Coaching has allowed me the space for clarity, the space for improvement, and the space for myself. It is easy to get consumed by everyday life; with work, family and relationships, I can easily forget about myself. Ultimately, coaching has allowed me to think about myself and how I can improve myself as a human being: How I act in the workplace is exactly like how I can act outside of the workplace. Having a space to dissect what all of that means is healthy.

As a visual learner, starting coaching with the Leadership Circle Profile™ 360 assessment helped me visually see the areas where I need improvement. It helped me comprehend in an abstract and also very objective way how others see me and how I see myself.

I wasn’t expecting my colleagues to call out my arrogance. Sure, I’d been hearing it from friends, but I wasn’t expecting to see the magnitude of how I negatively impact people, when under stress, either because of my tone of voice or my reactions to X, Y, and Z. The magnitude that I was able to see through the LCP 360 I was not expecting. At its core I was expecting small recommendations for areas of improvement, what I received was comprehensive areas of improvement and ways to approach.

On a positive note, I also wasn’t expecting to see how highly my President and CEO, my direct supervisor and even my peers see me. That felt good and provided a sense of achievement.

Taking the time to confront my own gaps is a luxury, for sure. It’s something a lot of people take for granted. But it’s what allows me to grow within the role I’m in and continue growing in order to get to that next role. The experience makes me feel alive, because I know something’s going on here. There is always an action and a reaction.

One question my colleagues asked me was, “Why did I take the risk and how did it financially impact me?” Well, K Street Coaching’s pricing was digestible given my financial circumstances and my professional level, but — something that came unexpectedly — I took on coaching and I took the risk because I knew I wanted to better myself, and then a month in I got promoted and I got a salary increase.

I’m not saying that everybody’s going to get a promotion or salary increase a month in — its a work in progress. I thought that when I began leadership coaching and took the Leadership Circle Profile™ assessment that it would pay off two or so years from now. Coaching is a testament to the positive impact it can bring to your life by simply taking that step and focusing on your own personal and professional growth.