Are You Ready for Executive Coaching?

Until you decide to commit to changing the way you lead wholeheartedly, no coach can help. Before you put your faith (and a huge financial commitment) in a coach, be sure you’re prepared to get the most out of it:

Decide if you want a cheerleader or a coach.
Many coaches know that they can build lucrative client bases by acting like Little League coaches: Everything evokes a “good job!” But automatic praise is useless. An ethical coach doesn’t bring pom-poms to meetings with clients, so hire carefully to meet your needs.

Remember that a critique is not a personal attack.
It’s easy to feel stung by constructive feedback, but no competent coach would gratuitously put you down. Accept that any and all advice from your coach is intended to be helpful, not hurtful—even if it smarts.

Adapted from “Get the Most Out of Executive Coaching,” by Steven Berglas.