My role as a coach is to help you gain clarity on what you would like to change or achieve, create space for you to identify what this will involve, and then support you to work towards making it happen.
Coaching can enable you to explore important aspects of your professional or personal life, and gain new perspectives on the challenges and opportunities you face. It combines a focus on your ‘inner world’ – building self awareness through reflective practices – with experimenting and taking action in the ‘outer world’.
There is no single model for a successful coaching relationship. Everyone is different, so I tailor my approach to suit the needs of individual clients. I tend to work with people over a period of four to six months, but I also offer longer or shorter-term engagements when that is more appropriate. However, every coaching engagement follows a similar arc. We start by establishing the outcomes you would like to achieve, explore what it will take to get there, and then use our time together to design actions and reflect on progress. In between sessions there will be assignments to help you move forward.
However long we spend working together, these are the commitments that will always be present in my work as a coach:
You will be in a safe space
The most important role I have as a coach is to create a relationship with my clients built on confidentiality and trust. I do this by adhering to the ICF Code of Ethics at all times in my coaching. It is a privilege to work with people on the issues that matter most to them, and I honour that by making sure that my clients feel comfortable sharing their hopes and their vulnerabilities with me. I will challenge you or encourage you to step out of your comfort zone at times, but always in a respectful and supportive way.
Coaching sessions with Alex have been incredibly valuable for me. It has made a world of difference to me to have a safe space to articulate my thinking at this early, vulnerable stage in my leadership journey… It has helped me to move closer towards the belief that there is an authentic, distinctive mode of leadership that I can make effective on my own terms. – Amy P., Head of Family and Carer Voice
You will drive the agenda
My coaching starts from the position that you are the best judge of what you need to work on, and what solutions will work for you. As a coach, I won’t tell you what to do or try and lead the way. Instead, I will help you create awareness by asking powerful questions, listening carefully to what you say, and then supporting you to define the goals and actions that will make the biggest positive difference to your life right now.
I’d recommend Alex as a coach without hesitation. She has an instinctive sense of the right balance between asking what I want to focus on each time we speak, and knowing exactly what questions to ask to get me to clarity on what I’m trying to do or what’s not working. It’s been brilliant working with her. – Alex E., Founder and Executive Director
I will provide the structure
Once you gain clarity about what you want to achieve over the course of the coaching engagement and beyond, each session will involve a mix of questions, discussions, feedback and assignments that are tailored to your needs. I focus on finding the approach that works best for you, which could be anything from helping brainstorm ideas, giving you exercises to work on in between sessions, or providing a space for you to reflect on a topic that is important.
I took up coaching with Alex because I was overwhelmed by what I felt were competing priorities and demands in my personal and professional life. The sessions with Alex helped me to break these different components down in order to understand what the challenges were, and ways in which I could proactively make positive changes to address them. Alex’s manner and style is completely non-judgmental and made me feel at ease in talking about some things that I hadn’t shared with anyone. I would highly recommend Alex as a coach and mentor. – Rebecca C., Programme Manager
We will focus on the future
While coaching conversations will often touch on issues or experiences that a client has had in the past, coaching is different from counselling or therapy. It is primarily focused on developing a vision of what the future could look like, finding actions that will inspire and motivate you, and then supporting you to identify and address whatever might prevent you from taking these steps.
Coaching with Alex always leaves me feeling empowered and full of possibility about what I can achieve. She is highly empathetic and able to get to the heart of the issue quickly – challenging me at the right times and in the right way to help me overcome the unhelpful beliefs that may be blocking my progress. I always leave sessions with a number of actions and an enthusiasm to get going with them straight away, which is a brilliant way to leave a session. – Nehal D., Principal Policy Advisor
The best way to understand what coaching is like is to experience it, which is why I always start by meeting with potential clients for a free consultation session. This gives me a chance to explain in more detail how I work with people, and to find out what you are motivated to work on. It also gives us both the opportunity to see whether the relationship is a good fit, as this is fundamental to the success of the coaching engagement.
Interested in finding out more?
Alex Glennie Coaching 