In my last post, Trail blazing in situ, I wrote about my aha moment that my passion for coaching and my job actually go hand-in-hand. And while I am happy with that for the short to medium term, I am also figuring out ways to step up a gear.
I am conscious that you might be wondering why I am telling you my story, so before I dig in to “trail-blazing for the future”, let me explain.
I think there are things we can all learn from each others’ stories. That’s not to say that my journey and your journey will or should look all that similar – if I thought that, that wouldn’t be very coach-like!
From my last post, I was hoping to convey that we can find opportunities within our roles – we don’t always need to be looking elsewhere. Afterall, the grass is not always greener…better the devil you know etc etc. If you really hate your job, then this approach might not work; but if there are just a few niggles, then I am convinced that we can all shape the role to get rid of those niggles, and that takes much less energy than looking for a completely new role.
And yet, here I am, saying now that I am looking for a new role. Not right now though. But I am getting myself “positioned” for new opportunities that might present themselves. Knowing what you want is half the battle with that. And declaring what you want to others in your network is the other half. They can be on the look out for opportunities that might match your needs and desires, if they know what you want. Their networks are much greater than yours alone.
So what is that role I am preparing myself for? I don’t know where it is, or who it will be working for, though I very much hope I find it in my current organization, as I love it here.
In terms of what it is…well, it’s at the cutting edge of leadership development.
It’s using coaching, team coaching and action learning to enable people to step up to their world’s future challenges.
It’s setting up a robust program to ensure that the organization is learning from those conversations; that the coaches are super-qualified, continuously learning and receiving rigorous supervision; that we are measuring the impact that these experiences are having on the business.
It’s innovative. It’s fun. It’s hard. It’s soft. It’s me at my best, managing a program that is best in class.
Ooh, I am liking this vision.
So now it’s time to tell a few people (including you) that this is what I want to do, and this is what I have to offer. Maybe you’ll see opportunities that might appeal to me, and might pass those along. As I said, I am in no rush…but keep me in mind if you see something that looks like the above.
But this isn’t all about me…it’s about you too. What is your world asking you to step up to?
