What on Earth Does a Leadership Coach Do?

When I tell people that I am a leadership coach, the ones who are most honest will ask something like, “What on earth does a leadership coach do?”

I help people become better, more authentic, leaders.  While not everyone is a leader, everyone could become a leader.  Each of us searches for the leader that is within us, and seeks to become the leader that grows out of our truest self.  I help people become those leaders.  That help takes many different forms.

I do not charge a fee the first time I meet with a person who would like me to coach them.  I begin by getting to know something about the person I am helping. I ask a few questions and get a sense of who they are.  I ask each person what kind of leader they are and what kind of leader they would like to become; their responses usually tell me a good deal about them.  They also have an opportunity to find out anything they would like to know about me.

Once we have gotten to know something about each other, I do not follow a set schedule.  Each coaching relationship, like each person, is unique.  We often spend time focusing on how they feel about what they are doing now, what they see as their strengths, what challenges them the most, and what we can learn from their experiences.

I do not usually give people assignments; I am more likely to suggest things to try, things to read, things to think about between sessions.

Each relationship is unique.  I have worked out budgets with people, helped people draft personal mission statements and dream job descriptions, and developed negotiation strategies.  I have laughed with people quite often, cried with people, and helped people overcome their deepest fears.  I have helped people understand their closest friends, and their closest competitors.

What on earth could a leadership coach help you do?