Four common themes from my coaching work

What are your strengths? ‘Phone’ a friend! In my Executive Coaching practice I believe passionately that the Coachee and I should spend as much time focused on elevating their strengths as tackling their areas for development. Drawing on and showcasing your strengths is what makes you stand out from your peers and often what will give…

A Coaching topic relevant for this sunny spell: Own your Weather! In my Executive Coaching practice I regularly discuss with coachees that how you show up matters – to your teammates, your wider colleagues, your clients. Attitude is contagious – for better and for worse – and I’m a huge proponent of the advice “Own your…

‘The 60th Birthday Party’ aka ‘What’s truly important to you’ I often use LinkedIn posts to share observations or lessons learned from my Executive Coaching practice hoping that they resonate with or help others. Today I’d like to share a tool which I’ve found effective: ‘The 60th Birthday Party’. Recently a Coachee wanted to use our…

In my Executive Coaching practice clients often want to work out how to address feedback they have been given.  My start point is to encourage the client to approach the feedback with curiosity, not defensiveness: in particular, ask for examples of the skill which they are being asked to develop, ideally specific behaviours, so that…

Since the pandemic I’ve noticed a new trend in those approaching me to coach them – an increase in people who are well-established in their careers but are asking themselves “Where am I going?” and who want a safe space to work out the answer for themselves. Many first step into a career propelled by…

If I could gift one thing to my Coaching clients (and my children, family, friends, everyone!) it would be this – a Growth Mindset: a fundamental belief that you can grow, learn and improve with intention and application. Nothing is more useful for making the most of opportunities and riding out challenges in work (and…

I’m a fan of Simon Sinek and his encouragement for individuals and companies to find their Purpose and ‘Start with Why’.  On his company website there is an exercise he recommends to help you identify your Why.  But sometimes no ‘exercise’ is needed; sometimes you have a moment where you think “This is why I…

When I am asked to name the key thing which I have learned through my journey as an Executive Coach it is the power of reflection. I wish I had known about the positive impacts of reflection when I was in the corporate world, as I believe it would have made me a more effective leader. Now…

I recently wrote about the Power of Reflection https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/power-reflection-irene-grant Whilst the beauty of reflection is that you choose what to reflect upon – what’s important for you at that time – I thought it might be useful to follow up with a suggestion for Reflection which I also use in my Executive Coaching: “How do…

When a coaching client feels they are at a crossroads, one of the first questions I ask them is “what does ‘success’ mean to you?”  Often it is not a question which they have consciously considered but doing so can bring a very different perspective to what the next chapter (and potentially beyond) should hold…