Three Questions to Consider Before You Decide to Work with a Career Coach
Posted on January 02, 2014 by Stefanie McGary, One of Thousands of Career Coaches on Noomii.
Working with a Career Coach can be extremely beneficial, but before you sign on, be sure you are prepared to make a true commitment to your future.
As the Career Coaching industry continues to grow, more and more people are considering the possibility of working with a Coach. A Career Coach can guide you as you explore new career opportunities or assist you with advancement in your current career. Though I truly believe most people pursue a career as a Coach because they have a genuine interest in helping people, like any other professional, a Career Coach is ultimately in business to earn a living. This is a relationship in which you pay someone for a service that they are providing. Before you sign on, it may be worthwhile to ask yourself a few questions.
1. Do You Have the Time to Focus on Your Journey?
The coaching relationship takes time. Most likely you will have a scheduled weekly telephone call and your Coach will expect you to be available and prepared. There will also generally be tasks and assignments that you will be asked to complete between sessions. Are you confident that you have the time available to commit to making the coaching relationship a success?
2. Are You Prepared to Make Changes in Your Life and Career?
Your Career Coach isn’t just there to listen to you complain about how much you hate your job. The purpose of the coaching relationship is to help Clients identify their goals and create (and stick to) a game plan to achieve them. Change can be difficult and scary. Do you truly feel that you are ready for the challenges and struggles that you will potentially face?
3. Are You Willing to Put in the Work to Improve Your Situation?
When your washing machine breaks, you call someone to come and fix it for you. In a coaching relationship, however, you will be the one doing the work. Your coach isn’t there to “fix” things, but rather to help guide you as you determine where you want to go and how you want to get there. Have you considered the effort that will be required to make positive changes in your current career situation?
As a Career Coach, I believe that the relationship between a Coach and a Client can be extremely beneficial under the right circumstances, but only when both the Coach and the Client are committed to making the relationship work. A Career Coach is not going to tell you what to do or give you the answers to determine your goals and course of action. She can assist you and guide you, but in the end, your success (or lack thereof) is all up to you, the Client.
Before you enter into a relationship with a Career Coach, I urge you to strongly consider your answers to the questions above. If you do not have the time, are not prepared to embrace the challenges that come with change, or do not feel that you are ready to fully commit to the relationship, it may make sense to consider postponing a coaching relationship until you are able to truly focus on the process.
