Showing posts with label Career Coaching. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Career Coaching. Show all posts

Monday, 12 March 2012

Leadership Coaching

Are you interested in developing your leadership skills for the future to ensure you are fit for a key leadership role in the next 1, 2, 3 years and beyond?

Scores of employee surveys reveal that staff need and want more from their leaders in order to perform at their best, help their organisation deliver its objectives and keep people in jobs.

With greater pressure than ever in both the private and public sector to achieve more with fewer staff, leadership to maximise the use of resources is of paramount importance.

Gone are the days when staff respond to being told what to do - not in the way they were in the past anyway.

To engage, motivate and enthuse staff and get them performing to their best, good leaders ask them their views and act on some of these.

Good modern leaders involve the idea generators and recognise and reward their success appropriately.

Different leadership styles and approaches are called for and there is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all approach.

If you are ambitious and driven, to feel a sense of enjoyment and fulfilment at work - as well as work at the level you want - demands a high level of leadership skill.

More and more senior leaders are turning to one-to-one tailored leadership coaching to build their skills and achieve greater effectiveness and enjoyment in their work.

Do you feel you need to develop any of the following which are key business skills and approaches for successful leadership:
  • Leadership styles and approaches to address current people issues - such as under-performance
  • Personal leadership vision and values
  • Managing change in your team or organisation
  • Pre-thinking difficult conversations with customers, staff and other senior leaders
  • Building and cultivating your customer relationships
  • Work-life balance - in particular achieving better health and well-being
  • Creativity and innovation in product or proposition development
  • Improving key processes to achieve optimum staffing levels for your business
  • Building a high-performing team
  • Emotional intelligence - particularly your self-awareness
Developing a leadership coaching relationship is an enjoyable journey because you can focus on tailoring your coaching programme to the kinds of needs outlined above and your specific leadership requirements.

In particular, you will benefit from working with someone you can trust to help you along your development journey.

For example, most individuals start off with a regular monthly 2-hour coaching session for about 6 months, moving this to every 2 to 3 months after this period.

Leadership coaching should always be moving you forwards, helping you to learn at a faster rate and gain better results than you would be achieving on your own.

If any of the above strikes a chord with you, a good starting point would be to discuss your position with us through our website West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Alternatively, our own coaching relationships commence with an initial Complimentary Coaching Session so you why not get in touch so we can help you decide if leadership coaching is something that you would benefit from.

Friday, 2 March 2012

What Does Business Coaching 'Do' For People?

Are you thinking about contacting someone about business coaching and want to know a bit more about what this kind of support will likely do for you?

I was motivated to write this blog by a new client who said that such a blog would have helped him to decide to start working with an executive coach sooner.

The truth is, the kind of support provided by any kind of coaching depends on what you want to achieve from the process.

Every case is different but here are some examples of what business coaching can do for individuals, their businesses and their careers:

Most of my clients who are senior executives - including MDs, directors, business owners, senior clinicians, department heads and senior managers - like to use my business coaching as a confidential sounding board for their ideas.

In fact, they come to rely on me as a confidante who they can debate and discuss things with and be challenged on issues where necessary.

I frequently use my own experience of operating in senior corporate roles to provide 'wise counsel' (a client's words - not my own) and advice when requested.

I also always look to help individuals think through what they specifically want, view their options and assess the plans they have put in place to achieve their goals.

Some clients see me for  career coaching where we work together to help them into the career move they're looking for through a process which involves assessing the skills they enjoy using the most and - in some cases  - directly approaching target organisations.

Many clients also use business coaching to help them to gain in confidence for a particular challenge, reduce their anxiety and alleviate any negative introspection or forecasting which might be holding them back

The feedback I receive from clients can also be used to help answer the original question posed in this post - 'What Does Business Coaching 'Do' For People?' - and here are some examples:
  • 'Coaching really helped me to raise my game through raising my confidence levels'
  • 'Coaching helps me to learn new and better ways of doing business'
  • 'Reflecting with my coach helps me to think about new ways of approaching organisational effectiveness'
  • 'My coach helped me to improve all of my key work relationships'
  • 'Coaching helped me to achieve my goals quicker and easier than on my own'
  • 'As a lone director, my coach provides an essential resource to air and discuss ideas with'
  • 'I'm supporting my CEO - I needed a coach to give me support'
  • 'Coaching helped me to radically change my thinking - I am now realistic, positive and able to put things into perspective'
  • 'Working with a coach is like having a rudder on my boat helping me to navigate the rough waters'
If you're interested in coaching, it's a good idea to talk to people who have or are currently undergoing business coaching and I can put you in touch with these people if you want to take the first step towards taking on a business coach.

So, if you have an appetite for making changes through business coaching, career coaching or executive coaching and have any questions before you embark on this journey then please do get in touch with us via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Friday, 24 February 2012

Business Coaching for Senior Women Leaders

Are you a woman in a senior role at work?

Do you want to make your mark in business through a job in which you feel well-respected, well-paid and valued for what you achieve?

Do you care more about the organisation than your own individual needs? Are you a nurturing character?

The likelihood is that you make an excellent 'high-performing team' leader.

High performing teams have a clear vision, clear structures, team aligned and agreed goals and objectives and - where there is role clarity - positive team behaviour and change agility.

How does your team fair?

A starting point would be to assert your needs - what do you need to communicate with your team to achieve the high performing team that you want and what do you need from the Board to perform at your potential?

Is your vision aligned with that of your organisation?

Are your goals and objectives aligned with and contributing towards the organisation's?

Are you achieving results in the areas most important to the business, such as, increasing sales performance and reducing costs?

Are the behaviours of you and your team helping you to achieve in the key result areas?

Are you and your team flexible to the changing requirements of the business?

If you have answered 'Yes' to each of these questions you can develop a good business case to support what you are asking for from the Board.

If there are one or more 'No' answers then you may need to address that area before developing your business case.

If you have found this blog useful please leave a comment.

If you would like support in achieving the next level in your career please contact us through our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Friday, 23 December 2011

Career Coaching - Checklist

So you want to get in control of your career. Where do you start?

Start with your career goals and then progress with a strategy or approach and an action plan.

Career Goals:

  • What would you like to achieve long-term, at the height of your career - your ultimate ambition?
  • What about medium-term over - say the next five years?
  • What about in the short-term - say 12-24 months?


Approach:

Start with a self-assessment. What are you good at? What do you enjoy doing?

If you are interested you might complete a working styles questionnaire such as Myers Briggs Type Indicator.

Action Plan:

Is your CV up to date, 1-2 pages long and are its content geared to the roles you are seeking in terms of your results to date and your capabilities (skills, knowledge and competencies)?

Do you have a good cover letter template?

What verbal self-presentation statement do you have off-pat to use with potential employers?

What will you do to prepare for an interview?

I hope this checklist is of use to you in managing your career. Please let us know how you get on and if you would like assistance please contact us via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Monday, 19 December 2011

Coaching to achieve your potential

Do you feel as though you could be doing much better in your professional working life and yet feel stuck and unsure of how to deal with this?

Are you frustrated working for others who seem to take all of the recognition for work that you deliver?

Do you think that you are achieving a small fraction of your potential?

A good personal coach will help you to clearly articulate what you want from your professional life over the long, medium and short term.

A good personal coach will help you to identify where you are currently in relation to your ambitions and goals and help you to address any barriers to your moving forwards, in particular limiting beliefs and confidence issues.

A good personal coach will help you to develop an action plan and interventions that will help you to achieve your long-, medium- and short-term ambitions and goals.

A good coach will provide you with tools and techniques to help you to get where you want to go at a pace that is right for you and to ease you into making the changes you will be making.

A good coach will provide you with optimum levels of support and challenge so you can achieve your potential, which will change as you progress in achieving your ambition and goals.

At West of England Coaching and Counselling, we all experience excellent coaching support as well as providing excellent coaching support to our clients.

We know that coaching helps us to achieve extraordinary results and we want the same for you. We are passionate about you achieving your potential and what you deserve.

What dreams would you like to make a reality through congruent goals, objectives and action plans?

You are likely to be somewhat successful now and with the help of an experienced coach you can look forward to taking the next steps up the ladder in your professional life or move careers or maximise your current opportunity.

Whatever your situation we will help you to move onwards and upwards.

Why not make a positive start in 2012 and get in touch with me personally via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling for an investment in your future.

Monday, 5 December 2011

Career Coaching - Starting Again

I recently worked with a client who decided to leave her current role which she was not enjoying to spend some time working out what to do next.

Are you in or want to be in a similar position or are you about to find yourself in a similar place? Where do you start?

I started exploring the options with my client by examining the following areas:

  • Projects enjoyed - Including the skills, knowledge and competencies required
  • Particular strengths - Such as key capabilities like being totally client-focused or good at managing conflicts between people and resources in big network or a particular field
  • Preferred working environment - Such as in a large team with lots of support or working alone with a high level of autonomy
  • Preferred work location - Such as Bristol, the UK or from home
  • Realistic remuneration expectations
  • Career ambitions and time-scales - Such as becoming an MD of a blue chip or working for yourself
  • Career values - Such as working for not-for-profit organisation, wanting to work in NHS, having a job with a good work-life-balance and limited travel through to wanting to work overseas in different cultures
  • Example organisations you would like to work in
  • Types of jobs you would like to do

We then started tailoring my client's CV for her target job and organisation, keeping it within the 2-page best practice guideline and focusing on her results and value-added proposition.

We then identified 5 target organisations from an initial brainstorm of 10.

My client then researched each of the target organisations so she understood more about their current business as well as their strategic goals.

From her research she was able to identify those areas where she would be able to add value and used these to tailor her CV to the precise requirements of her potential employers.

Rather than waiting for a job advert to appear, she approached the HR department direct in each case and was invited to attend an initial meeting at 3 of the 5 potential employers.

My client's current position is that she has 2 job offers and our next task is to help her to decide which position to accept. She feels in control of her own career through her most proactive approach yet.

If this blog helps you please let us know about it. For help and advice in moving forward with your own career please visit our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling, get in touch by sending us an email at enquiries@westofenglandcoachingandcounselling.co.uk or calling us on 01761 237 400.

Monday, 28 November 2011

Career Coaching - Stay Or Look For A New Role?

I am currently working with a senior executive who needs to make a decision about whether to stay in her existing role or move to another role in another organisation.

In fact, she has a job offer on the table and the organisation concerned is so eager to have her that they have given her until the end of the calendar year to make her decision prior to giving notice in her current role.

Are you in a similar position? Perhaps you have dissatisfactions in your current role which are causing you to consider your options.

From personal experience - and in working with many executives in this area - it is important to start by thinking about what is driving you to consider a change within your career.

Can the issues which are causing you to consider change be resolved within your current role? For example, workload, work type or work location?

Have you exhausted all of the possibilities for making the changes that you want within your current role?

If the issue - or issues - are not resolvable and you are sure that you want to make the change, think through your decision carefully first and ask yourself the following questions:

  • What is the rationale behind the decision? 
  • What are the facts? 
  • What is the logic behind your decision?
  • How do you feel? 
  • What impact will this decision have on your values?

But what are your options and what criteria will you use to assess these options and make a decision?

One technique which I suggested to my client - and we went though in our session - may provide you with some help. Simply answer the following questions and it should help you reach a decision:

  • What would/could you gain if you moved to the/a new role?
  • What would/could you lose if you moved to the/a new role?
  • What would/could you keep [which is important to you] if you stay?
  • What would/could you lose if you stay in your current role?

Sometimes we need to step back and see the wood for the trees.

Sometimes the grass looks greener on the other side of the fence when we may be:

  • Jumping from the frying pan into the fire
  • Avoiding handling issues such as relationship management that we may well come across in our next role - the saying 'Wherever I go, there I am' springs to mind here
  • Experiencing the horns effect when we give a high weighting to an issue that we are unhappy about but may have not done enough to address it using all of our strengths and resources.

If you have found this blog to be useful please leave a comment and if you would like support in your career then please do get in touch via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling - Career Coaching.

Friday, 25 November 2011

Executive Coaching

Are you an ambitious manager, senior manager or director working within a public or private sector organisation or for yourself or in a partnership?

Have you recently had your performance review and identified with your line manager areas of strengths to build on as well as possible areas for development?

Perhaps you have had some feedback through a 360-degree feedback process which has highlighted areas of development which, addressed, will help you to further your career.

Research shows that managers, senior managers and directors often develop more quickly and better through one-to-one executive coaching than through any other performance development intervention - including traditional classroom training.

This is because individual one-to-one coaching focuses on you and is tailored to your specific and precise needs within a structure that will have you feeling more motivated and confident in achieving your development objectives.

An independent coach will provide the following:

  • A confidential listening ear and sounding board for your experiences, problems and solutions
  • A source of advice should you request this
  • In-time support, being available regularly face-to-face and also available on email and the telephone when you need them
  • Work with you to clearly articulate positive, specific, measurable, realistic and time-bound objectives
  • A structure to achieve your desired outcomes, such as, career progression or specific leadership skills development
  • A coaching model to guide and steer discussions
  • Good challenging questions that help you to think differently
  • Collateral specific to your needs, such as, communication models, tools and techniques
  • A non-judgemental presence coming from a supportive, positive and enabling place.

Managers, senior managers and directors who are serious about their continuous professional development and want learning on the fast-track develop business cases to secure funding for their coaching, which include coaching being an investment to help them to achieve their objectives and also improve the performance and engagement of their teams.

If you are unsure about whether to progress with coaching at this time please see my blog - are you ready, willing and able to be coached?

If you have found this blog useful please leave a comment or if you would like to discuss your personal coaching needs please get in touch in confidence via our website West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Monday, 21 November 2011

Small Business Coaching - Improve Productivity and Morale

Are you interested in learning about one simple, easy-to-implement tool which will boost staff productivity and morale?

How much do you estimate that poor communication costs your business? How much do you estimate not using all of your staff's potential is costing your business?

The truth is that when your people are not managed well it costs your business - That's the impact plain and simple.

What issues are most often behind this?.... These most common issues include the following:
  1. Individual X has a development need that is ignored
  2. Individual Y is only told when they get things wrong and the individual spends much time at work complaining about their manager
  3. Individual Z is a manager and avoids tackling conflict so performance issues are ignored
Using a good feedback model addresses all of these issues and builds your staff productivity as well as their morale.

Psychological research shows people respond best to feedback which is specific, timely and in the ratio of 3 positives to each development point.

So how would you go about this?
  • Step 1: Start with 3 specific positive things that you have seen/heard/read about them – their strengths
  • Step 2: Then focus on 1 specific thing that you would like them to do more/less of that would make them even more effective/develop further/able to positively influence you. 
Focus on what you want from them NOT what you DO NOT want from them.

Ask them how they think they can achieve that - i.e. let them come up with their solutions to get their commitment to change.

Feedback in your business needs to become part of your way of working - something everyone does to get the best from each other and avoid standing still or even regressing.

If you have found this blog to be useful please leave a comment or if you would like assistance implementing this way of working into your business please get in touch via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling - Team Development.

Monday, 14 November 2011

Small Business Coaching - Dealing With Attendance Issues

Do you have a problem with staff attendance which is primarily short term?

Have you noticed patterns to attendance issues - for example, the individual who is often sick on a Monday or Friday?

I think the best tool to deal with attendance issues is the return-to-work meeting. Why?
  1. It shows the individual that they have been missed
  2. If the individual is a malingerer they will be less likely to call in sick in future
  3. It sends a clear message to other staff that attendance issues will be managed
  4. If there is an underlying problem you can find out - for example, the individual calls in sick but the issue is really a problem at work or home
So what do you say at this meeting..... Have a think about what your goal is? What are your options and what will you do?

Here's a suggested format:
  • Welcome the individual back
  • Tell them that they were missed
  • Check they are ready to return and have not come back early for whatever reason
  • Discuss any issues that may have contributed towards or caused their absence
  • Where any causes are identified discuss what help you as the employer can offer to address them
  • Discuss any further action that may be necessary
You will need to prepare for this meeting and ask yourself the following questions:
  • What are the advantages of holding the meeting in a private place?
  • What information will you need to have in front of you relating to recent absences?
  • What about sensitivity and listening skills?
You will also need to carry out certain actions after the meeting including the following:
  • What about note taking?
  • What adjustments need to be made for the individual if any?
  • Do you need to consider disciplinary action yet?
  • How will you continue to monitor the attendance issues?
  • What action does your policy say you can take if the non attendance issues persist?
If you have found this blog to be useful please leave a comment or if you require an small business support please visit our website West of England Coaching and Counselling - Business Coaching.

Monday, 7 November 2011

Small Business Coaching - Tackling Poor Performance

Are you interested in tackling poor performance before it becomes a formal disciplinary issue?

What do you think are the benefits of 'nipping an issue in the bud' before it escalates?

Where are you now with the performance issue? What is the impact on your business?

What is the impact on other staff? What are your options....ignore the issue and hope it will go away or tackle it?

A really good tool towards tackling poor performance -is the following 6-step coaching model:
  1. Gaining Commitment: Open the discussion in a positive way. Discuss current level of performance, agree that a problem exists and the impact of this on the business, other staff and them. Discuss and agree the size of the performance gap. Do not move on until the individual recognises a performance gap exists and that it is significant enough to warrant change – Why?
  2. Closing The Gap: Discuss options to reach the required performance level. Review the advantages and disadvantages of each option. Encourage the individual to come up with ideas, prompting where you think necessary.
  3. Develop The Strategy: Agree the best approach to close the performance gap. Identify performance measures that will show clearly when the new performance level has been reached. Explore any resources that may be required.
  4. Agree The Action Plan: Who will do what and by when? Agree the time frames for when the new level of performance must be reached. Set review dates to monitor progress - including interim reviews if you think necessary. Express your confidence in the individual’s ability to deliver - keep it positive.
  5. Action: Both of you agree to commit to the action plan. You discreetly monitor and guide 1:1 when necessary. Hold interim review sessions if required.
  6. Review: Meet to review/measure progress towards targets. Recognise, communicate and record in writing achievements that have been made. If performance has not reached the required level go back to step 1 - make the targets more specific, the review periods shorter and be less tolerant of shortcomings e.g... ‘this is the third time we have spoken about this [specify performance gap].
If you have found this tool to be useful please leave a comment or if you would like assistance please contact us through our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling - Business Coaching.

Friday, 21 October 2011

Executive Coaching: Acquiring New Skills For New Roles and Challenges

I was inspired to write this blog post after a session with an executive client today who is in a new role with fresh challenges and needs to develop their skills to make the most out of this opportunity.

My client wanted to work on acquiring these new skills one-to-one because:
  1. There was no training course that offered her the specific skills she wanted in one programme
  2. She wanted an 'expert' to focus solely on her to speed up results
We discussed how we would use our 2 hours together by first focusing on what she would leave our session with for it to have been considered a success.

We developed a goal and objectives for the session which focused on skills for developing a productive team and addressing current conflicts.

For example, I shared with my client a tool for providing feedback which builds motivation, helps to develop staff and improve their performance.

We then chose to role-play using the tool in practice. First, I acted out her role for demonstration purposes and then she followed by acting out her own role.

This reminded me how well one-on-one coaching works for executives who acquiring new skills which are not always easily labelled or neatly boxed into a traditional training course.

Perhaps you can use this blog to practice new skills with a trusted colleague. Please let me know how you get on.

If you would like support in this or any other area of personal and career development please get in touch via our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling - Executive Coaching.

Friday, 7 October 2011

Stress Management

Do you ever think now 'I can't cope...this is too much' about work, personal or relationship issues?


Do you feel anxious, angry or depressed or perhaps all three?


Do you notice your heart racing, tense muscles, headaches, difficulty concentrating, forgetfulness, restlessness, irritable bowel, sleeping disturbances, eating more or less, drinking more alcohol, upset, shouting, arguing...?


The first step is to identify what is making you stressed and then you can then either remove the triggers or change your response to them.


Say for example, it's your career and you are stressed about possible redundancy and the financial implications of this.


In this case you are not in control of removing the trigger - the redundancy threat - but you are in control of how you to choose to view it. 


You can stress and feel sorry for yourself or you can take action by updating your CV and use your network to identify job opportunities.


No one is saying that life stresses are always easy to handle, however, there is often a solution if we stay calm and in control.


What tools are useful for staying calm and in control? Here are ones that I have used, some of which I continue to use:
  • Mindful extended breathing
  • Relaxation CD with progressive muscle relaxation
  • Focus fully on an activity
  • Pampering e.g. aromatherapy massage
  • Exercise - especially yoga
  • Help others
  • Be with others - i.e. your friends and family
  • Keep a gratitude journal
  • Have a regular enjoyable hobby, interest
  • Prioritise
  • Say no - Not for now
  • Write down your thoughts and feelings
  • Positive self-talk/affirmations e.g this is temporary and will pass
  • Healthy eating
  • Cut down on caffeine and alcohol
One of my clients has each of the above tools written down on slips of paper in a box and each day she picks one out (like angel cards) to focus on.


I think that I know a bit about this because I used to stress about the smallest of hitches and now I definitely 'don't sweat the small stuff' or even bigger things that I cannot do anything about, for example, the economy, job security, impact on pension...


I do take action though when things don't go as I expect and I do make a plan. After all, we must recognise that worrying is futile. 


We are better off thinking about our outcome and planning a way forward.


So, if you are currently worried about losing your job update your CV, share it with your network and make a plan to find another employment opportunity.


We are currently working with a number of clients on helping them find a way forward following redundancy or helping them to prepare for redundancy. If this is you please get in touch via West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Friday, 26 August 2011

Customised Coaching

At the end of a coaching session yesterday when I had asked how my client rated the session, he talked about finding that the best thing he experienced in the session was reflection, something he thought that he rarely did amidst his busy work schedule.

Upon further probing my client highlighted specific areas of reflection that had enabled him to think about a particular old and outdated habit which was not serving him anymore.

What clients take away from sessions is completely unique and so what you take away from coaching will be unique to you.

The whole purpose of personal coaching is that it is tailored to you and you can customise it by developing your own ideas on what you want coaching on and the approach which you would like to use to find the answers.

In terms of what you want coaching on, this may be driven by your existing job role, skills, gaps, a particular work challenge, a promotion or working with a new team.

In terms of approach, you might favour non-directive coaching which focuses on posing the right questions and helping you come up with options and ultimately solutions which you own and act on.

Some clients do like some directive coaching - particularly for career coaching and skills acquisition - where the coach offers up ideas and suggestions.

The point is that you can customise your coaching to suit you. It truly is one of the few life experiences where you can selfishly focus on you and your development.

If you sense that there are areas in your life that you want to improve on and change then personal coaching could be for you.

If you think that this may be the case please read my other blogs in particular 'Are You Ready, Willing and Able To Be Coached?' which will provide you with further insight on the coaching process.

If you would like support on your coaching journey we would love to hear from you at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Monday, 15 August 2011

Self-Coaching: Making a Start

Are you new to personal coaching? Do you want to improve your life?

A good starting point is to have a go at coaching yourself using the following simple process.

First ask yourself the following question: 'What areas in your life are most important to you?' For example:
  1. Health and well-being
  2. Family Relationships
  3. Work
  4. Friends
  5. Finances
  6. Community
After identifying which areas are important to you, score your satisfaction with each area on a scale of 1-10 - where 1 is 'Most dissatisfied with' and 10 is 'Completely happy with'.

The rule here is to scale each area based upon your gut feeling towards them.

Having scored yourself, prioritise your list from 1-6 and if you want to have more than 6 areas that's fine.

For the next 6-or-so days work down the list and take one action which raises your scaling by 1 point.

For example, if your top priority is health and well-being and you scored yourself a 4, what action could you take today to raise that scaling score to 5?

An answer could to this question could be to eat a healthy meal for supper or go for a walk for an hour.

After this period give yourself a week off, then repeat the exercise and until you are consistently achieving a self-scaling of 8, 9 or even 10.

You may not want a week off in between actions but it is there if you want it.

The idea of this self-coaching is that it is quite straightforward and most people find it quite easy to do.

Sometimes, however, motivation, goal setting and taking action require support and there's nothing wrong with that.

If you are some one who likes exercising with a partner, having a personal coach is a similar concept.

A personal coach will support, guide and challenge you to achieve often extraordinary results.

Please let me know how you get on with this exercise by leaving a comment and please visit our website at West of England Coaching and Counselling.

Monday, 8 August 2011

Change Your Career Direction With Career Coaching

The Career Coaching topic is one I have been working with several clients on recently.

Are you facing redundancy - voluntary or otherwise - or re-evaluating your work life? If so, career coaching will help you to focus on what you want specifically and what is realistic.

My clients recognise that without career coaching job searching can be unfocused, tiresome and ultimately lacking the outcome you really want - one of my clients referred to this as 'jumping from the frying pan into the fire'.

If you are uncomfortable about facing this journey alone or feel unfocused then coaching can help you with everying from eliciting your aspirations, through to recognising your transferrable skills, building your confidence and helping you to present an influential CV.

This is especially useful if you currently feel institutionionalised after having been in your current role for many years.

In particular, career coaching will help you to avoid the scattergun approach of simply applying for as many jobs as possible which is often unsuccessful because the recruiter detects this.

More than anything, changing your career can be a scary, lonely and challenging time but a good career coach can help to draw out your career objectives - which change throughout life - and help you to achieve them.

If you are facing redundancy, are demotivated in your current career or looking for a change of career direction please do get in touch via enquiries@westofenglandcoachingandcounselling.co.uk.

Whether you're being supported by your current organisation or self-funding we have programmes which are both effective and affordable.