. A good tip to improve your confidence is to think about different times that you have felt confident in the past: what were you doing, thinking and feeling? How did it help you succeed in that situation?

By focusing on developing self confidence and awareness - and by accepting your strengths and weaknesses - you can be a better manager and confident enough to ask for help when needed without feeling exposed.

For further information about Inspiring Potential's career coaching services please contact us.

Tips in delegating effectively

As a manager today, do you ever got the feeling the work you delegated was not done properly, the results were not satisfying and you ended up wondering if you wouldn’t have been better off doing it yourself? It’s a common complain among my clients. Now the tricky question, Have you ever considered, that it is the way you have delegated the task the problem?

There is a misconception that delegation is just about giving a task to a person on your team without taking the time to explain it, identifying clear goals and setting deadlines. However, effective delegation requires you to take some time to think about what it is that you want and expect:

• What exactly is it that needs to be done and to what standard?
• Who in my team can do it and I trust to do it?
• Why is it important?
• By when specifically (date & time) do I need it done?
• How will he/she know she has achieved or not your standard?

In times in which we are under so much pressure at work, both with regard to strict deadlines as well as to the required quality of the results, we tend to forget that delegation is not only about assigning tasks to your team in order to take some of the load of daily work off you, but that it has a significant impact on your team’s motivation, confidence, their professional and personal development and ultimately their productivity.

So just remember: Slowing down to delegate effectively will speed up your performance!

Benefits of executive coaching

The benefits of executive coaching for leadership development and improving people management

Are you the boss of your own company or department?

Are you managing a team of employees?

Are you expected to know all the answers?

What happens when you don’t?

Who do you turn to?

You cannot be expected to know all of the answers, all of the time and what’s more, you must not be too hard on yourself if you don’t. There are always answers, it is just a matter of finding the right ones and implementing them properly. Often gaining a different perspective on a situation will help to resolve it.

This is where executive coaching for leadership development and the improvement of people management skills comes in to play. Executive coaching from Inspiring Potential comes in the form of a series of one on one telephone conversations, geared towards raising an individual’s self awareness and their performance in the workplace. These conversations enable the individual to tap into their inner strengths and reveal their true potential.

Through the development of effective leadership and improved people management or interpersonal skills, Inspiring Potential can bring out the best in your executive management team. We have worked with everyone from CEO's to Business Owners and Directors to Senior Managers and our approach gets results. We help individuals to develop their leadership skills, raise performance levels in themselves and their teams, manage their stress levels, build self confidence, improve their managerial style and resolve intra-office conflicts. We also help senior management to deal with taking on new job roles and deal with redundancy issues on both sides of the boardroom table.

Executive Coaching – click here for more information on our executive coaching service

Leadership development

The most effective way of improving a company’s performance is to improve the interpersonal skills of the company’s executives. The business leadership training provided by Inspiring Potential, is specifically targeted at company executives to improve their leadership skills which will in turn, lead to improved productivity from the work force and increased profits for the business as a whole.

It is difficult however, to achieve this without the trust and support of your subordinates. You can feel ostracized, unable to gain valuable insight into what’s actually going on, on the ground or at the levels beneath you. Our training methods give you the tools you need to be able to acquire the trust and support of your work force and turn them into a dynamic, highly focussed and motivated team that are working together, with you, toward your common goals.

This new form of business leadership, leadership through emotion, is what is being demanded in today’s working society and companies that have embraced this philosophy are far outstripping their competitors, not only in terms of production and performance but also in terms of staff morale and retention.

Leadership Development Training - Contact us now for more information.

People Management

Great people management or interpersonal skills are vital to the success of any company. Effective people managers bring out the best in their co-workers – and create a vibrant and productive work space that is both inspirational and nurturing.

However many of today's managers have been promoted from within and just because someone is good at their job or they are a time-served member of staff, does not mean that they will necessarily make a good manager of people. In fact, in practice many of them don’t.

Great people managers are very different to great employees. In many cases they have an entirely different skill set. Sure, it helps it they’ve done the job themselves and know about the company structures but this inside knowledge can be picked up quite quickly. The extra knowledge and motivational people skills can’t be picked up in house, but they can be taught.

The effects of poor people management can be extremely damaging to the performance of your workforce and its morale and a workforce with low morale is one that is not operating to the best of its ability. If your members of staff are not listened to or allowed to communicate their ideas, they won’t feel valued and staff that don’t feel valued end up leaving the company. A high turnover of staff leads to the company spending large sums of money on recruitment drives and training.

Also, a manager who has “earned” their promotion could be compromising your business growth by refusing to recognise and tap into other talents that exist on your payroll for fear of losing the position they have worked for such a long time to achieve.

Our executive coaching packages are extremely effective in assisting managers to refine their people management skills. Through a series of confidential, one to one sessions, a manager can identify and 'own' their problems in this area, receive sufficient motivation to change their behaviour, experiment with trying out new ways of managing and improve their emotional intelligence.

Click on the link to learn more about our Executive Coaching packages.

What Can Executive Coaching Help With?

Leadership Development

Enhancing the leadership performance skills of key executives within an organisation is vital to the success of any business. This leads to the increased productivity and profitability of the company as a whole.

Managers and business executives alike have used coaching as a tool to help them further develop their leadership skills. An executive coach is non biased and objective and as such, is free to ask even the most awkward of questions. These are questions that may otherwise have remained untendered, due to a colleague’s unwillingness to voice any concerns or objections or even to make suggestions for fear of reprisal. Often it is the answers to these sometimes difficult questions that are the catalyst to change and corporate or commercial advancement.

Raising Performance

Finding good staff is hard enough these days, finding real performers, even more so. When one of your key players takes their eyes off the ball, as happens from time to time, it is important to address the issue as quickly as possible.

Our executive coaches specialise in getting people back on track, refocusing their attention and reframing situations to realign their priorities and raise their performance. Many high performers will actually request help of their own volition, knowing that something is off and that it needs to be rectified so that they can once again enjoy the fruits of success.

Stress Management

With the number of reported cases of illness brought on through work related stress, at an all time high, it is important that, as an employer, you watch for any of the tell-tale signs. As soon as you suspect that stress may be playing a part in the underperformance of your workforce, you should act to find a solution.

It is estimated that the average case of stress induced leave equates to a 31 day absence from work. Stress has a negative effect on people’s mental, physical and emotional well being. Stress can damage working relationships, sometimes irreparably. And stress can lead to reduced productivity and ultimately to claims against the company for compensation.

At Inspiring Potential, we address the causes of stress; we don’t just deal with the symptoms. We get to the root of the issue helping employees to develop new ways to rid themselves of stress.

Self Confidence

Anyone who has ever had their confidence knocked, be it at work or in a social environment will instantly recognise the signs. These can include an unwillingness to take on new roles or responsibilities, indecision, defensive behaviors, a general withdrawal or introversion and a negative outlook.

An Inspiring Potential coach will work with the individual to uncover the root cause of this predicament and empower them to take responsibility for change. The Inspiring Potential coach will help them to recognise that they have power to control their level of self confidence and that they can adopt new strategies to act with greater self confidence.

Management Style

Good people managers are inspirational; they bring out the best in people, allowing them to perform to the height of their abilities. They make the workplace a fun place to be, a vibrant and productive arena in which teamwork and individual performance are recognised and rewarded.

Good people managers are crucial to the success of a company. They are in touch with the morale of their team and they facilitate the free flowing of ideas and communication throughout the working environment. They also reduce the level of staff turnover and help to realise an individual’s potential as well as boosting the self confidence of those in their charge.

Our one to one manager training programmes are designed to help new and established managers address existing issues and deal with any issues arising. They will increase the managers’ self awareness, encourage them to take responsibility and ownership and to try out new behaviors in order to resolve these issues. Our programmes will encourage improved emotional intelligence to enable them to communicate properly with their team.
Resolving Conflict

Inspiring Potential can help you and your people managers communicate more effectively, reducing and resolving workplace conflict. If appropriate, we can host facilitated sessions between the parties involved or work with each party on a one to one basis through our Executive Coaching programmes.

Perhaps these issues have come up as a result of an employee review or a 360° feedback report. One of our coaches would then work with the individual to get to the root of the issue. One of the tools we use is the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. This helps us to understand the different personality types at work within your organisation. We are then able to suggest the implementation of strategies to resolve the conflict.

Handling New Roles

As an executive, you are supposed to know all the answers and most probably do; it is just that this is a new role to you and perhaps things weren’t properly explained by the previous incumbent. Perhaps the job role as it was previously understood, has changed slightly and there are other protocols to follow.

Without this inside knowledge, it is difficult to assume full responsibility; but assume full responsibility you must, in the full and certain knowledge that there are those amongst the existing staff that are just waiting for you to fall on your face. At Inspiring Potential we work with you to find ways in which you can quickly bring your new team members on side, helping them to help you, and feel good about doing so.

Coaching your team to success

Coaching your team to success

In times like these, people feel uncertain and they need to re-build trust and re-engage with the organization. The uncertainty in the economy, political situation and work is causing stress and people to shut down, put their head down, and do the work until the storm passes. The problem is that people are stressed, not working at the fullest potential, and trying to stay under the radar and playing safe.

For people to re-engage and trust they need to feel valued and appreciated, they need managers and leaders to coach them and lead the way.

A CIPD survey on coaching last year reported that 80% of the companies are using coaching, and 63% is done by line managers, supported by professional coaches.

So how could you inspire your team to perform better? In uncertain times, people increase controls, and effectiveness measure forgetting the relationship building. History shows that focussing solely on effectiveness works only for a little while, as stress increases and therefore problems like absenteeism, and turnover increase.

Coaching is a core management competency that can help you improve effectiveness and morale in your team. You can help your team feel valued, and re-engaged into what they do. Here are some tips:

· Start any conversation by agreeing the outcome, what does the other person want to get out of the conversation

· Help the people in your team develop their own insights and awareness by asking them questions. You know how it feels to be told what to do, without being asked for your opinion or input, it’s safe but disempowering. It stops the creative process of the person doing the job being innovative to to come up with new ways of solving problems.

· Listen with curiosity to what your team has to say. Ask questions instead of solely directing them. Next time one of the people in your team asks you a questions, ask them first what they think, and what would they do?

· They probably know what they need to achieve what they want, ask them?

· Help them create an SMART action plan to achieve it.

By introducing coaching as a management competency in your organization, you start creating a culture of empowerment and employee engagement.

If you need further help please visit us on:

http://www.inspiring-potential.com/coaching-skills-for-managers.php

4 step process to achieve what you want!

Mahatma Gandhi said, “You must be the change you want to see in the world.”

In times like these when the media is talking about recession, doom and gloom, it’s more important than ever for us to keep focused on what we want to achieve and be the leaders we want to become.

One of my Clients said yesterday, “I don’t like my job, but at least I have a job.” People are feeling scared, insecure, and unmotivated. The future seems more uncertain than ever. This made me contemplate how to help people be motivated and inspired to do their best, when there is so much negativity around us. Energy flows where attention goes.

So it’s time to focus on what we want, and what actions we need to take to achieve it. Most people don’t know what they want. They just know what they don’t want. They can tell you quite clearly what they don’t want, but when asked what do you want? Their mind goes blank. Are you one of these people?
If you don’t know where you are going, how will you know when you get there? Have you stopped to think recently about what you want? What is your vision for what you’d like to achieve in your life, and in your career? Are you willing to put the effort needed to get you there?

Many people complain about their job, and don’t do anything about it. They moan about not having responsibility and accountability, or that they were passed for a promotion, or that the politics in the organisation block them from moving forwards. They feel powerless and they don’t realise they could take control of the situation if they chose to.We always have a choice in how we view a situation. Even when we think we don’t, we do. The problem is that we don’t like the alternatives and pretend they are not there.

Here is my 4-step process for achieving what you want.
1. Define what you want
You must create a compelling picture of what you want in your life. What will you see hear and feel when you have achieved it? How will you know you have achieved it?

2. Take responsibility for your current situation
The next step is to take responsibility for the current situation. What is the current situation? And ask yourself how have you contributed to it and how have you created it? What is stopping you ( within you) to achieve it?This is quite difficult to do; it’s much easier to blame others for our current situation. However when you take responsibility and control of your life you can take action to correct it.
3. Create an action plan

After you take responsibility for your situation, it’s much easier to see the steps to take to get the results you want. Write the steps into a SMART action plan.

4. Take action
The last step is to take action. Start acting as if it was already true. Be that person you are becoming. And keep visualising yourself having already achieved your goal.

Case Study

I had a Client who was a Finance Controller, and he was upset that he had not been promoted to Finance Director. Many of his colleagues in similar roles were Finance Directors and he felt that he was being taken advantage of.I asked him what stopped him being a Finance Director, and he came up with a long list of reasons why the company wasn’t promoting him. We worked on him taking responsibility for his current situation and after talking for a while he realised he wasn’t stepping up to the challenge.Through our work together he realised that he had been acting as a Finance Controller – waiting to be promoted. He started focusing on what he wanted, and started behaving and acting like a Finance Director. He started being the change he wanted. The result was that he was promoted in less than 3 months.Inspiring Potential can assist you in clarifying your goals and taking the steps to achieve them. Talk to us today!

Do you want executive coaching?

• Do you feel like you can't be yourself at work, they'll notice that you are not up to the job?
• Do you feel you have to work too much and not feel valued or recognised?
• Did you just get promoted, and don't want to ask questions because you feel you should know them?
• Do you know your blind spots? What people think of you?

If you have answered yes to any of those, you may want to benefit from executive coaching.

Executive coaching helps us become more self aware. It helps us identify what are our strengths and weaknessess. What are those self imposed barriers to our success, and more importantly how to overcome them.

Here is an example of how Executive coaching can help us change our perspective on what we perceive an issue at work:

One of my clients was really unhappy at work. She felt unfulfilled, and her performance started to suffer. The company she worked for had just gone through a reorganisation, and she did not get the job she wanted. She felt she had been demoted. In reality, her team had doubled, she had received a 20% raise, and she had responsability for all of Europe. On a day to day basis she loved her job and her team, but she felt betrayed by the company, because she was no longer at the same level as her peers. As part of the culture change in the organisation, they provided her with executive coaching.

We started the coaching process by identifying what were her objectives for the coaching and determining if they were in line with the new organisation.

We went through a six month process of identifying Why was she un-happy? What were her career and work values? Were they congruent with the organisation? What did she really want? What made her happy? etc

She discovered that her values were success, challenge, results, people, reward, recognition.

As a result of taking the time to really think about who she is and who she wanted to be, she realised she had many unconcious beliefs that were holding her back. One of them being that "title" was a key element of her definition of success. We explored the imporance of "the title" for her, and consequently she altered her definition of success to include elements that were more relevant and important to her life now such as impact, results, reward, responsability.

As she became more self-aware, she became more more focused on what was really important to her at work and more in control of her destiny and career. Her team started performing better than they had ever before. They won a quality award for the year, and she was promoted the following year.

This example above shows us how our blind spots or unconcious beliefs can hold us back or make us feel unhappy, and how an executive coach can help you see things from a different perspective and get in touch with what really matters to you.

Einstein said " We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them"

So, do you want executive coaching? You have the answer, would you benefit from having someone whose whole agenda is for you to achieve what you want.