Get Your Dream Job!

It’s a difficult market out there right now and competition is tough, so it’s paramount to set yourself apart from the rest.

I’m seeing more and more coaching clients who because of the downturn in the market, are seeking alternative careers.

Any career change has a risk element, but is also an opportunity to reinvent yourself, and focus on skill sets you may not have used, or don’t realise you actually have.

One key advantage the market now has, is that companies are being more adventurous in looking at the transferrable skills prospective employees possess. For example, they know they have a bigger pool of candidates, but in tough economic times there is an indication that they want much more for their money, and are looking at people with a wider skill set, who can work across a number of areas.

This is a key advantage for the job seekers who are looking at changing careers. Everyone has transferrable skills of great use to employers in different industry sectors.

A recent client of mine Alex, had worked in the competitive and highly pressured arena of corporate consulting, for blue chip multinationals. She was feeling pretty burnt out after 25 years focussing on for-profit companies, and wanted to do more in the direction of ‘giving something back’.

Together we focussed on her areas of personal interest, the life/work balance she was now aiming for, and fulfilling her need of doing something for the greater good. We then packaged together her transferrable skills, which included:-

Professional & Personal skill set

• Her ability to meet ever changing needs
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
• A well honed resilience working within time- critical environments
• Proven team player
• Having a persuasive and confident nature
• Extensive knowledge and business contacts within blue chip organisations
• A can do attitude, with an ability to communicate at all levels
• Solution focussed, adept at problem solving
• Energetic and enthusiastic.

Whilst there were many other facets to Alex’s skills set, we focussed on common denominators which would package well to prospective employers, in particular the charity sector which Alex was now sure she wanted to move into.

In Alex’s case, these key skills were perfect in marketing herself to charities for corporate fundraising roles. Through assignments I gave her, she was able to target the charities she most wanted to work for, and cold prospected her wish list. Within 9 weeks Alex had had 2 face to face interviews, 3 telephone conversations with senior individuals within 3 different charities, and then last week was offered what she describes as her dream job for one of the UK’s leading charities.

An important aspect of Alex's experience is that these were job opportunities not even advertised. A great example of someone creating their own desired outcome!

Alex made a decision to change, planned a step-by-step route to that change – incorporating specific goals and a time plan, and then executed all of these to reach a successful outcome.

She illustrated the need for making and sticking to a decision, having a well thought out plan and committing to making it happen. It’s interesting to note that Alex fed back to me that initially she thought that it was going to be really hard, but as the plan was forming she realised that it was entirely possible, which only added to her enthusiasm and excitement to her future.

If you are now at a place ready to create change; a simple way to start, is to list items in key areas:

1. The things you love to do
2. The aspects you are good at
3. Your personal qualities
4. Your specific work experience
5. The dream organisations you would want to work for

Then write down how 1+ 2 + 3 + 4 are transferrable to 5.

If you are having difficulties in identifying what you think you are good at and what you think your personal qualities are, then a great exercise is to ask 3-5 friends to write down their opinions of (2) and (3). It’s really interesting the feedback friends can give, and they of course can sometimes know you better than you know yourself. 

Remember, everything just starts as an idea; but only you have the power to nurture it into your own reality.

Copyright Elizabeth Bacchus

The Little Ankle Biters Are Leaving Home...Now What?

Its September, the bags are packed, you’ve given them recipes to all your favourite meals, you’ve bought them every student survival book you could get your hands on, and your heart is heavy. How on earth do you survive either your only child or your youngest child going off to university?

We took our son to University today, and whilst he’s going into his second year, I still have a lump in my throat as I write this post.

The house creaks with emptiness, and I wander into his room noticing the empty space where the eagerly used X box used to be...

It’s with such a mixture of pride and sadness that we wave our children off to University, hard to believe that this day has finally come. Unfortunately, gone are the days when we can exert control over their every move and decision. I have it slightly easier though than my sister, whose daughter my bright, talented and beautiful niece, (possibly a biased aunt!) Starts her first year at university this month.

In the midst of the empty spaces that our children leave behind though, are a new world of opportunities for the parents left behind. This doesn’t have to be the end, but the beginning of so much more. We now have the time (and possibly more money!) to start and concentrate on ourselves again; after years of being parents we can now begin to remember what it was like being individuals.

For me, it means I can explore hobbies and pursuits I’ve had my eye on for years, photography, horse riding again, learning to paint, writing a blog and catching up with friends, who admittedly I’ve probably been a bit lax in keeping in touch with. The world is so very different from when before I had a child, for a start, the Internet didn’t exist. Now so much more is accessible, and I fully intend to grasp every possibility out there.

It’s a transition though; our children leaving home, but it should hopefully be a transition process for you with the excitement of ‘what now’? It’s important to remember that it isn’t the first time you’ve let them go. You’ve already done that when they went to nursery, started secondary school and with their inevitable requests for more space and independence as they were growing up.

Remember, you’ve given your children the 2 most important elements for a healthy start in life, roots and wings. It’s now up to them, with your continuing love and support for them to go out into the world and use those gifts.

A few tips for surviving the empty nest:

• Think about the things you perhaps wanted to do over the years but were not able to pursue because of parental commitments.
• Keep busy – there are probably loads of things around the house you’ve been planning to do but never had the time for.
• Spend time with friends and like mind people who are perhaps going through the same transition.
• It’s easy to want to bombard your child with emails and phone calls, but they will undoubtedly be enjoying their new sense of freedom. Find out when is the best time to have a catch up chat and don’t take it personally when they are perhaps too busy to talk sometimes – remember they are having fun exploring their new life!

And finally, find time to sit back and swell with pride, thinking about the amazing young person you have raised and give yourself a big pat on the back!

Copyright Elizabeth Bacchus

How Coaching Can Make AND Break Your Business

Yes, too much coaching can actually harm your business massively. But some businesses do make this mistake.

Like personal coaching, goals should be agreed on at the beginning of the coach/client relationship, along with a time frame to meet these goals. Nothing should be left open-ended. I’m amazed at how many businesses become dependent on a coach – this should never happen, and a professional and ethical coach would not allow things to develop in this way.

The common mistakes with over-coaching in business stem from developing a dependency on the coach and the coach enabling the business owner/director to do this.

Key tips for maximising successful outcomes from your business coach relationship.

• Ensure there are agreed SMART goals at the outset of your coaching relationship.
• When you present your business to your coach, ensure they fully understand your business needs and the key areas you want to focus on.
• Ask you coach to work with you on a Beginning, Middle and End coaching strategy with specific reviews for the agreed areas in progress.
• Never forget that you are in control, the coach is there to assist, NOT tell you want to do.
• Make sure the coaching relationship is solution focussed rather than problem based.
• Decide early on, (if you have staff) is the coach mentoring you to coach your staff, or are they going to be working directly with your team – we all know that too many cooks spoil the broth.
• Ensure your staff have a route to you, to feed back how they feel the coach is adding value to the business’ performance.
• Ideally a business coaching relationship should last no more than 6 months but with room for informal or formal reviews as you move forward, depending on individual needs.

 Some great reading resources for building successful businesses include:-

1. The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People (Steven R Covey)
2. Built To Last (James C Collins)
3. In Search Of Excellence (Thomas J Peters)
4. Wikinomics (Don Tapscott & Anthony D Williams)
5. Now Discover Your Strengths (Marcus Buckingam & Donald O’Clifton

Choose your business coach wisely and it could be the best investment you ever make.

Copyright Elizabeth Bacchus

What Exactly Is A Life Coach, You Ask?

I am often asked what does a Life Coach do?

What a Life Coach definitely isn't, is a counsellor. Counsellors historically work from the past, deal with a core issue; or issues related to specific symptoms and help their clients work through that area of concern.

Life Coaching is very much about working on the 'now' with a client and looking at obstacles that may be restricting them from achieving their full potential. On a personal level, these obstacles can be anything from low self esteem, self-limiting beliefs, a lacking of confidence, feeling stuck and a general sense of life passing you by without any real meaning. The following questions can help identify whether Life Coaching could be something you might benefit from:-

• Is your life predominantly run by things you have to do, as opposed to things you choose to do?
• Do you often feel like there is something holding you back from a much more successful life?
• Do you often know what you should be doing, but have a hard time actually doing it?
• Do you regularly run out of time, energy or patience by the end of the day?
• Is your career more of a job than a calling?
• Is there less meaning in your life, career, relationship, or business, than you would like?
• Do you ever get a sense that you are not living the life you were meant to live, and that there is much more to life than you are now experiencing?
• Do you have a difficult time balancing your career, family, friends, health, etc.?
• Has it been a while since you really enjoyed yourself?
• Do you routinely find yourself worrying, stressed out or concerned about the future?
• Do you often find yourself living automatically, or simply going through the motions?
• Would you benefit from establishing great habits that keep you moving ahead in all parts of your life?
• Would you like to learn how to create a life that directly reflects your greatest gifts, talents and interests?
• Do you want more success, peace, intimate relationships, or a sense that your life is making a difference?
• Would you benefit from having clear goals that reflect what is truly important to you?

Many of us have asked ourselves some of these questions, and at the time probably lacked the direction to do anything about it. What a good Life Coach should do is help empower you with new skills to maximise your potential. This will be through identifying your negative triggers and replacing them with positve ones, helping plan realistic and agreed goals and providing a supportive and encouraging environment for you to succeed in.

How long should life coaching last and what does it entail?

Life Coaching should never be an open ended arrangement. The Life Coach and the client will agree on the areas to be worked on, how many sessions they feel will be appropriate and what method is to be used, for example; I mentor my personal Life Coaching clients face-to-face, over the phone and by email. The choice is the client's as to how they wish to work with their coach.

After an initial session, and after establishing what it is they want to achieve, I create SMART Goals, and various assignments - customised to the client's personal needs.

Progress is regularly reviewed to ensure the right pace and structure is in place. Four to six sessions is the norm, and my clients regularly email me afterwards with updates and sometimes queries on maintaining their progress.

The most important and rewarding aspect for me is my client's success is MY success, and I work hard to help my clients reach their goals and live their dreams.

Copyright Elizabeth Bacchus