As a senior manager at a growing organization in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the responsibilities on your plate are immense. You’re expected to hit targets, rally and motivate your team, and implement strategies passed down from the executive team. It can often feel like a heavy burden to bear alone.
This is why more and more managers are choosing to work with an executive coach. As a FocalPoint coach based in Milwaukee, I’ve seen firsthand the tangible benefits coaching can provide for busy managers looking to maximize their leadership potential.
Let’s explore some of the top reasons to consider hiring an executive coach as a senior manager:
Gain an Objective Outside Perspective
One of the most valuable benefits of coaching is gaining an unbiased outside perspective on your leadership skills and behaviors. As a manager immersed in day-to-day operations, it can be incredibly difficult to identify your own blind spots or areas for improvement.
A seasoned executive coach has the distance and experience to observe how you lead, communicate, and interact with others. They can provide objective assessments and feedback to shine a light on growth opportunities you may have never recognized on your own.
Often a seemingly small tweak introduced by a coach can lead to dramatically improved results. An outside perspective gives clarity.
Rapidly Develop Critical Leadership Skills
Executive coaching helps you rapidly strengthen a diverse range of essential leadership skills. These include strategic thinking, executive presence, conflict resolution, change management, team building, and more.
Through assessments, training, custom-designed exercises and real-world application, you’ll see your abilities as a leader grow exponentially. An executive coach introduces frameworks, best practices, and tools targeted to the leadership skills you need most.
For busy managers, coaching accelerates skill development that could have taken years through trial and error on your own. You’ll experience more growth in months than you imagined possible.
Improve Time Management and Prioritization
With overloaded schedules and overwhelming task lists, managers often struggle to use time efficiently. An executive coach conducts a thorough analysis of how you currently spend your hours and offers proven techniques to optimize activities and workflows.
You’ll learn to eliminate time drains, delegate more effectively, and gain clarity on priorities. By fine-tuning your time management approach, you’ll reclaim hours lost previously, even as responsibilities continue to grow. Your coach will customize systems so you can do your best work in less time.
Enhance Communication Skills and Executive Presence
Communication is a manager’s superpower, impacting everything from presenting to executives, motivating teams, resolving conflicts, and selling ideas. An executive coach helps you master both verbal and non-verbal communication through videotaped practice sessions, frameworks, and real-world application.
You’ll learn tools for adjusting your communication style to connect better with different personalities. Your coach will also work with you on developing executive presence – building gravitas and confidence in high-stakes situations.
Boost Confidence in Your Abilities
Imposter syndrome and self-doubt are common at the manager level as responsibilities ramp up quickly. Coaching provides a safe space to voice your uncertainties and address negative self-talk. As you build capabilities with your coach’s guidance, you’ll gain new confidence in your skills and intuition as a leader.
Through techniques like visualizing future success, positive affirmations, and celebrating wins, you’ll learn to quiet the inner critic and recognize your true abilities. It’s empowering to identify limiting beliefs and intentionally cultivate self-assurance.
Clarify Your Goals and Live Your Values
Your executive coach will help you gain clarity about your short and long-term goals, both professional and personal. This self-discovery then allows you to pursue leadership opportunities that are most aligned with your motivations and values.
You’ll identify areas of misalignment and make plans to pivot your focus and activities accordingly. By consciously living your values, your work becomes infused with renewed energy and passion.
Obtain a Trusted Sounding Board
Your coach’s office becomes a judgement-free zone to think out loud, bounce around ideas, and workshop through business challenges. Talking through issues with your coach often sparks creative solutions and “ah-ha” moments.
Look to your coach as both a mentor and tireless champion of your continued growth. They’ll challenge perceptions and provide guidance, while also being your biggest supporter. Know they always have your best interests in mind.
Better Manage Stress, Avoid Burnout
With immense pressure and responsibilities, manager burnout is all too common. Your coach is a safe space to release pent-up stress, anxiety, and emotional overload from the job. They help strategize practical ways to achieve greater work-life balance and bring more joy to your leadership roles.
Ultimately, partnering with an executive coach accelerates your growth as a leader. The investment yields the knowledge, skills, and self-awareness that may have taken years to develop on your own. With expert guidance, you’re empowered to maximize your potential. Consider a FocalPoint coach as rocket fuel for shaping yourself into the inspirational manager you’ve always aspired to become.