Don’t Do it Alone
Being a leader can often feel lonely, but it isn’t something you have to do alone. Throughout your career it is important to develop relationships with individuals who can help you grow, accomplish goals, and advance throughout your career. We’ve talked about the importance of building relationships in other blogs, but a key takeaway is that building relationships with people in high places shouldn’t be one’s only focus. Rather, one should focus on cultivating relationships with others in their network who can support, mentor, and advise you. Depending on where you are at in your career, there are different types of relationships that you can lean on to help you in your growth. One of these relationships can be with a leadership or business coach.
Leadership coaching is when a business owner, executive or professional works with a coach who can help define forward looking goals, identify blindspots, and build confidence. Earlier this year, Not Another Goal cited that over 70% of working professionals who received coaching have reported a positive increase in work performance, relationships, and communication skills. Yet, only 39% of CEOs have used leadership coaching within the last 12 months. Leadership coaching benefits are vast: improved productivity, better management skills, heightened self-awareness, increased confidence, and a proven ROI, to name a few.
Business coaching helps business owners or leaders develop their business vision, understand key business elements, provide perspective and accountability as they navigate the growth of their businessMore importantly, business coaches work with owners and leaders to learn from opportunities and celebrate accomplishments because they understand what it takes to get there. According to a 2016 study in the International Coach Federation, 80% noted an improvement in confidence after working with a business coach.
If you’re not ready to start a relationship with a coach, there are other types of relationships you can consider. A peer or fellow entrepreneur who is working through a similar challenge can provide insight into how they would approach a problem. A mentor is an individual who supports your personal and professional development by sharing insights from their experience navigating their career. A sponsor can be helpful when seeking out a new opportunity as they can “sponsor” or advocate for you by introducing you to the right contacts or using their reputational capital to help you advance. An advisor can provide insight into a specific area you are hoping to learn more about, such as finance or legal advice. Regardless of where you are at in your career or business, relationships will help you grow so you aren’t going through it alone.
Action into Insight:
Reach out to your network and determine who may be a good fit as a mentor or sponsor. If you’re ready for coaching, Not Another Goal offers leadership coaching to help you no matter where you are at in your business execution or career development. Reach out to Not Another Goal to schedule a free consultation to find out if leadership or business coaching could be a good next step for you!
