How to pick the right leadership coach (curtain call)
Is a coach just a coach? How do I choose the right one for me?
I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about the three most important things to consider when picking the right Leadership coach: Experience, Training, and Certification.
Our first article looked at experience. We then talked about training. And the last article went into certifications.
My hope for this series was to provide you with the tools you need to make an educated decision when it comes to picking your coach, and the series covered the “science” of picking a coach. There is also the “intuitive” part of picking a coach, and that’s not based on any kind of quantitative assessment you can do. In essence, it's about how you feel about your potential coach.
At the end of the day, it's important to remember that you will be spending hours with your coach. You will go deep with them, sharing goals, objectives, plans, but also your faults, and foibles. When picking your coach, you’ll also have to assess how you feel about that level of transparency with them. You will want to ask yourself if you sense that the relationship can grow into a mutually trusting and beneficial relationship. Is there an “audible click” when you are talking with them?
This last and final assessment is entirely your feeling. A professional coach knows this and is good with you tapping into that intuition about your choice. In fact, if you don’t feel it will work for you, the best coaches will even be glad to suggest others that might be a better fit. What's important is that you grow and be the best you can be as you define it.
I believe strongly in what George Elliot said: “It’s never too late to become what you might have been.” Having the right coach by your side can help you define, design, and achieve that.
Download the entire criteria checklist to help you pick the right leadership coach.
Dan Bartholomew, ICF-PCC, WPCC, is an Executive and Leadership Coach who helps teams and leaders navigate their careers 🛶. With decades of experience running, building, and scaling businesses, Dan is centered on enabling individuals and teams to achieve and sustain breakthrough performance -- personally and organizationally.
As Eric Schmidt, former CEO and current strategic advisor to Google said “everyone needs a coach.” Let’s work together to get you one!