Step into the shoes of today’s leaders and you experience an increasingly complex and challenging role – one where remaining at the top of your game can often seem a daunting task. Balancing the (sometimes competing) demands of meeting stakeholder expectations, inspiring teams and driving performance – can make it difficult to focus.
With so many balls in the air, it’s likely one drops (often without us knowing). Small cracks may start to appear in our behaviour, impacting both our personal and professional lives. Leadership can be a lonely and isolating experience.
Many leaders are unsure about who to confide in or who to use as a ‘sounding board’. Knowing who to trust when you want to talk through your fears, concerns and doubts can be difficult. An executive coach serves leaders well during such times. Through confidential leadership coaching we’re able to help transform leaders into effective leaders who masters the balance between people and tasks, creative and reactive mindsets.
In a strictly confidential and connected coaching process, the coach and leader establish a productive and positive relationship in which high levels of challenge, support and reflection are in constant flow.
The business case
Self-awareness has a clear impact. Self-aware and centred leaders are four times more effective than leaders who lack self-awareness (Lead at your best, The McKinsey Quarterly 2014). Knowing one’s own personal values, internal scripts and behavioural patterns enables leadership from a place of consciousness.
The more we understand the mental frameworks from which we operate (values, beliefs, needs, fears and anger triggers), the more we’re able to lead from a place of purpose, clarity and impact.
There’s often talk about organisational agility but personal agility is just as important. Being able to avoid old patterns of behaviour and instead adapt to the changing landscape can help give you and your organisation an edge. Adaptive leadership skills are what sets great leaders apart.
Beyond the textbook and into the boardroom
Today’s leaders are bombarded with the ever-evolving management theories, leadership journals, leadership development courses and ‘must have’ self-help books. Navigating all of these concepts while excelling in your ‘business as usual’ role can be a daunting task.
Our approach to executive coaching goes beyond the theory and focuses on real, practical application. We bridge the gap between academics and action at work. We see leadership growth as ‘walking the talk’ – powerful changes in behaviour driven by a new way of thinking.
A mirror into our mindset
Self-awareness is crucial for any leader to be their best. How do you make sense of the world? What’s the typical way you interpret a situation or react to a challenge? When we turn the mirror on ourselves we’re able to see our own patterns of behaviour, our triggers and how both might limit us. This insight allows us to adapt and see different perspectives. We grow to become a better leader and a better person.
Helping grow from good to great
The path to effective and inspirational leadership is an evolution. Inspiring leaders change lives, organisations and nations. However, it takes intentional and focused efforts to nurture a good leader. Executive coaching can help propel a strong leader into a highly effective and inspirational one.
Through growth, leaders gain an edge in many ways:
- Greater insight leads to greater innovation – for individuals and organisations.
- Clear and concise understanding of values and visions.
- Knowing what makes one stressed and what can be done about it.
- More nuanced ways of working with and leading people by understanding their needs and fears.
This new way of seeing yourself and others allows you tap into your own strengths and open up new possibilities. It improves relationships, expands viewpoints and can often lead to new solutions to lingering problems.
By asking different questions, leaders can expand their view and become more curious. Over time, this builds a culture around the leader more open to change and innovation.
Leaders who have accelerated their growth are also able to see systems. Rather than taking a piecemeal or isolated approach to solving problems, they’re able to see the issue as a whole.
Shifting mindsets, shifting performance
Leadership growth takes dedication, practice and courage. Leaders who drive extraordinary results know they can only reach their true potential by going beyond their comfort zone.
Our business coaching services can help accelerate leadership growth. We do this by shifting leaders’ mindsets regarding the way they approach leadership challenges. The shift takes them from a ‘reactive mind’ that sees challenges as a problem or a threat to a ‘creative’ one which looks for an opportunity and is designed to seek vision. The creative mind is able to deal with the complexity of leading change and creating new possibilities.
A tailored, balanced approach
We work with our clients to devise a highly customised executive coaching program that’s right for them using a variety of world-class coaching models grounded in research.
The process
Our Coaching Programs are centred on the leader’s needs and partnership is at the very heart. Ensuring we have a good fit between coach and leader is paramount. We support leaders every step of the way and honour strict confidentiality while doing so. Typically, the coaching journey takes between 6-12 months.
Our coaching programs entail:
- One on one confidential executive coaching (delivered face-to-face or virtually) monthly or as agreed.
- Coaching sessions may take place at the corporate office or on other locations as agreed
- A variety of assessment tools and insights gained from these are integrated into a carefully tailored coaching journey which specifically addresses the individual leaders’ unique needs for leadership growth.
Preferred assessments tools: