Areas of Focus

While there are many areas we can zero in on, here are some of the most common and important reasons people work with me. They want to:

• Be seen as credible leaders with relevant ideas
• Be better at resolving complex people issues
• Feel more self-confident
• Delegate more and feel in control at the same time
• Improve skills in both leading and developing people
• Feel less stuck or get unblocked in some way
• More effectively manage emotions like: anger, impatience, frustration and overwhelm
• Improve communication and strengthen team cohesiveness

Director

Bob enjoyed a successful career in the financial services sector. Currently at the level of Director, his goal was to be promoted. When he learned an opportunity was opening for a Vice President role, he began strategizing with his boss about what he would have to do to be considered for the role. In our initial conversations, I felt Bob was very clear about his strengths and areas for development. However, he felt frustrated by his inability to make progress in certain competencies he knew would be critical for performance at the next level. Here are the key areas we worked on to facilitate his candidacy for the vice president role:

• Managing competing priorities
• Shifting from feeling overwhelmed to delegating more work
• Screening out distractions and focusing on key daily goals
• Managing frustration and inappropriate expression of anger
• Refining communication skills (verbal and written)
• Improving relationships with colleagues so he would be experienced as a credible, valued, source of expertise.

As a result of our work together, Bob was able to effectively delegate more while at the same time develop key team members. He became more effective at “screening out the noise” and focusing managing priorities. These changes bolstered his confidence. Bob developed strategies that allowed him to be more in control of his emotions. He became calmer, more relaxed. His improved communication skills gained him more credibility with other leaders. This enhanced his collegial comradery and overall leadership presence. His willingness to step up and create these shifts were key factors in his promotion to Vice President.

Entrepreneur

This entrepreneur and CEO had a great sense of humor which made the time fly by in our sessions. He could always make me laugh. Joe, an energetic businessman owned a number of companies in diverse sectors. His talent was in helping them grow. Joe wanted to be more effective at building relationships within these companies. He was an excellent keynote speaker and presented well but he wanted to be more effective at inspiring others. He wanted to feel less frustrated and more able to get everyone aligned with the same vision.

Here are some of the key outcomes we worked on together:

• Toning down behaviors that caused others to be intimidated by him
• Resolving sticky people issues instead of wanting to "write them off"
• Getting more stakeholder engagement for key performance indicators
• Reduce stress

As a result of our work together, Joe gained more insight into the aspects of his personality that were creating distance with others. Over time, he developed a greater understanding of his people and their strengths. This fostered trust within his teams. Joe learned how to positively address issues instead of stewing or avoiding. He learned how to become a more collaborative leader of meetings, engaging others and also letting them lead. He learned simple stress-reduction techniques he could access when needed. He felt more confident. He succeeded in becoming a more compassionate and authentic leader.

Project Manager

Jeff a high-achieving professional in the engineering sector, made the move into project management. In his new role, his mandate was to lead teams to meet deadlines on a variety of commercial building projects. A brilliant mind with attention to detail, Jeff's exceptional technical skills did not prepare him for all that can arise when managing others. His key area of focus was how to work effectively with teams toward shared goals. He found this move to be very stressful. He feared he may burn-out if he didn’t change his approach. He needed to empower others and improve collaboration in:

• Co-creating project plans and deliverables with team members
• Creating consistent follow up and evaluation systems
• Creating more engaging, effective meetings
• Learning how to effectively coach others to performance

Over time, Jeff transformed his leadership presence and ability. He learned how to lead meetings that engaged others and how to genuinely listen. He established a collaborative plan for deliverables and follow-up in conjunction with team members. He learned that his greatest strength of problem solving was his biggest barrier to engaging others. He stopped being the "go to" guy and learned how to support others to solve their own problems. He learned how to manage his need to get results quickly while bringing people along with him, strengthening relationships at the same time. He achieved better performance from others, lowered his stress and increased his peace of mind.

Regional VP

Barb worked in the position of regional vice president in the oil and gas sector. A self- proclaimed "Type A" personality, one of her main goals was to carve out enough time to actually commit to our coaching sessions. In the beginning, our calls provided a safe space for her to: download her current thinking, strategize about immediate challenges and report on progress about initiatives she was spearheading. After about 3 months, she chose to focus on these specific goals for our work together:

• Designing and facilitating more engaging meetings and presentations
• Learning how to create more rapport with introverted team members
• Practical stress reduction techniques she could use during the day
• Discerning when to give direction and when to coach others to success

During the course of our partnership Barb learned how to slow herself down and become more present to others, making her communication more cogent. She learned how to plan better meetings and presentations. As her approach shifted, others felt more valued in her presence. She asked for feedback from her team members and acted on it. Most of the time she was able to lower her stress when it gripped her. She became discerning about when to provide direction and when to seize coaching opportunities with her team members. She declared that our partnership not only made her a better leader but a better person in all areas of her life.

General Manager

When I first spoke to Kathy she was feeling tired and stressed. Kathy managed a suite of multi-faceted 24- hour businesses in the retail service sector. She felt overwhelmed and knew that she had to make some changes or risk burning out. Some of the key areas we worked on together were:

• Unburdening and reprioritizing her work
• Empowering her team members
• Setting boundaries around her time
• Carving out more work-life balance

One step at a time, Kathy began letting go and delegating work in a way that she could still feel in control. She dramatically shifted how she led both team meetings and 1-1 interactions. These changes resulted in her people feeling more empowered and engaged. She refrained as much as possible from taking on new projects until current mandates were complete. She began taking walks at lunch time. She felt lighter, more relaxed and her team was happier and more engaged. In a nutshell, she shared, “I finally know how to lead people in a way that works.”

Company List

Here is a partial list of organizations I’ve worked with: