BTW, you do not need a fancy title to “earn” a coach. Coaching is often the thing that helps you become the person who gets that title.
“It started with a personality test, then the Wheel of Life exercise, and turned into an engagement that lasted 5x longer than the average coaching experience.”
So, I am a super fan of an executive coach – you will hear me gush about their value a lot. They create a rare container: a neutral space where performance, people dynamics, identity, and values can all coexist without requiring a polished answer.
It’s not therapy. It’s not mentoring. And it’s not advice-giving.
It’s a structured thinking partnership. One that forces clarity.
Why I turned to an executive coach and the value it provided me:
A great coach holds up a clear mirror so you can see your strengths, your patterns, and where you are getting in your own way—without the judgment, politics, or bias you get at work
Coaching helps tackle imposter syndrome, speak up for promotions, and design careers that match ambition, not just your current job description
For me, it was a protected space to ask, “What do I want next?” and design what that path could be, and how to achieve it
If you are on-the-fence, try this DIY Wheel of Life. It is super revealing. High performers often come to coaching believing they have a time problem. The Wheel reframes this quickly. It shows where energy is leaking, which areas are being unconsciously deprioritized, and where misalignment, not busyness, is the real issue. The result? CLARITY. A coach will leverage the output of this wheel and help you build your north star.
Finding my voice and nurturing strengths, leading an employee innovation training and speaking at a tech summit.
When to get an executive coach?
You are stepping into a bigger role (or want to), and you don’t want to figure it out by trial and error in front of everyone
You feel stuck. Same meetings, same kind of responsibilities—and you can’t tell if it’s you, the organization you are in, or both
You are flirting with burnout and hearing that little voice say, “Something has to change…but I don’t know what.”
Coaches I recommend from my personal journey:
For four years, I had the opportunity to work with a coach, meeting 1-2 times a month.
At the height of building and scaling an advertising agency — moving fast, making decisions quickly, and carrying growing responsibility — that thinking time mattered more than I realized. It sharpened my skills, clarified my values, and ultimately reinforced my responsibility to lead the Kate way.
Mindy Hemcher (I was a VP level)
Career growth goals: Team management, agency transformation through an acquisition, finding my leadership style
Tools I received: Frameworks for scaling and operationalizing people & culture practices
Mindy Hemcher, A-Game Talent Strategies
Hilary Davis (I was SVP & EVP level)
Career growth goals: Leadership and clarity in what’s next, emotional prioritization
Tools I received: Change management planning, personal business plan, boundary accountability (I wrote on these boundaries here)
Hilary Davis, Altogether Human
Or, try peer coaching & mentor circles:
Highly suggest as a low‑pressure, accessible way to get support, while exploring if the executive coach track is right for you. You can learn through shared experience and reflection before committing to 1:1 coaching.
How to action this:
Form or join a small group (3–5 peers) with similar development goals
Define a clear focus (leadership growth, problem‑solving, career transitions)
Meet on a monthly cadence with light structure
Use simple peer‑coaching formats (case sharing, guided questions, rotating roles)
Capture one takeaway or action per session
Partner with Learning & Development for prompts, resources, or light facilitation
Reassess after a few sessions to decide whether to deepen, continue, or move to 1:1 coaching
When I look at the whole journey, what stands out isn’t any single breakthrough but rather consistently having a place to think and be honest with myself. That space changed how I made decisions and how I showed up. And that’s really the point: when you give yourself room to grow with intention, everything else starts to shift in the right direction.
