Doorgaan naar hoofdcontent

Coaching: change and learning

Earlier this year I got an opportunity to work with a coach at work - and I still am. After 20 years of working the web-industry, surviving Shockwave and Flash in the process, I got myself a coach. And it has been an awesome ride so far!


The start

I am a critical employee, I demand a lot of myself and the team around me. That doesn't always make my life easy, because not everyone has the same mindset or same demands. To dive into what drives me and how I can make myself a stronger professional I started working with a coach.

To be honest I didn't have any idea of what to expect. But as I had already learned at my first employer you have to be open and receptive if you want to grow and learn. So that's exactly what I did.

The coach

The most important part of coaching is your coach. You need someone who can handle you and read you. You need a "click" with your coach. You two need to connect, so you feel free and open to share anything. Your coach also needs to be trustworthy to you - because you'll be sharing very personal information about yourself.

I'm a closed person, I tend to keep the personal stuff to myself. So it wasn't always easy to open up and I am still getting used to it.

Core values

After just a few sessions I was completely amazed. We had already found out that I have been running over the past years. If an employer or a situation didn't suit me, I'd run away and find another job. What was even better is that we found out why I had been running.

I have a set of core values, values important to me. When these values aren't met by an employer or colleague I tend to shut down and run. Looking back at when I have left employers over the past years or have gotten myself into trouble it all comes down to these values!

The Saboteur

Remember the movie 'Inside Out', where the main character has multiple characters in her head? If you look at that concept, imagine you have a saboteur in there. Its the guy holding us back. He keeps us safe by settling for what is familiar. When my core values aren't met he'll be there telling me to run. Telling me "I told you they don't care about your values or about you at all". He will pretend to be your guardian, helping you survive. Yet he really isn't.

The Hero

Opposite the saboteur is the hero. He's the one knowing what you really want. He knows your deepest wishes. The guy telling you "You rock!". He's actually the coolest dude ever - yet he often loses out (in my case) to the saboteur. I need to embrace my hero more and make sure I follow his lead. I shouldn't run - it will only get me into the same situation elsewhere. Face the issues head on and explain why it matters to you.

Sometimes people make a career change you don't expect. Now I've learnt about the saboteur and the hero I'd like to think those people have allowed their hero to win. And I love the process of learning more from my hero - and find out what I really want.

It's all you

During this whole process my coach was just asking me questions, pushing me to give my opinion, showing me how I respond. Basically the coach was making me aware of myself. I've had loads of epiphanies during the sessions. You're really starting to get to know yourself and realizing what matters. To me, my coach isn't a problem-solver. She's there to help me solve the problem by showing me how I really feel.

I think I have lost myself a little bit over the years looking at the results so far. And it has been so inspiring and awesome to dive into myself and find out who I am and what I stand for. It has also been amazing to find out how much a coach can find out in a closed guy like myself.

Coaching can sometimes be seen as a weakness, but in fact it is the opposite: it is all about changing and learning. It's about finding yourself and allowing yourself to be you and strive for your goals, your ambitions. The only thing holding you back is... you.

Thanks for reading and all the best.
Corné
Labels:

Reacties

Een reactie posten

Populaire posts van deze blog

Visual Design - Typography

In my previous blog-post I explained I am blogging all through the summer about Visual (Web)Design. This is part 2, where we'll focus on typography. Typography According to Wikipedia typography is the art and technique of arranging type to make written language legible, readable and appealing when displayed. I feel typography is not often valued correctly. Typograpy is one of the key aspects to Visual Design. It helps in setting an emotion, when done well it helps in brand recognition. Looking at webdesign there are more things to take into consideration. Emotion Typography sets an emotion. Often people frown when I say this, but showing one particular font helps explain my message. Yes, I am using Comic Sans in this blog post! Which of the two words above looks more important? When you're using Comic Sans for the word 'help' I wonder how many people see the urgency of your request. When using the Impact font (especially in all-caps) it looks mo
3 reacties
Meer lezen

Embracing Design Principles

In this post I'd like to dive into Design Principles. To me, they are one of the best things ever in this line of business. What are Design Principles? Design Principles are a set of rules you define with your client. They provide direction in your design process. They give the design process a clear and shared vision and help in making decisions. Finally, they describe the meaning of your product or service to the customer. I myself mostly use them for the clear and shared vision and as an aid in making decisions. Principles first! It's important to write the Design Principles before starting the webdesign. You need everyone to agree to the Design Principles before you start your design task. There's a simple reason behind this: think first, act after. If you're developing the Design Principles during the design phase you'll most likely write them so they match what you're doing in the design. Example: I always have a Design Principle stating "Cu
2 reacties
Meer lezen

B2B, B2C, C2C what about H2H?

Lately I've been reading more and more about H2H, Human 2 Human communication. And the more I read about it, the more I feel there's a simple truth in it. B2B, B2C, ... A lot of companies are promoting a proposition of a B2B, B2C or even C2C leader. They claim a position in one or both of these markets. Thats actually pretty smart. I believe that choices are a good thing. You need to make choices and follow through. This article isn't going to tell you any of these choices are a bad thing. This article is trying to tell you that I think the differences between B2B and B2C aren't that big as they are all floating towards H2H. User centered These days we're often working with persona's, user journeys and user testing. Everyone is shouting we need to include real users in our working ways. Good call. Ten years ago we imagined what people wanted to see or experience. These days we include users to understand what they need, want or expect. We have really e
2 reacties
Meer lezen