Coach of the Month – March 2017 – Coaching Q & A « Executive and Life Coaching Courses and Information

Belonging is an essential need for human beings. Being surrounded by like-minded people nourishes this need. At PSG we have a large community of professional coaches who enrich this community with diversity, passion, quality and experience. Tap into this great support that is available for you. To do that, each month we introduce you to one of the coaches from the community so you can learn from their insights and get in touch with them.

In March we are delighted to announce that our Coach of the Month is Ciara Kelly. Take a look at the 3 questions that Ciara answered about her lessons learnt, fulfillment gained and her predictions on the skills that clients will want to develop in the first half of 2017.

Here is our Coach of the Month – March 2017 – Coaching Q & A

PSG March 2017 Coach of the Month - Ciara Kelly

PSG: Since qualifying, what are the top 3 lessons you have learnt that support your growth as a coach:

Ciara

Listen to my voice & OWN it!

It’s one thing knowing your voice and another thing owning and sharing it with the world! So what I’ve learnt is that I need to be honest with myself, listen to my inner compass, honour my values and authentic voice, creating healthy boundaries around my clients and business, expressing clearly who I am and what I can offer. When I do this, I feel liberated and super-charged which gives me the energy and conviction to embrace future business challenges!

Find my niche & OWN it!

Finding your niche is all about honouring your voice. Being clear on your purpose and understanding who you want to help and how you are going to support them.

Once I settled on my niche – Millennials (Generation Y) and Centennials (Generation Z) – I needed to understand who they really are. I conducted research focus groups of Millennials and Managers of Millennials so that I could really delve deep into understanding what makes them tick, their motivations and pain points in the workplace, creating meaningful conversations in order to really know how to help them in the future. Once I completed the research, I shared a summary of insights, implications and recommendations to potential interested clients and past work colleagues who are interested in this youth leadership development area – thus positioning myself as an expert in this field. It was a fantastic way to open up potential working relationships, paving the way to exciting business opportunities!

Embrace the fear and do it anyway!

On reflection, I spent too much time doing pro bono coaching and trying to creating the ‘perfect’ coaching programmes for organisations and Millennials. I’ve learnt to embrace the fear, get out of my comfort zone and JUST DO IT!

One of the most important threads of our authentic voice is our vulnerability, our imperfections. People want the vulnerability, the Real You. Things don’t need to be perfect, People want YOU and once you’re clear on who you are as a coach and how you can serve them, they will want to connect – which makes for a magical coaching contract!

PSG: To – date, as a coach, what has brought you the most fulfillment?

Ciara

I know it might sound like a cliché but seeing a change take place before my eyes –watching my client evolve and grow, taking control of their futures. I get such a kick out of a client realising their true potential, showing great courage in finding their authentic voice and owning it. I feel privileged to be part of their journey, watching them grow, realise, accept and embrace their ‘a-ha’ moments as a result of our coaching journey.

PSG: What do you foresee as the key skills our clients will want to focus on for development and growth for the first half of 2017?

Ciara

I suppose if I consider my target audience: Millennials, they are eager to build their leadership skills and self awareness in the workplace – so they are seeking to develop their resilience muscle as well as their capacity to take feedback well. As Sheryl Sandberg has highlighted on numerous occasions “People who can take feedback well are people who can learn and grow quickly”. Also, I have found that empathy is a practical skill that can help millennials work better. In our everyday work, it’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day and neglect to see how their work affects others. When you take others’ feelings and perspectives into account when seeking to improve your own work, you connect with them on an emotional level. This builds trust and partnerships, which Millennials crave in today’s workplace.

PSG March 2017 Coach of the Month - Ciara Kelly