I can't imagine my Career Lifestyle without my Career Coach.

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One of the coolest perks that came from working for T&K was having my own Executive Career Coach, Susan Fawcett. To the benefit of all their Director and Executive level employees, T&K hired Susan as a coach and mentor. (Testimony to the company’s commitment to People Development!) The Assessment, coaching and discovery process lead by Susan was essential to placement and growth within the company. This meant we were destined to ‘hook up.’

My relationship with Susan goes back to when I was a young pup getting ready to make a move to the Corporate Office. I remember flying out to Dallas to visit her for the first time. I admired the beautiful neighborhood. Apparently, just hours earlier, she was giving the neighborhood kids rides around the block on her horse. I felt like a kid who was about to spend the day with Mickey at Disneyland. I’ll admit, I had quite the business crush on her. It started when I sat in on her MBTI presentation during a company convention. She overflowed with personality - fun, vivacious, stylish, an ‘off-the-charts’ dose of emotional intelligence and brilliant NLP skills. I was immediately drawn to her.

I was excited, yet nervous, that the meeting was finally here. We settled into work, spending the day completing assessments and playing with blocks. We dug into all aspects of my life, not just my career. I discovered that I was in the top 4% of the general population as far as intellectual horse-power, but had the vocabulary of a fourth grader. She told me I was a natural leader, had strong vision and would excel at anything I put my mind too. She cautioned me about taking on too much, not setting boundaries and, as a result, losing balance in my personal life. She explained that my ambitious and resilient nature, when overdone, could lead to burnout. Most importantly, Susan enabled me to see possibilities within my life and career path that completely charged and energized me. I left ready to take on the world.

Fortunately, my coach stuck with me through thick and thin. As time went on, I experienced rapid productivity and success in my new role. However, just as she predicted, I was totally overdoing it and my personal life and health suffered. As if that wasn’t enough, I started making rookie mistakes at work. I took another trip to Dallas, this time for a week. Susan customized my agenda with a diverse team of professionals. She recognized that I stood to benefit from the expertise of others, assisting me both personally and professionally. I left more grounded and spiritually charged than ever before.

When I made the decision to leave T&K, Susan was one of the first people I went to discuss my career strategy. Since then, Susan’s been helping me manage the change I’m going through, and coaching me through these next steps in my career. I can’t imagine making a career move without her. She’s always been there when I need her, and I truly believe she always will.

My relationship with Susan has inspired me to have the same impact on others. In my blog post ‘Job-Seekers: Tips to Finding the Righ...,’ I recommend a Career Coach over a Recruiter. The value my coach has added to my life is priceless.

Here are a couple tips for finding the right Career Coach for you:

Look into the coach’s background to see what he/she has done in the past. The most qualified coaches are not always the ones who went to prestigious schools and received degrees in the fundamentals of ‘coaching’; but rather, people who have personally overcome many obstacles, have a talent for seeing the ‘bigger picture,’ and are continually growing and learning themselves.

Meet one-on-one with the coach to see how they interact with you. This personal interaction is invaluable. Most coaches offer a free introductory session or discounted seminar or workshop where you can get a sense of what it would be like to work with them.

Keep in mind, a coach who is qualified to work with one client, might not be the best fit for another. I believe a stronger match between you and your coach will inevitably produce results that catapult you into your greater good. A successful relationship with you and your coach comes from developing a connection with one another. When this happens, you discover that you can credit your coach and the relationship for being the catalyst for real change in your career.
If you are interested in finding a Career Coach, I’d love to help. Email me at mycareer@talentrevolution.net

Amanda Hite
Founder and Change Agent
Talent Revolution

Tags: amanda, career, coach, fawcett, hite, job, life, recruiter, susan

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Comment by Samantha on July 26, 2008 at 2:30pm: A couple of years ago I was sitting in a one-on-one session with my boss. Something we did about four times a year, which was always great but sometimes a dentist appointment seemed more appealing. Anyway, it was during one of those sessions that I learned a critical piece of advice that would change my life. He said to me “Samantha, the only thing that is holding you back from getting to where you want to go in your life and career is your confidence. You have to fix this problem!”

Well, confidence was always a problem for me and one I was not sure I would ever overcome. Not too long after that I had the opportunity to sit down with Susan for lunch. We talked about a million things, but we finally came around to the dreaded topic of confidence. I shared my issue with her and told her what I thought was holding me back and the advice she gave was some of the simplest but most effective advice I have ever received. She simply told me to act as if…what would I do if I were confident? How would I approach the situation? If you fail no big deal she said, you are just acting. As crazy as it seems, it worked! There was a little more to it than just that but that is the condensed version. Ask anyone I know, I am a different person than I was a year or two ago. “Acting” gave me the confidence to be. Now instead of acting like I have confidence, I am confident in who I am and what I can do.

Of course she continues to teach me amazing things everyday and she is a huge blessing in my life. That one piece of advice tipped the scales and changed my life forever. Now I get to encourage others that are struggling with their confidence and hopefully get to witness the change in them I have seen in myself. Everyone should have someone in their life with the amazing ability to help them become a better them in every area of their life! Thanks Susan!!!!

Comment by Carol Miroslaw on July 23, 2008 at 9:02am: Three years ago- it seems like ten - I was the first person at T&K who was able to attend a week long session with Susan. I flew out to Dallas very apprehensive and unsure of what this whole process of Life/Career Coaching would entail. Susan, being who she is- full of life, enthusiasm, humor as well as extremely intuitive made me feel very at ease.

The process I was lucky enough to be part of changed my life professionally, personally and spirtually. During that week we dove into every nook and cranny of my life and career. It was a turbulent time in my life in all aspects. There was lots of change and not much of it was what I percieved for the good.

Susan and her team put me in touch with my inner self which I had neglected pretty much entirely for most of my adult life. Could I have done this journey of transformation on my own? Possibly but how long if ever would it have taken me to figure it out? Having your strengths, weakenesses and passions up from and center along with someone there to help guide you with the process is priceless.

I was able to leave Dallas very in tune with myself and my passions both professionally and spirtually. I knew I wanted to change companies and improve my quality of life. I searched for the "right" company and the right time to leave. I wanted to stay in Cincinnati to be near my children and my grandchildren. Leaving them was never an option. So the search to find the right fit for me was limited.

I have found a truly rewarding position with Sonic Drive In, here in town. I work for an amazing man - who he claims we are partners not my boss! I was able to create and build the team, the culture and the business strategy with my vision of "Great".

The relevation, the process and the tools you learn to use you have for the rest of your life. Having Susan as my coach was the key for me. Her love of life, passion and humor was a well suited match for me. She was my role model in so many ways. I thank her from the bottom of my heart for the time I was able to spend with her. She helpled me in so many ways I cannot list.

Comment by Michael Henshaw on July 22, 2008 at 3:00pm: It boggles my mind how many people, including myself, have attempted to map their career/life paths without utilizing coaches. I have recently had the opportunity to explore the benefits of coaching and am excited beyond belief the doors that it opens up.

Comment by Leigh Caraccioli on July 22, 2008 at 12:59pm: fabulous post. do you think that susan could just hop up between my ears and drive this crazy me. i need direction. and yes. you're right. susan is something special. she has clearly propelled your career! when you meet her, you instantly grow. she makes an impact on people like me.