Meet Sarah Whitelock, Communications Director, Church of England.
She very kindly answered these questions about the coaching programme she did with me.
What brought you to coaching initially?
I’d been struggling on my own to work out how to make a case for flexible working whilst still wanting to show that I was committed to growing my career in communications.
What did we do together that made a difference?
I returned to work after several years at home raising my boys, I realised that I still had ambition to progress my career path. I moved roles and ended up taking a full time role in order to gain a permanent contract. The net result was my work life balance suffered and I felt miserable and tired. The classic spiral of trying to juggle it all resulted in my loosing what little self confidence I'd managed to build to get back into the workplace.
Laura provided the space and time to reflect, she helped me to identify my priorities and values. As a completely independent voice, she offered insight where I'd lost my own, simply by asking questions, she made me quickly realise I had all the answers I needed. We worked on reframing my internal monologue and exploring frameworks to identify success as a parent and communications professional.
What was the outcome of your coaching programme with me?
Over the course of several sessions, I gradually started to rebuild my confidence levels and believe once more that I could achieve a better work life balance. The results speak for themselves, I moved into a new sector, a new role, my first as a Communications Director and negotiated a 4-day working week. Now nearly 12 months down the line, into the role, I couldn't be happier with the move. I still miss NHS comms and who knows maybe one day I'll return to it.
My work life balance goes through ups and downs, but I've learnt to live with juggling and I am now able to recognise the signs and take steps myself to redress the balance.
What 3 words would you use to describe your experience of working with me?
Challenging, fun and perceptive
If you’re ready to talk about how I can support you in a similar way, book a call using this link: https://calendly.com/lauraduggal/exploration-call
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