LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT FOR PHYSICIANS
The role of coaching in leadership development.
Applying for a new leadership role or being asked to take on a new role can be both thrilling and frightening. On one hand, you are excited to try new things and to expand your skills, on the other hand you might not have all the knowledge and skills to succeed. This is a common challenge in our clients.
Coaching is a great opportunity to both reflect on how you’ve overcome similar challenges and to work with a trusted coach to explore your options for the new role. Coaching reminds us that we have a choice in how we grow and change.
Developing as a leader requires reflection on who you are as a leader and how you want to be as a leader. A coach can facilitate the inward journey that is required to become a good leader. You have probably already experienced that having a title or “being in charge” is not enough to be a leader; people must want to participate for you to be effective. With a coach as your partner, you can look inside to define what being a leader means to you. This inward exploration helps clarify your approach and even the next steps to take on your leadership journey. This clarity provides focus to the future.
Another benefit to working with a coach to develop your leadership qualities is to thoughtfully develop the stories that exemplify who you are as a leader. We all have our internal stories that explain who we are and why we are the way we are. Coaching can help to bring those stories into the light and evaluate how they are helping you, or how they are not helping you. With a coach as a trusted partner, you can choose to reframe or even rewrite these stories. As you look inside, you will find the stories you want to share and the clarity of vision that will inspire those around you.
Coaching allows you to you to walk the path as new leader in your mind to process challenges you see looming and to identify potential risks you don’t yet see. Through this reflective process you can plan potential responses, so you are ready if or when they occur.
