A career coach should provide you with several things:
Self Assessment & Discovery
Be clear with your coach about what you’re hoping to gain from the experience, and what obstacles stand in your way. They should be able to help you both!
Clear Direction & Plan
Ask your potential coach for a breakdown of their coaching process, how they work with clients, who their ideal client is and what their approach is like.
Tools, Action Steps & Resources
An experienced career coach should have effective resources. Ask them how long they’ve been coaching, what their success rate is, and about their materials.
Find out if they have their own materials, why they’re effective, who they work best for and how they incorporate those materials into their process. Coaching provides accountability plus much more!
Note: While you want to hire an experienced coach, remember that you are responsible for your results. A career coach can have a great plan and be very experienced, but they can’t do the work for you. You have to be prepared to invest the time into the exercises and assignments. Ask your potential coach how much time they would expect you to spend on their assignments per week. Keep in mind that coaching is an investment in yourself. You will get out of it what you put into it!
To find the right coach:
Ask the right questions
Ask them about their coaching philosophy, why they are different, are they certified as career coaches and experienced in a specific type of career coaching. Find out their target market/ideal client and how they define success. Finally, ask what should you expect from working with them?
For example, we have a 98% satisfaction rate with our clients. Ask: Do they survey their clients and what are the results? Who do they typically work with? Male/female, what age group or what phase in their career? What experience and training do they have? What is their process to help you achieve your goals? Do they have supporting materials? How many years have they been coaching?
Talk to others who have used career coaches
You may be surprised to find that your colleagues, former colleagues, friends or family have used or are using career coaches. Ask them about their experience. Was it positive or negative? Why? What would they suggest you do in order to get the most out of your experience?
Review their website thoroughly
Having a career coach is a very personal process, so make sure you review everything they share on their website. Visit their LinkedIn page, review their recommendations on LinkedIn and see if they have written any articles or books. Schedule a call with them if you want to ask further questions.
Prepare
Prepare for your intro call beforehand, writing down any questions or concerns you would like to discuss with them.Â
