Confessions of a Coach: How Looking Inward Transformed How I Lead

Looking Inward to See The World

Let’s be real for a second -- leadership can be an incredibly lonely and exhausting road. If you’ve been in a leadership role for any length of time, you already know the pain points I'm talking about. You hit a point in your career where you feel a massive gap between the "doing" and the "being". You might look highly successful on the outside, but internally, you’re battling self-imposed limits, the constant mental chatter that undermines your confidence, and the sheer complexity of managing team dynamics. I know exactly how that feels, because I’ve been there.

A while back, I decided it was time to stop just surviving and start truly thriving. I decided to put myself through the very same learning journey I now take my clients through. I completely immersed myself in my own coaching framework and deployed an arsenal of world-class assessments on myself. The growth and resilience I’ve experienced since then have been nothing short of tremendous.

My journey started with orienting and centering. I realized I needed to reclaim my “North Star” to ensure my career was bringing me deep fulfillment, not just a paycheck. Using tools like the Life Dimensions Exercise and Guided Inner Journey, I was able to evaluate my quality of life across ten different dimensions and connect with my true life's purpose. This purposeful work ensured that focused my time on what perfectly reflected my internal values.

But finding my purpose was only step one; I needed to understand what was holding me back. I used analytics and psychometrics to dig deep into my behaviors. Here is a look at the heavy-hitting tools that completely changed my perspective:

• CliftonStrengths 34: Instead of imitating others, I learned to identify my unique areas of potential (my natural talents) so I could lead authentically from my own "superpowers".

• Saboteur Assessment: This was a game-changer for my mental fitness. It exposed the specific "mental chatter" and self-sabotage that was limiting my effectiveness, allowing me to shift from a place of reactivity to true resilience when under pressure.

• The Birkman Method: This tool revealed my hidden needs and social perceptions. By understanding the gap between how I see myself and how others perceive me, I learned exactly what support I need to stay productive and in my "high-performance" zone.

• Integrative Enneagram (iEQ9): This acted as my ultimate roadmap for growth. By moving beyond surface-level personality traits and digging into my deep unconscious motivations and fears, I learned to catch my habitual stress behaviors. It helped me cultivate radical empathy for others and move from unconscious reaction to conscious action.

  
  

Finally, I applied all this profound internal work to the outside world. I learned how to master the complexities of my relationships, my career, and my community enagement by applying my new insights to the world around me.

The benefits of this coaching approach are life-altering. I stopped fighting against myself. Today, I can confidently say I am living with deliberate, joyful intent!!

I've walked this path, and I know the profound transformation waiting on the other side. So, I have to ask: Are you ready to embark on this journey with me?