Discover and dive deep into your potential. Be Authentic. Express yourself in everything you do.
And guide the others through the same.
Integrative coaching
WE WORK HARD TO GROW. THE JOURNEY IS AS IMPORTANT AS THE destination. HOW WE approach every step, NAVIGATE THROUGH the fog and clouds or change the direction, are THE ESSENTIAL INGREDIENTs of the leader’s path.
Leadership brings many opportunities that challenge what we do and how we do it, our beliefs and way of thinking. Coaching helps us to see these though different perspective, deepen our self awareness and expand the space between action and response.
Priorities not well defined within the team?
Finding out the needs of the team through the struggles of each individual, their questions and worries will help you define the overall health state of the team. Goals not defined?Priorities not clear?Unfair job split? Please remember, take your time to make changes, listen and observe. We want to avoid taking the perception of one as a given fact. Use your experience to understand. Acknowledge there are difficulties, acknowledge good mechanisms in place to be maintained. Then, make decisions and be transparent about them. Stay clear and present the vision, trust the process, implement strategies, and if needed amend them. But always trust the process so the team can follow you. This may take couple of weeks or couple of months, depending on the nature of the job, size of the team, its development stage and overall health state.
Admit your mistakes, and find new solutions, or choose new directions
Managing is not about being perfect and always making the right choices, but it is about making decisions and owning them, redirecting, implementing corrective action steps and always moving forward. Taking risk and owning consequences. That’s a skill the team can learn from you. The nature of the job, the systems and tools, those are sources to achieve goals, but they should not be the only source nor should they prevent the achievements.
Work with the team
Do not separate yourself from them, do not distance from a place of fear or power. Healthy boundaries, sure. But placed from integrity and respect. Stay open, do not take things personally. With new team, you grow and develop, for that you need to examine your leadership patterns and style, you need to amend and learn. Stay your ground, find a mentor or coach, be curious and make the team your right hand, delegate and include them into your activities where possible. Allow them to grow, so you can grow along.
Take a sip from your creative self
What to focus on when managing a new team
The new challenge comes with a level of stress that might cause us to act confident, or better said over confident. In a mode of ‘fake it till we make it’. Even though to certain level it might help to deal with the stress and go through the initial period, it might not necessarily help to build the trust between us and our new team. To be vulnerable and show up from a position where we first need to learn and understand the dynamics of the team, work tasks themselves, dependencies and needs of the team, is crucial though. In the meantime, establishing environment with leadership skills, ensuring we communicate with each individual as well as the whole team, stay clear on a culture we want to perceive in the team in terms of communication, development, growth and collaboration. Having regular meetings as well as be open to have ad hoc conversations if people want to share, ask for advice or opinion. Make ourselves available and make sure the team knows.
Not sure how to help the team where the knowledge of the topic is not your strength?
Use your coaching skills, ask the right questions and encourage your team to find the answers, to take responsibility and ownership. See the potential in them they can’t see themselves and be there for them. Do not work for them, but guide them through the process. They do not know what to prioritize?They do not know how to handle new task?Navigate them to use their own resources or external resources, ask questions to help them define priorities.
My story
Born with a soul of traveler, feeling freedom and inspiration through exploring the world. Overthinker and perfectionist, with the curious inner child and the will power to experience too much too soon. I have passion for an art and nature, a huge ocean lover. I dedicate my time to writing poetry, painting and yoga, amongst other self care activities. I believe we have answers within us and our purpose is to connect to our inner source of wisdom and knowing. I personally use meditation amongst other techniques. I started my professional journey in 2009. Leading my first team at the age of 22. I was on assignments in Germany, Spain and US. I took 9 months break from corporate world back in 2014 after 5 years in a company where I said yes to every opportunity that came along. I joined another international company in 2015, managing diverse departments in finance area, building up teams and processes in different parts of the world (Europe, Asia, Latin America), collaborating with Tax professionals, Business intelligence Engineers, developers and system architects, while continuing my leadership journey and managing multiple layers of managers and individuals within various platforms and projects. I signed up for integrative coaching training in 2019, obtained the certificate and ever since, actively seeking new methodologies and techniques to implement during the coaching sessions. I have interviewed hundreds of talents in multiple marketplaces for various roles, tech/non tech. I have guided individuals, within and outside of my teams, during their career changes, shifts from individual contributor path to manager path, from non tech role to tech roles, supporting their career growth, navigating them through the process of discovery of their own potential. During my last assignment I built up the department in 3 countries, hired over 100 individuals under different platforms and projects within 3 years. In 2022, I took a sabbatical after almost 7 years in a company to elevate, upskill and help my mind to clear for new ideas through challenging my old beliefs and ways of doing. It’s been a transformational journey of inner work that still continues. We are all work in progress.
No name, no heart, no soul.
Seen as a label, sticker on a forehead, with no need to look inside. Clear description on a paper. Those who read with eyes, expect. Those reading with heart, see through.
They feel my hand is to be held, not just handing over the rules. My voice is to be listened to, soft or firm, hiding insecurities. Words spoken, not followed, rather to be freed. From judgment, harsh opinions.
Always on the spot, target of questions not to be asked. Seeking answers as if I’m obliged, to have them all. In a need to improvise, pretend being confident, so I don’t fall. From imaginary ladder, climbed by ego.
Awaken by emergency spirit call. If all that pressure would disappear and I’d be just a human. Soul experiencing fear. Able to move in a rhythm of the music, dance as my body desire, with no need to proof, excel, or be right. Navigating crowds, on me relying, while they fly Im slowly dying.
No, it’d be just me, for myself, allowed to feel weak, reaching for help. As a human, person, woman. Rather than authority, teacher, a statue without the pulse, in service of others. Model of behavior with sharp curves. When all I want is to be a water, showing in all my forms.
River, foam or drops. In a rainy day, letting the pain, clear by tears. And with the sun, shining the light, swimming in ocean without the gears. Simply to be seen.
I wrote the above poem during Covid quarantine, I felt overwhelmed by growing scope, responsibilities and challenges. Feeling of isolation. I felt close to burn out, going through days when even writing a simple email would require tremendous efforts. I reached the point where I would either quit or proceed towards break down. I found myself on the bottom. I knew the change needed to start from within, with my approach. For that I needed a new perspective. I coached myself, step by step, to a change that led me to grow up professionally and personally. I have now only a few direct reports, focusing on large scale projects and broadening the scope for the teams. I manage my time more appropriately and dedicate my energy and efforts to activities that bring high benefit to the team and to the company. I used to complain no one wanted to sit on my chair, until I realized I was still occupying it and not giving enough of the space to others to express their talents. I got rid off the chains that were holding me back. So can you.