I approached experienced career coach and consultant, Sherry Bevan, to see if she would be happy to explain what career coaching is and to explore some of the potential benefits to library returners. She readily agreed to help our job search community and this is what she wrote. 

EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT CAREER COACHING

According to new data from LinkedIn, hiring in the UK increased by almost 6% between September and October. While the number of people being hired is still about 10% below last year’s levels, the number is gradually increasing. Currently it’s at its highest level since we started to feel the impact of Covid-19 on hiring in March.

Given the current employment situation, you may have wondered whether now is the right time to change employer or ask for promotion. 

You might have considered working with a career coach but perhaps you’re not sure what that involves and whether it’s worth the financial investment. 

What are the benefits of working with a career coach?

Before I tell you HOW career coaching works, let’s explore the benefits. And I’ll start by saying that whatever you do or achieve with a career coach, you CAN do this by yourself. The advantage of working with a coach is so that you get those results more quickly, more efficiently and the effects are longer-lasting. 

Working with a career coach: 

• gives you an understanding of yourself from a career and work perspective
• develops your self-awareness of your skills, strengths and values so that you apply for the right role at the right employer which means that you’ll thrive not just survive 
• helps you to get super clear and focused on what you want in your career so that you make brave decisions and take action which means you’re more likely to reach your career goal more quickly
• helps you with a successful job search strategy including guidance and advice on your CV, LinkedIn profile and helps prepare you for job interviews 
• assists the move into a new role more quickly after redundancy or a career break
• helps you get more productive and make a bigger impact in your career 
• supports you to negotiate on job salary and benefits so that you get the job you love with the flexible working you need and the salary you deserve

 

So how does a career coach work?

Many career coaches work in similar ways to me and offer a range of options depending on what you are in your career.

For example:

• one-off ‘quick fix’ 60 minute coaching session, designed to help you kick start your job search, fix your CV, update your LinkedIn profile, tackle that inner critic that’s holding you back in your career or whatever you need to fix right now.
• a package with an agreed number of sessions over an agreed number of months e.g. six sessions over three months designed to help you achieve a longer term goal e.g. pivot your career, make a bigger impact at work to achieve promotion, become a more confident leader or to support you with working towards a professional certification.
• online group programmes e.g. my Job Search Confidence course runs over six weeks and my Women in Technology Leadership programme over six months

How to pick a career coach

Every career coach will work differently, however, many offer a complimentary initial call – sometimes called a clarity call or a discovery call. 

For me, the purpose is to explore what you want, whether you’re ready to take action, if I’m the right person to help you and whether we both feel that we’re a good fit. 

I always encourage you to go with your gut instinct and pick a coach that you feel you can trust and respect so that you feel safe to be open and honest which means you’ll get much more from the coaching relationship.

How coaching works 

Coaching is a one-to-one relationship that supports the individual in a non-directive way so that you get clear on your goals and decide how you want to achieve them.

At its heart, coaching is about using powerful and effective questioning alongside other coaching ‘tools’.

And if you’re thinking “Well anyone can ask a few questions”, yes you’re right. The skill of a good career coach is to ask the right questions.

A good coach is not just listening to your answers to those questions. She’s also listening to what you don’t say. She’s noticing your body language. Your hesitations. The sighs. The changes in the tone and speed of your voice – all of this adds to the whole picture about how you’re really feeling.

When you work with a career coach, it’s a completely confidential safe space where you can say what you really think; what you really feel; without worrying whether the person listening will get angry or upset or confused. Often that’s what happens when you ask friends or family for careers advice.

What happens in a coaching session?

Your coach will provide the structure for the coaching session and manage the timing. One popular coaching model is the GROW model:

GOAL – RESOURCES – OPTIONS – WAY FORWARD.

In this model you start by deciding WHAT you want to focus on i.e. your goal. 

The second step is to explore what resources, support and experience you need or already have. 

The third step is to brainstorm options and alternatives that will help you achieve your goal. 

Then finally you’ll review what’s been discussed and decide what actions you will commit to take. 

The more you prepare for each session in advance, the more value you’ll get from career coaching.

What is the role of the career coach?

A career coach is not your counsellor, your psychiatrist, your mentor or your teacher.

A coach will have absolute faith that you have all the answers within, and that you are the expert in your own life. Through expert questioning, your coach will help you unlock doors in your mind that maybe you didn’t even know were closed.

The role of the coach is to facilitate the process, to ask the questions, to keep the session on time and to keep you on track.

Your role, as client, is to take responsibility for what you want to focus on in each session, turn up on time and take action.

Additionally as a career coach, you can expect a level of expert knowledge and experience for CV preparation, LinkedIn profiles, job interview preparation, etc. 

How much does career coaching cost?

Pricing varies enormously. As an example, I charge £199 for a one hour session, £299 for an online group course and £3000 for my leadership development programme. 

You can always ask employer to sponsor the coaching as part of your career development. Many career coaches will provide you with a template proposal for you to adopt and adapt to make the business case for the coaching. 

How career coaching works in a nutshell 

The coach asks the right questions. You give the honest answers. You decide what you will do. You take action. You AND the coach celebrate when you achieve your goals.

If you’d like to know more about career coaching and working with me specifically, visit my website at theconfidentmother.co.uk

 

About Guest Blogger

A former Global Head of IT Service for an international law firm, Sherry set up her independent coaching practice in 2012 after more than 25 years in the City. She works as a career coach and specialises in supporting women with their job search. 

Follow Sherry on Twitter @SherryRB, join her free Career Conversations Facebook community or connect with her on LinkedIn.