Coaching

I started my career with the this Company because I was drawn to her culture. It has been standing against the test of times over the past 187 years because of the strong focus on people, making this place one of the best trading houses for apprenticeship.

I have clocked in a substantial amount of hours with them, benefited from the people-centric approach they take on our development. The collegial atmosphere is a strong DNA, people are always available to "have a chat" with you, making it a unique place to learn about all these unwritten protocols in the Corporate World, things one can't learn from a university degree.

Grateful with this, the unspoken protocol is for us to reciprocate. Officially and unofficially, I have been making myself always available "for a chat" when others are interested to listen to my experience. I bring this DNA with me in every role across five industries, six countries and regions, seven job functions and nine job positions.

For the past ten years, I have been in a leadership position leading a team of people, from 50 to begin with to now leading a team of 3,000. Despite the scale, there is one constant, I will always invest time to "have a chat" with them.

Overtime, I realised I have been subconsciously giving coaching sessions to help my team grow. I enjoy sharing my learning and experience. My leadership philosophy is about creating an environment and capabilities to set people up for success. A leader's achievement is the most credible when it is through the work your team, not you, deliver. I have about 40 mentees, seeing some of them making some breakthroughs have been the most rewarding experience.

What we talk during those "chats" is not rocket science. The difference is from how I leverage from my accumulated experience to tell relevant stories and to give practical drills for them to work on. There are many books and elites out there talking about leadership and management skills with grand theories and fancy consultant words. Not everyone can conceptualise hence why they would feel lost when it comes to application.

So far my mentees have been giving me good enough feedback with my sessions, so I gathered I am able to help some to achieve growth in their careers. I couldn't help but to wonder, if I am gifted with this, why not give it a go and see if my experience and thinking can help more people to achieve their goals?

With this self discovery, I have decided to give it a go.

Today, I reached a milestone and decided to write about it as a small celebration with myself - as we would say in a work place, we learn to celebrate success together, so Miss P, good job and well done!