CAREER/LIFE COACHING
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to be in one within a couple years. The repacking process helps clarify
purpose and direction for the next step in their lives.
The repacking coach works with the coachee as a thinking partner, offering
guidance, structure, and tools to make next steps. It accelerates the process of
letting go and reaching for a new beginning. It also helps people and
organizations avoid the drain of indecision. It often costs companies a lot of
money when an executive is uncertain about the next stage in their life. It’s a
worthy investment to help him figure out whether he or she should stay, go, or
engage in a new career or position.
In repacking, instead of using a leader map, we use a life map, built in
words, images, and pictures. Following the life map helps the executive track
progress and recognize when goals or objectives are reached.
Selecting a Good Career/Life Coach
I never refer someone to a career/life coach unless that coach has a statement
of ethics. One of the ethical issues I look at is who the coach believes to be
the client. To me, that’s an issue concerning the boundaries of confidential-
ity. When a coach works with an executive, it is not uncommon for the boss or
Human Resources to pressure for information about issues that emerge. The
organization, after all, is paying for the services and may feel that it has a
right to know. In my view, if the client wants to share any or all of that infor-
mation, that is up to them; but I won’t provide information as a matter of
principle. I have seen the damage that can be done to a person’s career with
even an innocent comment about that person’s capacity.
In evaluating a coach, I also look to understand her point of view. The
ques-
tion I ask is “What is your anthropology?” It’s a concept that I adopted from
Viktor Frankl, who tried to develop psychiatrists as doctors of personhood. To
me, the question of a coach’s anthropology goes deeper than philosophy or
technique. It asks, instead, what that person believes about human beings.
Where did we come from? Where do we find ourselves? Where are we
going?
The core of my own point of view is that human beings have the freedom
to choose how they are going to act or react in any situation they face. To un-
derstand the nature of that choice, I first work with a person to discover
their core constants: the values, purpose, gifts, and talents, which never
change. The power of leadership is in listening to yourself and listening to
your constituents from the perspective of their core constants. Choosing
starts with making your own choices and extends to helping others make ef-
fective choices as well.
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