Remember how much easier working out and skill-building was with a coach on the sideline? Perhaps you remember how quickly you learned when an experienced teacher directed you toward proficiency and even mastery.
In the same way, an Executive Coach is an objective guide that helps you identify what may not be serving you in your quest to be your best. Just like the athletic coach didn’t do the workout and the teacher didn’t fill out the assignment, an executive coach isn’t going to tell you what to do. But they will help you focus on what is most important.
What is executive coaching?
Executive coaching is sometimes more clearly understood in contrast to mentorship. A mentor has experience and expertise in a specific field of work or study; they are often subject-matter-experts. A mentor can provide tools for success specific to one’s industry, give assignments to make oneself more competitive, and deliver precious insider knowledge. An executive coach’s expertise is in helping you increase your self-awareness and response-ability so you identify and own the next steps to take. Most importantly, the executive coaching relationship increases clarity, focus, commitment, and courage.
A commitment to your growth
How often do you have an entire hour with a person committed to your growth and learning? When do you have a whole hour to think about personal improvement with someone who shares your explicit intention — someone who can reflect back on your thoughts, challenge your thinking, and ask powerful questions? Most people don’t have such an opportunity, or take advantage of it if they do.
Neither is an executive coach a doctor or therapist. An executive coach is an intentional thought partner. Imagine you want help in determining how to delegate or prioritize. A coach helps you seek what’s under the surface of such challenges. Why not simply search online for “How to prioritize,” commit to a newly learned approach, and put it into practice? The answer to that question is: An online browser cannot help you process the interdependence of your thoughts and emotions.
Access Your Innate Tools
Trained in the principles of the International Coaching Federation (ICF), the coaches of TurningWest believe that people already have much of the knowledge and intuition they need to achieve success; all they need is help learning how to access and integrate it more effectively.
A football coach believes the athletes know how to play the game. A teacher believes a student can learn. Likewise, an executive coach believes people simply need the time and reflective space to discern their situation relative to their goals, to reflect on those insights and gain clarity, and to be asked to commit to action steps.
I encourage you to invite an executive coach to help you identify real barriers, clarify your real beliefs, and leverage your thinking and emotions toward motivated growth.
