What do you do if you're a mid-career professional seeking career clarity through executive coaching?

Diving into executive coaching can be a transformative step. My advice is to enter the coaching process with openness and readiness to explore deeply. Reflect on your true desires and aspirations. Together, we'll uncover what genuinely motivates you and identify any obstacles in your way. We'll work on setting clear goals and creating a practical roadmap towards achieving them, with honest feedback and challenges to push you beyond your comfort zone. This journey is an opportunity for significant growth and self-discovery. It will help you gain career clarity and the confidence to make impactful changes. Embrace the process, and be prepared to redefine and pursue a fulfilling career path.

When partnering with an executive coach for career clarity, you should expect the coach to provide an initial path to follow. That path starts with creating self-awareness. What are your strengths? What type of work do you most enjoy? What have been the most energizing and draining moments of your career? What workplace values are most important to you? Your coach may choose to use a number of assessments to help with this awareness. Working with a coach will provide tools to build self-awareness and provide accountability to the process. What a coach will NOT do is provide answers. Sometimes clients will ask, "What do you think I should do?" A great coach will not answer this question. Your answers must come from within.

Embark clearly on a journey of self-discovery and self-examination as a mid-career job seeker through professional coaching. Contact a qualified professional coach and explore your values, strengths and aspirations. Take advantage of your coach’s guidance and expertise and set clear goals and objectives for your career path. Use surveys and reflective exercises to gain deeper insight into your career path. Accept the process openly and willingly to challenge your thoughts and beliefs. Go for a fulfilling and purposeful career that matches your ambitions and abilities through self-training.

In the early part of my practice as an executive coach, most of my coachees were corporate sponsored. But in the last few years, I have had a growing number of mid to senior executives approach me directly. They are usually ambitious, and need help to craft out their career path, and achieve their goals. In a coaching relationship complete trust and transparency is required from both parties. Unless the coachee feels free to come out with their innermost fears and anxieties and discuss them with you openly, you may not really be able to help them where there really need it. While its great to do your own introspection on how your career is progressing periodically; a coach can help you quickly up your game and achieve greater success.

Coaches often share a belief that you possess an innate wisdom that allows you to rely on your strengths and resilience to overcome obstacles to achieve your goals. The coach helps establish a safe environment of partnership and exploration, to support your desired way of being and leading. When I teach coaching classes, I often give the analogy that the coach is like Google Maps or Waze, and the client being coached is the driver. You decide the destination and how quickly we go. As the coach, I help us navigate using the best route to arrive towards the goal, even when encountering obstacles along the way. As the driver, you always have the right to update the destination or refuel.

Mid life = New life Mid life happens at the exact moment you begin to reconcile who you dreamed of being with who you actually became. It’s a chance to take everything you’ve learned and accomplished and now channel it into something you truly love. But here’s the biggest change: ???????? ?????????? ???????????? ???????? ?????????????? ???? ???????????????????????? Where your drivers have always been achievement, promotion, and financial returns, they now become meaning, purpose, and legacy. Here are some deeper questions that can guide you: ??? When have I been truly happy in my work? ??? What skills or talents was I using? ??? Who am I most drawn to help? ??? How do I want to be remembered? Build your 2nd half around these answers

Working with an executive coach during this key transition point can be the difference between doing more of what you've already done or redefining the next phase of life and career. The power of work with a coach is their ability to actively listens to your experiences, reflects back your unique strengths, and gently challenges you to broaden your perspectives. This dialogue helps illuminate your true potential and passions, often hidden beneath the surface of your professional life. With an executive coach, you're not just mapping out a career path; you're engaging in a profound exploration of what truly motivates and fulfills you, paving the way for a career that's not only successful, but deeply resonant with who you are.

Coaching is a partnership to engage in thought provoking conversation that inspires individuals to maximize their personal and professional potential. As a coach I prefer to work using the GROW Model with my clients. 1. Begin with talking about their GOALS & Aspirations 2. Taking a REALITY check on the current situation where they are. 3. Looking at the OPTIONS they have and OPPORTUNITIES they have or should look out for. 4. WHAT ACTION can they take and getting them to fairly assess the resources they would require and identify any potential barriers so they can be prepared to make the change. This helps clients unblock limitations and move ahead in life.

Clarity is gained through an understanding and acceptance of one's personal value system. Coaching is guidance for this journey inward. From there, the client discovers the actions and habits that embody the values they aspire toward, and works to dissolve the resistance that impedes action.

Think of an executive coach as a trail guide for your career. Just as a guide would in unfamiliar terrain, a coach helps you map out where you are, identifies the peaks you aspire to conquer, and spots the crevasses you wish to avoid. They help you get from where you are to where you want to be.

I've seen so many clients start to really shift in what they want to create for themselves mid-career. This can be disorientating for some, because what they have been chasing thus far, doesn't excite them the way it used to. Slowing down and helping the client see the possibilities for themselves and then co-creating a plan to help them build and execute is rewarding for the client and the coach!

Success or Significance? One of the biggest shifts of midlife is the transition from achievement with all its forms of outward success, To the desire for meaning and significance in what we do. We move from “how much can I make?” to “how much does it matter?” and that pivot marks the beginning of a new fundamental purpose. Here are the questions whose answers can guide you: ??? When have felt most purposeful? What was I doing? ??? What unique gifts do I have to offer? ??? Who am I most drawn to work with? ??? What lasting impact do I hope to create? ??? How do I want to be remembered? Don’t settle for life on the surface. Make the 2nd half the most purpose-driven of your life and your legacy will be assured.

In my opinion, clarity is the first step to making any type of career change! By the time we reach mid-career we may have been exposed to a lot of different career paths or just a single one, but we probably have a lot of clutter in our lives. Getting clarity is important to helping us construct the next phase of our lives. Coaching can help one sort through all the clutter & noise to find their true north path. I follow a three step process with my clients: 1.) Get Clarity, 2.) Get Direction, 3.) Take Action. We have to spend time in each stage of the process. So many people want to skip directly to action, but that is like putting the cart before the horse.

In my experience clarity is like having a personalized GPS system that can guide you to take the fastest route to your destination. Knowing with clarity what specifically one wants and the direction one wishes to take to create the life of their dreams is like being in the driver seat of your own life. Not having to stop at every milestone to ask others which road to take. The danger of getting lost on the way is higher with no clarity.

Gaining career clarity is not just about setting goals; it's about aligning your professional path with your core values and passions. As a seasoned executive coach, I've observed that mid-career professionals often fall into the trap of perfectionism or living on autopilot, which can cloud their career vision. By focusing on what truly matters to them, individuals can break free from these patterns, leveraging their unique strengths and passions to make impactful decisions and actions. This alignment leads to not only greater professional satisfaction but also a more fulfilling life.

Like everything else in life, career clarity brings benefits and challenges. There are bumps on the road that cause some whiplash leaving you confused and unsettled.

Executives I coach benefit from writing down criteria over what their career should be doing for them. How well does the current role compare with the next role against these criteria? Common ones are: - getting the visibility I desired - how well I like my team - salary and compensation - opportunities to move up or across - others

It is often difficult to hear our authentic inner voice. External expectations, social norms, beliefs about identity, etc. are loud and persistent noise. Can you sit and be with yourself? Can you inspect your own thoughts and feelings without judgment? If so, you are well on your way.

My Clients find that getting referred by someone they trust, watching an introduction video, reading the bios, and seeing video/written recommendations helps solidify their decision to go with a Coach.

Coaching is akin to any other service. Reflect on what you require, go online, seek recommendations from friends, and compile a list of coaches who pique your interest. Arrange a call to grasp their approach and determine if it aligns with your needs. Once you find the right fit...commit!

The most successful partnerships are built on mutual understanding and trust. It's crucial to find a coach who doesn't just have the right credentials, but also aligns with your values and understands your unique challenges. Remember, coaching is not a one-size-fits-all solution; it should be tailored to your individual needs and goals. Also, the importance of trusting your gut cannot be overstated. If you feel a strong connection with a coach, that's a good sign you're on the right track.

In my experience, just like you’d tell your guide about your hiking experience, be open with your coach about your career experiences, aspirations, and fears. This honesty lays the groundwork for your journey ahead. Coaching sessions can feel like exploratory treks into uncharted parts of your psyche. You'll uncover strengths you didn't realize were there and face challenges head-on. Each session is a step towards discovering what truly motivates and fulfills you. Insights and revelations are like souvenirs from your journey. It’s one thing to admire them, but their true value comes from integrating them into your life. These are your treasures to keep and use.

Be careful who is paying for your coaching. If it’s your supervisor, the incentive is to keep you. It’s a bias. But if it’s you, there is more freedom. More opportunity.

Executive Coaching is a process of thought partnering with a coach who is trained to work with you to help have higher self-awareness * who you are at the core * your natural strengths * your values this becomes a compass for navigating clarity into the career goal one is seeking answers for. A coach supports you seek these answers within, as the belief in the process of coaching is the answers are within the clients, which due to various external & internal noises one finds difficult to access. A coach provides deep listening, and powerful questioning, as well based on their journey & interest in various tools like mindfulness, and NLP. a chemistry session can help both the coach and executive determine if they can work together.

I believe it's important to enter coaching with an open mind and heart. Often, we go into coaching with a predetermined idea/goal, which limits our ability to learn and understand ourselves. While having a goal in mind is important, in a coaching process, it can also limit you. Approach coaching with the exclusive intention of getting to know yourself more, understanding yourself better, discovering your hidden talents, recognizing what you don't know or what limits you, and accepting that you have a lifelong learning journey ahead. This way, you can gain clarity in your next executive steps and perhaps even discover new paths to embark on.