One of the top investments you can make in yourself is to hire a coach. Seriously…find a way to fit the cost into your budget. It doesn’t matter if you are an executive or not, there are all kinds of personal development and life coaches who specialize in various types of clients. You can find one who will fit your needs no matter where you are in your career or personal life. I promise you won’t regret it.

I started working with two coaches a few years back, a life coach and an executive coach, and I have benefited greatly from it. My goal was to find a coach who could help me understand myself better and grow as a leader. I needed someone who I could bounce ideas off of…someone I could say anything to without fear of being judged as being emotional, irrational, or flat out wrong. Someone who I could say to, “I don’t know how to handle this situation.” I was looking for someone who would help me hold myself accountable and teach me new tools for handling hard situations. I was lucky enough to find the two coaches I still work with today and they have helped me do all of these things and so much more.

So what can a coach do for you and why is it so important to one?

Unbiased Listening
There is a great benefit in talking with someone who isn’t attached to you or your situation. Even if those closest to you are great listeners, they are still impacted by what you say and do and cannot be completely unbiased. A coach is there to support you and only you and will listen and give feedback accordingly.

Candid Feedback
Candid feedback is a gift, even if it sometimes hurts. Unfortunately, it’s rare to get direct, constructive criticism and advice. As you move towards higher levels of management, getting feedback becomes even more important. Unfortunately, you’re less likely to get it and if you do, it’s probably not accurate (face it, most people are too scared to tell the boss what they REALLY think). A good coach will give it to you straight.

Learn New Tools
What good is getting feedback if you don’t know how to address your issues? A coach will offer fresh perspectives and can provide you with the tools to better address the challenges you’re facing. For example, your coach can teach you how to be a better listener, how to employ feedback models, how to stop yourself from interrupting others, how to calm yourself down in an instant, and much, much more.

Holds You Accountable
Personal accountability is the cornerstone of success but sometimes you need help; it’s too easy to let yourself off the hook, make excuses, and fall into victim-hood and the blame game. A strong and assertive coach will support your accountability efforts and should point out when you aren’t holding up to your end of the deal.

Learn More About Yourself
Self-awareness is key if you want to grow personally and professionally. It’s critical that you understand the impact you have on those around you. Effective coaching will allow you to develop self-awareness skills by helping you understand your emotions, experiences, vulnerabilities, strengths, weaknesses, personality traits, and to uncover unresolved issues that are holding you back.

To be effectively coached, you have to want to be coached. There’s no point in spending the time and money if you aren’t prepared to look deeply into the mirror your coach will hold in front of you. It takes grit, resilience, and strength to be able to take feedback, address blind spots, and make the necessary changes to become a better leader, parent, employee, and most of all, a better person. But it’s worth every minute (however painful) and every penny (however expensive).

Thanks for reading! As always, I welcome comments, likes, and shares.

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