My sister and I are going through a reflective course together. It invites deeper conversations around our beliefs, and I was gratefully sitting with insights about how I have changed in a big way.
Psychotherapy introduced me to the world of looking back to move forward. I healed parts of myself through deeply cathartic processes and did that year after year. I overcame a lot of my limits through the support of teachers, mentors, therapists, good friends, and working with my clients. I continue to be in therapy to this day.
Coaching was my 2nd life-changing move. Coaching made me look forward while holding a broad and ambitious horizon. I have had a coach almost continuously for the last 10 years. This blog is to share how I have thrived through it.
1. My coach as a mirror:
My early coaches reflected back my strengths to me. They got me to list them out and build my work around my strengths – Articulation, teaching, psychology, relationship skills, listening. A big part of my early business was providing services connected to these.
2. My coach supported my identity development:
I was part of a cohort at the Institute of Generative Leadership USA. It was time for me to stop and ask what niches I wished to serve within the coaching world. Niches that helped me take care of what I care about the most in the world. A place where I want to leave my mark.
I identified Leadership/Executive Coaching and Women’s Leadership as two areas to focus on. Building my identity in these two areas helped me create a few digital products, intensive journey courses, and my book Step Up, which became an Amazon bestseller in a few categories. Recently, I have authored a chapter in Growing Groups into Teams. I also became an ICF MCC in 2023. Every action led to a consolidation of identity. I stopped pitching for work in some areas, dropped some business ideas altogether, and focussed on creating new offers that matter.
Check This – https://physis.co.in/about/sai-bio/
3. My coach helped me build a business mind:
Not having an MBA and being inward-looking with my psychotherapy work had not helped me be a good business owner. I was not clear about my business goals. I was an entrepreneur, and I had ignored the skills needed for it. As a coach, I was sometimes in a feast with lots of work or in a famine with too little work.
Having a business coach allowed me to sharpen my skills in choosing where to focus my energy. It was in brand building and marketing. I built new skills in planning work for my teams, investing in infrastructure, social media, blogging, video creation, and speaking. A big expansion of thinking and action which I continue to do. The learning goals in this area are growing as I build muscle in new domains.
I have had people asking me is coaching is worth the investment?
I would say a resounding YES. The worth of anything lies in the value we attach to it. I deeply value learning, growth, identity, and above all, creating meaningful impact in the world. I believe that most effective leaders share these values, which is why many of them choose to work with a coach
- A coach fires up your game.
- A coach is a scaffolding- they provide support and care.
- A coach can alter your solo game.
- A coach brings wind under your wings for whatever form of growth you decide.
I have received this as a coachee, and I provide this as a coach. If you are sitting on the fence, think again!
You can watch this interview of Inmobi leaders Abhay Singhal & Veena Sethuraman who discuss the power of coaching here.
Therapeutic work for me never ceases. While earlier years saw me working on many behavioral shifts, I now find myself working on deeper aspects connected to gender and identity. This sort of ‘clearing up’ or deep maintenance work is very important as I continue to work with the focus on identity transformation. More recently, I have found myself also dabbling in the expressive arts of poetry, visual arts, and movement.
Coaching continuously has been a big investment and commitment to me as a business owner. Holding the short-term lens while balancing the long-term game of how and where I wish to grow my work has been the focal point of my coaching conversations.
Suggested Reading:
- What is the Difference Between Leadership Coaching and Training?
- Leadership Coaching vs Therapy – How Exactly Does it Work? Part 1
- Leadership Coaching vs Therapy: A real-world example – Part 2
Suggested Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nRpv_a6QfLU
