Career Coaching Themes
After five months in business, I thought it might be interesting to write about some of the reasons that clients come for career and wellness coaching. Every client is different but there are some themes starting to emerge already.
In general the goal of career coaching is to empower professionals by helping them make informed decisions about their trajectory. It’s a solution-based approach to career decisions.
The main themes are:
Career pivots/ career change
Confidence coaching
Job crafting
Getting ‘unstuck’/ figuring out what job to do next
Practical help on CVs/ LinkedIn etc
Interview preparation
Better work/ life balance
I’ll explain each topic a little more below.
Career pivots/ changing career:
Clients sometimes come to me as they are looking to change to a different job or career. They already know what area they want to move to, but they are unsure how to get there. I help and empower the client to put together a plan on how to get that role. It may require a plan on further study, getting experience in that industry or a job search plan.
Confidence coaching
This is a very common theme and sometimes it may be the reason why the client comes to me, or it may come up when looking at other topics. The client may feel like they have imposter syndrome, or perhaps they are afraid or hesitant to put themselves forward for opportunities as they lack the confidence to do it. Depending on the specific issue that the client wants to focus on, we could use different approaches including cognitive behavioural coaching, positive psychology interventions or practical aspects.
Job crafting
Job crafting is great for clients who do not want to leave their company but have fallen out of love with their role. Job crafting is changing your job to make it more engaging and meaningful and can take many forms. Job crafting can be a powerful tool for reenergising and reimagining your work life. It involves redefining your job to incorporate your motives, strengths, and passions. The exercise prompts you to visualise the job, map its elements, and reorganise them to better suit you. In this way, you can put personal touches on how you see and do your job, and you’ll gain a greater sense of control at work
Getting ‘unstuck’/ figuring out what job to do next
Lots of clients come to me because they have no idea what they want to do. Perhaps they have been in the same job for 20 years, or they know they hate their current job but they are unsure of what is next for them.
Using pre-work and psychometric tests I would encourage the client to look at their career story so far, strengths, skills, purpose, values, interests and the practical issues such as salary and location. Using this information and more the client can then brainstorm and think of new careers to explore in the sessions.
Practical help on CVs/ LinkedIn etc
People come to me for career coaching because they may be stuck in the job application stage. Perhaps they have been applying for jobs but not getting interviews or they already know that they need help with their CV. I can help craft a winning CV, strong LinkedIn presence, professional cover letter and emails for approaching contacts on LinkedIn or general networking.
Interview preparation
I have career coaching clients who have a big interview coming up for a dream job or they are worried about interviewing in general and would like some help in preparing. I can help clients build their confidence for an upcoming interview through tips, techniques and practical help including mock interviews and feedback.
Better work/ life balance
This is for clients who feel the way they work needs to change. It may be that they would like to set better boundaries, feel less stressed, include better healthy habits or gain more flexibility in how they work.
These are just some themes but of course there are many other reasons. If you are interested in finding out more about career coaching, please get in contact for a free introduction call.
