"I came to coaching after a career break raising my son and had then unsuccessfully run a business which had evolved from my previous career. I felt demoralised and that I had lost my way and was unable to make good decisions about what to do next. I knew I had a great skill base and wanted to find a rewarding new career based on these. One that I enjoyed, that made a difference and which allowed me to contribute financially to our family.
As a result of the coaching, I now have a clear perspective about the skills I have to offer, know exactly what I want to do, have my plan of action and am making it happen. Lynda did a brilliant job, took me right back to basics and worked patiently with me to restore my self confidence, providing just the right amount of support, structure and flexibility. Having contact and accountability with someone who was working with me and supporting me towards my goals has been invaluable." Pip
The word ‘career’ may not resonate with you - one definition includes “you continue to get better jobs and earn more money”. This may well be part of what you want, but almost all of my clients who come into coaching with a focus on how they earn their living are looking for more than that. They want meaningful and fulfilling work, work that brings them alive. They want to wake up in the morning feeling excited about the day ahead; they want work that doesn’t just ‘grow’ their income but also offers opportunities for their own growth and development; and often they also want to make a difference - to other people and/or the planet. This is right livelihood.
However, the desire for truly meaningful and fulfilling work is not always the initial motivation for working on this area with a coach. It may evolve during the coaching rather than being present from the start. Coaching doesn’t just support people to achieve their initial goals. It also leads them to realise how much more is possible for them.
Co-active Coaching is not just about change - it’s about Transformation.
So, at the moment, you may be reading this for a number of reasons.
Perhaps :
- You are bored with your job and want to find something that feels more stimulating and meaningful
- You want to leave salaried employment and set up in business for yourself
- You are are already self-employed but it doesn't really excite you and you feel there could be something better for you
- You are a woman returning to work after a career break and you want clarity about the type of work you wish to do or retrain for - and perhaps to rebuild your confidence
- There is a dream you have always had and at last you are ready to turn it into a reality
- You have been made redundant, are about to be made redundant or fear being made redundant and want to turn it into an opportunity
- You’re about to graduate but not sure what you want to do afterwards
How Will Coaching Help?
In addition to being an Accredited Co-Active Coach, I am also a licensed FireworksTM Career Coach (accredited by the International Coaching Federation). This training provided me with an overall, and extremely flexible, framework for this type of coaching plus additional resources in the form of interesting and revealing exercises and activities which, when integrated into the Co-Active Life Coaching approach, leads you to the identification of an exciting and viable future direction
This integration is important because clients often need more than just ‘practical guidance’. They need help to dismantle the barriers to change – often in the form of fear of letting go of what is known and secure, of possible financial implications, of lack of confidence in their own abilities or potential or just of making a ‘wrong decision’. They also need to identify new perspectives, to think big - to Dream.
The exercises and activities are starting points for the coaching which will provide you with the opportunity to stand back and make a realistic assessment of your whole life. To reflect on what matters to you, to uncover meaningful priorities and to look at possible new options. You will take a journey from not knowing what your next step might be, or knowing but not knowing how to turn it into a reality, through to having a clear vision of what is absolutely right for you - and a plan for how to create it.
The Framework
There are three phases to the work we will do together. The names of the phases come from the last line of a quotation from Mark Twain:
Explore. Dream. Discover.”
EXPLORE
Research shows that those who are most satisfied and motivated by their work are in jobs which reflect who they really are; their true nature and their real passions. Work which draws on their strengths and favourite skills and which allows them to honour their deeply-held values.
Because of this, the Explore phase entails a long, hard look at who you are. It is about you as a person, your life as a whole. You’ll engage in activities that help you get a clear idea of :
- your values
- your life purpose
- your most powerful self
- your personal strengths
- your interests and passions
- your personal achievements
- everything you need in your life to be happy and fulfilled.
And also your work preferences. You’ll identify
- your favourite job skills
- your key work motivators
- your professional strengths
- your greatest work achievements
- your preferred working organisation and environment
- your ideal working day
- everything you need in your working life to be motivated and satisfied.
By the end of the Explore phase, you will be very clear about what you must have in your career to be satisfied and motivated.
DREAM
This is the where together we generate a number of possible new choices. It’s called Dream because the idea here is to be expansive, to think outside the box, not to be constrained, at this stage, by traditional notions of what’s possible. In truth, almost anything is possible if it’s right for you. We explore the most attractive ideas in some detail and then finally narrow these down to between one and three strong possibilities which will then be explored in detail.
DISCOVER
This is the point where we investigate the top possibility that was generated in the Dream phase. We will use a creative and empowering process which lets you turn your vision for an exciting career that’s right for you into a soundly based action plan to make it happen.
