Is DIY Leadership Development Holding You Back? The Benefits of Executive Coaching

Leaders are constantly bombarded with information and advice on how to improve. The resources available for personal and professional development seem endless, from self-help books and podcasts to webinars and online courses. While these tools can be valuable for learning new skills and gaining insights, they often fall short when it comes to achieving meaningful, lasting change.

The truth is that even the most driven and capable individuals can hit a plateau where self-improvement efforts seem to stall. This is where coaching can make a significant difference.

How Does Executive Coaching Amplify Leadership Development?

Access to knowledge and learning opportunities is no longer the primary obstacle for high-achieving individuals. Tic Toc, YouTube, LinkedIn, and the local bookstore are overloaded with self-help resources telling you how to get a job, earn a promotion, start a business, or be a better leader. The real challenge lies in translating that knowledge into action, setting clear priorities, and maintaining focus amidst competing demands.

If learning alone were the key to prosperity and success, no one would need coaches, managers, or consultants. People could attend college, read books, watch videos, and achieve their goals. The table stakes for success are higher. To be successful, you need to understand what you are uniquely talented and interested in doing and dedicate time to it in a consistent and persistent manner.  

How Can Coaching Accelerate Growth?

Working with a skilled coach can help business leaders overcome these obstacles and achieve their full potential. A coach acts as a trusted partner, providing guidance, support, and encouragement as you self-discover and self-improve.

Here are some practical ways that coaching can facilitate growth:

• Defining what's important: A coach helps you identify your core values, strengths, and priorities, enabling you to make more intentional choices and focus on what truly matters.

• Improve Time Management: With a coach's help, you can create a clear roadmap for achieving your goals, break down complex tasks into manageable steps, and avoid overwhelm.

• Committing to action: A coach holds you accountable for taking action and making progress, ensuring that your plans don't remain mere intentions.

• Learning from experience: A coach helps you gain insights from your successes and setbacks through regular reflection and feedback, accelerating your learning and development.

Why Coaching Works?

The effectiveness of coaching lies in its unique combination of personalized attention, goal-oriented focus, and collaborative approach.

• Personalized Plan: Unlike generic self-help resources, coaching is tailored to your specific needs, challenges, and aspirations.

• Goal-orientated: A coach helps you stay laser-focused on your desired outcomes, avoiding distractions and staying on track.

• Collaborative: You are the expert on yourself, and your coach is the expert on what you have hired them for. The magic happens when you combine the two.

• Commitment and focus: Investing in coaching demonstrates a commitment to your own growth and development, increasing your motivation and focus.

How to Choose the Right Coach?

The coaching industry is vast and unregulated, so it is important to choose a coach who is a good fit for you and your goals.

Consider the following factors when selecting a coach:

• Problem definition: Clearly define the problem you're looking to solve or the goal you want to achieve.

• Tangible and intangible goals: Identify both tangible goals (e.g., promotion, raise, starting a business) and intangible goals (e.g., improved confidence, communication, personal accountability).

• Coach's experience: Research coaches who have experience helping people achieve similar goals.

• Coaching approach: Explore different styles and approaches to find one that resonates with you.

Summary

High-performing individuals understand the value of coaching. Working with a skilled coach can unlock your full potential, overcome limiting beliefs, and achieve your most ambitious goals.

Remember, even the most successful leaders benefit from a trusted partner guiding and support them on their journey. If you're ready to take your leadership to the next level, consider investing in a coach who can help you accelerate your growth and achieve lasting success.

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Thank you for reading this blog; share it with a friend.

As an executive coach, I assist business owners, executives, and middle managers in clarifying their professional goals, developing skills, and growing their capabilities so they can reach their full potential.

Whether you want to lead more effectively, acquire a new role, or earn a promotion, I am here to help you accelerate your growth and achieve more.

Let's develop your leadership plan.

Have Feedback  Send me a note at

To Make More Money, You Have to Budget Your Time.

updated 5/19/2025

Budgeting your time is the secret ingredient to unlocking greater financial success. It's about more than just squeezing in more hours at work; it's about strategically allocating your time to activities that will genuinely move the needle. Making more money takes intentionality, commitment, and follow-through.

Everyone has the same amount of time each year.

We all receive the same 8,760 hours each year. How you spend those hours will directly influence your health, wealth, and overall happiness. Finding the right balance between skill development, job execution, rest, and investing in your physical and mental health is critical to achieving your financial goals.

Budget Your Time Spent on Needs vs. Wants

We all need food, water, and shelter to survive. But we also need relationships, community, and a sense of purpose to thrive. Being intentional about how you will earn money, nurture relationships, and find fulfillment is essential. To maximize your potential, you must prioritize your physical, emotional, and mental well-being, which is why budgeting your time is crucial.

Where to begin?

Start by completing the Wheel of Life exercise. This exercise encourages you to rate different aspects of your life and identify areas for improvement. Focusing on improving one area of your life can positively impact others.

Wheel of Life - Take the Free Assessment

Evaluate your current use of time.

When you're trying to improve any aspect of your life, there are two primary levers you can pull:

1. How well you perform a task: Can you enhance your skills or efficiency?

2. How much time do you spend on a task? Can you dedicate more or less time to current activities?

For example, you could work more hours to increase your income. Many people take on second and even third jobs to make more income. Your other option is to earn more per hour. This is typically accomplished by earning a promotion, a bonus, or changing careers. In some cases, ambitious people can pull both of these levers. Developing a strategy for changing one or both variables will significantly increase your chances of reaching your financial goals.

🤔Does budgeting time really work?

Absolutely! Let me share a real-life example.

Last year, I worked with a marketing executive who wanted to earn a raise and a promotion. To achieve this, she knew she needed to increase her value in the eyes of the CEO. Initially, she was unsure how to proceed. She put her head down and worked tirelessly, but the CEO's perception of her remained unchanged despite her long hours.

Through coaching, I helped her recognize that working harder was not the answer. What she needed to do was work smarter.

• Professionally:

  • She needed to spend more time understanding the problems the CEO wanted to solve.

  • She began spending more time with peers and collaborating with senior leaders to find solutions.

  • She tested and implemented new ideas that reduced expenses and increased income.

  • She worked on her presentation skills and better communicated he wins to the CEO.

• Personally:

  • She had to overcome biases and anxiety that were getting in the way of communication and collaboration.

  • She needed to invest time in getting to know her peers better to trust them.

  • She reduced her anxiety by spending time building skills and competency through coaching, reading, and workshops.

  • She changed habits around eating, exercise, sleep, and social life, which helped her manage stress and be calmer.

Within a few months, this executive earned a promotion because she:

• She began to embody the executive she was.

• Helped the company save a significant amount of money.

• Improved sales.

• Enhanced communication across functions.

• Earned the respect of the CEO.

⌚Time is your most valuable asset.

If you're unsatisfied with your current income, it's time to examine how you spend your time. We all have the same number of hours a year, and how we utilize those hours directly impacts our earning potential. The path to making more money isn't always straight. Sometimes, you must invest in acquiring new knowledge, building relationships, or gaining new experiences.

Identify what you need, develop a plan, and remain persistent. That's the key to unlocking greater financial success. Remember, time is your most valuable asset. Budget your time wisely.

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Thank you for reading this blog; share it with a friend.

As an executive coach, I assist business owners, executives, and middle managers in clarifying their professional goals, developing skills, and growing their capabilities so they can reach their full potential.

Whether you want to lead more effectively, acquire a new role, or earn a promotion, I am here to help you accelerate your growth and achieve more.

Let's develop your leadership plan.

Have Feedback  Send me a note at

Mastering Career Transition: How to Define Your Next Career Move

Career transitions are becoming increasingly common as individuals seek new challenges, personal fulfillment, and growth opportunities. Whether contemplating a change in your career path or actively searching for a new job, mastering the art of career transition is essential to ensure a successful and fulfilling career. When working with clients, we encourage them to use the 4 Steps of Effective Decision-Making Framework to help determine their next career move.

Defining Your Career Goal.

The first step in navigating a career transition is clearly defining your career goal. With a specific target, you can focus your efforts and resources towards opportunities that align with your aspirations. Begin by reflecting on your interests, skills, and values to determine what you truly desire in your next role. Next, consider what you are looking to get out of your carer. Do you have college debt that you want to pay off, a home you want to purchase, or an impact you want to make within society? The clearer your goals are, the easier it will be for you to develop a plan to bring your goals to life.

What do you do if you are struggling to define career goals?

1. Evaluate your values.

2. Consider your strengths.

3. Clarify why you are looking for a change.

Broadly Define Options.

It is wise to start broad in your job search to explore the myriad of possibilities available to you. It is common to start a job search focusing on a job title. This approach is effective if you aim to acquire a specific job title. In most cases, the clients we work with are less concerned with titles and more concerned with pay, work environment, developmental opportunities, and the type of work they will do.

Research different jobs, companies, and industries to ensure you cast a wide enough net when searching. Educational institutions, large corporations, start-ups, non-profits, and government organizations tend to have dynamically different organizational cultures, compensation packages, missions, and ways of doing business. Engage in conversations with professionals from different industries and companies, attend networking events, and conduct thorough research to gain insights into various career paths.

Where do you start your research?

1. Contact friends, former peers, and people you went to school with. Ask them about their work and the companies they work for.

2. Research companies based near where you live. Smaller, less-known companies often provide great opportunities, a sense of purpose, and opportunities for growth.

3. Pick a company and read articles about its organizational culture, vision, mission, and goals. The more you know about a company, the better you will be able to determine if it is a good fit for you.

Narrow Based on Your Values.

After you gather information and insights from your broad exploration, it is time to narrow down your options and focus on opportunities conducive to your career growth. When evaluating potential job opportunities, consider company culture, work-life balance, career advancement prospects, and how they align with your values. By narrowing in on the type of job, company, and industry that resonates with you, you set yourself up for a successful and fulfilling career transition.

How do you narrow your job search?

1. Define the things you do not want, such as a long commute, traveling long-distance multiple times a month, or working on products or services you do not care about.

2. Define your ideal salary range. Establish the lowest amount you would work for and your ideal salary.

3. Identify the work you would do, even if you were not getting paid. You will find you are more energized and resilient when pursuing companies and jobs that feel like a calling.
   

Embracing the Unknown

Navigating a career transition can be daunting and filled with uncertainties. Embrace the unknown with a positive mindset and a willingness to adapt to new challenges. Stay non-judgemental in the face of rejection or setbacks. Each job application is an opportunity to refine your resume, and each interview provides the opportunity to improve your communication skills. View them as valuable learning experiences that propel you toward your ultimate career destination. Remember that every successful professional has encountered obstacles along the way; what sets you apart is how you face and overcome them.

How do you deal with job search uncertainty?

1. Start a practice of mindfulness.

2. Seek professional help from a coach or therapist.

3. Leverage others for inspiration..

Conclusion

Mastering career transition is a multi-faceted journey that requires self-reflection, exploration, and adaptability. The first step to a successful transition is defining your career goal. This will provide you with context as you begin to research potential opportunities. After you have examined enough possibilities, you are well-positioned to narrow down the path that will be right for you. Move fast, but do not rush the process. There is little value in going from one undesirable situation into another. The time you take to define what you want, explore options, and declare your objectives will give you the confidence and determination to get the desired job.

Remember, a career transition is not just a job change but a transformative journey toward a more fulfilling and purposeful professional life. Approach it with curiosity, courage, and determination, and watch as new doors of opportunity open before you.

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Thank you for reading this blog; share it with a friend.

As an executive coach, I assist business owners, executives, and middle managers in clarifying their professional goals, developing skills, and growing their capabilities so they can reach their full potential.

Whether you want to lead more effectively, acquire a new role, or earn a promotion, I am here to help you accelerate your growth and achieve more.

Let's craft your growth strategy.

Have Feedback  Send me a note at

Email: dcunion@yourpathexecutivesolutions.com