What can a Career Coach help with?

Are you feeling stuck in your current role, not sure of your career direction, or simply wondering if you're truly maximizing your potential? You are not alone.

The biggest misconception about career coaching is that it's only for people who are struggling. In reality, it's for professionals who are serious about accelerated, intentional growth.

A great career coach is an investment in your future earning potential, yes, but also in:

1. Enable New, Significant Challenges and Growth. If you are the type that wants to constantly learn.

   
   

2. Autonomy and Strategic Control. How to develop ownership, independence and get more buy-in from the Board or the Executive Circle.

   
   

3. Company Values and Culture. Really understand how to select the opportunities that make you look forward to starting your work every day and filter out those that will block your professional growth.

   
   

4. Burnout and Work-Life Balance. Clarity on how to build the systems or SOPs that will enable you to focus on the work that matters to you, deliver against business targets and your professional career aspirations.

   
   

5. Broader Impact or Social Contribution. How to get opportunities to make an impact on metrics that are important to you, including beyond the professional realm. Your legacy.

What does Career clarity mean and how Career Coaches help

Friends and family can offer support, but many do notice that they need neutral, objective, and expert advice. A coach acts as your confidential, unbiased partner to help you see beyond your current roadblocks.

• Overcome Feeling "Stuck": A coach helps you identify the root causes of stagnation and should help you come up with a clear, actionable path forward.

  
  

• Align Career with Values: They help you match your work with your core skills, interests, and personal goals for greater long-term fulfillment.

  
  

• Discover New Possibilities: By challenging your assumptions (every coach has a different method, mine is facts/numbers based), a coach helps you see opportunities aligned with your career path or aspirations that you may have missed on your own.

Building your Confidence and Skills

A coach sees talent and skill all the time, they work with thousands of people throughout their careers and can help you recover your confidence after a long time of trying different tactics with no result. Most of the time it's not tied to your skills, but your strategy. 

But until you see that, being in the wrong mindset or having low confidence will have an impact in your performance. And this is where the ROI of a Coach becomes tangible.

• Boost Your Marketability: Coaches help you with your Marketing Materials (resume, portfolio, presentations, etc.), stand out from 1,000+ candidates and build your personal brand to gain and maintain exposure.

  
  

• Master Crucial Skills: They provide direct, no fluff, personalized training in high-value skills like interviewing, communication and navigating business challenges. 1:1 Coaching also allows to answer any and all of your questions that you wouldn't be able to cover in a group training or presentation. Think of it as a very specialized or technical sounding board.

  
  

• Proof of Efficacy: Over 70% report improved work performance, relationships, and communication skills. 80% also mention increased self-confidence (and this is the part that I enjoy the most because it is absolutely crucial for your interactions with future team members).

Accountability, Transition, and ROI

Coaches help you move from intention to action. For businesses, the financial returns are staggering, proving the value of the practice.

1. Goal Achievement: Employees with ongoing coaching are 40% more likely to achieve long-term career goals. A Coach should always go back with you to the Goals you set at the start.

   
   

2. Business ROI: Executive Coaching has repeatedly shown significant ROI and productivity increase, often with an impact on employee retention and Business KPIs. The investment is repeatedly proven to be a financial win, reason why it is often funded - like Development Programs, Conferences, etc - to exceed targets.

   
   

3. Satisfaction: Nearly all Coaching clients (99%) are satisfied or very satisfied with the experience and that Coaching leads to tangible improvements in performance, well-being, and goal attainment. I have coachees that have booked several times throughout their career to address different Goals and blockers.

Beyond Confidence, Skills and Action

The decision to hire a Coach versus asking a peer, joining a group presentation, or reading a free article purely lays on wanting to stop wasting time in generic, contradictory, or biased advice. Those who have no doubts about the benefits knew they needed a hyper-efficient, confidential system designed to land a high stakes role faster.

However, in some cases it is speed, in some it's fulfillment, in some is about how not to become redundant in the age of AI.

• Confidentiality & Trust: A safe, external sounding board. An external Coach provides 100% confidentiality that other avenues may not offer.

  
  

• Selling "Me" vs. Selling "Impact": Articulating your Unique Value Proposition (UVP) or Unique Selling Points (USPs). A Coach can help you translate 20+ years of experience into a quantifiable, market-validated UVP that speaks directly to the Board's needs. Or 1 year of experience into a Manager role. Or pivot to a different industry because the work you have done is relevant.

  
  

• The "Hidden Job Market" Blind Spot: A Coach can help you build the strategic roadmap and targeted messaging to effectively tap recruiters and network into the non-public job market.

  
  

• Dated or Generic Search Strategies: Current, Specialized Best Practices. A coach helps hundreds of professionals a year, providing real-time insights into what is currently working with ATS systems and modern interview styles (video, AI interviews, etc.), eliminating the guesswork from self-guided searches. Some outplacement services may take months to realize that a LinkedIn feature that makes a difference to job seekers has changed (for example moving from 50 to 100 skills).

• Avoiding Burnout & Maintaining Momentum: Job searches are very long at the moment (in some cases over a year). A Coach acts as an unbiased accountability partner who helps you set your own targets, deadlines, and prevents you from stalling or giving up due to rejection fatigue. In fact, they should help you shift towards less rejection with a more targeted approach.

  
  

• Navigating Complex Internal Structures: A Coach provides an objective and knowledgeable viewpoint to help you re-frame career detours, focus on the right career opportunities or projects, or manage internal conflicts, turning your next move into a powerful, growth-oriented and fulfilling one.

  
  

• Lack of a Clear, Unified Personal Brand: A Coach will help you ensure that your Marketing materials and initiatives all project a single, cohesive executive or professional presence that aligns with your Goals.

Okay, if you made it this far and are convinced...

How do you find a good Coach?

The Coach? How do you ensure you don't get burnt?

1. Verify Real-World Executive and Corporate Experience: Look for Coaches who have demonstrated senior level responsibilities. I don't think titles are that important vs the level of responsibility and projects they have worked on. You might be managing $100M/year in budget and a CMO at a Series A startup may not be the right fit to coach you in budget management. But on the other hand may perfectly help you with P&L ownership. Investigate the level of seniority they have supported, ask them, reach out to their clients to hear their thoughts.

   
   

2. Demand Measurable Results and Credible Testimonials: Key word "credible". Go beyond website testimonials. Look for evidence of results directly relevant to your goals (e.g., compensation, transition, and seniority) on their LinkedIn, Glassdoor, Coaching Platforms, etc.

   
   

3. Insist on a Tailored Methodology and Business Understanding: Truly understand if their one-size-fits-all program has tangible impact on clients, hear it from them. Compare 1:1 Coaching programs costs. That is where the tangible value is (and the speed), in my opinion.

   
   

4. Conduct a Trial Session: Although it is not always offered, Coaches that provide 1:1 Coaching should be open to a quick 15min free trial session to assess not only what your Goals are but if they can support you and are aligned with your ways of working. Ask. And if not offered, ask why. 

   
   

5. Verify Formal Training from a Reputable Body: Although many exceptional Career Coaches that rely on their professional experience don't have the ICF, if they do have it, verify it. Formal training ensures ethical standards and professional methodology. Coaching is not about telling you what to do, it's about asking the right questions for you to realize you already had the answers all along. 

If you are feeling stuck, seeking strategic autonomy, or aiming to align your career with your core values, a specialized coach is your accelerator. Move beyond generic advice with a confidential partner who helps you clarify your Unique Value Proposition (UVP), navigate the hidden job market, and build systems for work-life balance and high-impact legacy.

Whether you are targeting board-level buy-in or a global industry pivot, invest in a proven methodology that drives measurable ROI, increased earning potential, and long-term fulfillment.