Case Studies

The situation:
Neil had been making steady progress towards the legal career that he thought he had always wanted. But something wasn’t right and he didn’t feel like it was really ‘him’ anymore. He became frustrated and whilst he knew the Law was no longer right for him, he wasn’t sure exactly what he wanted to do instead.

What happened:
We worked with Neil over the course of 6 coaching sessions, spaced a week apart. During those 6 weeks we talked about what he really enjoyed and what made him feel alive. We talked frankly about his skills, experiences and also the areas where he knew he needed to up his game. In a complete change of direction, Neil discovered that he had a passion for Marketing – and he was good at it! Together we re-worked his CV and Neil came up with some innovative ways of getting the attention of potential employers. Through some challenging role playing exercises, he became better and better at explaining concisely what he was good at and why an employer should choose him. His confidence grew and he began to see interviews as fun!

What Neil said:
“I have a whole new outlook on life. One in which I can achieve anything I wish to if I apply the skills and attitudes that Hannah has passed on to me. Do not believe that Hannah will just make you feel good about yourself. That is just the beginning of what she can do. I am well on my way to a career and life of my dreams.”

Amber Harrison

Amber Harrison won the GLR News giveaway. Her prize: a coaching package from Hannah McNamara, a Chartered Marketer and qualified coach. Amber is Head of Branding at SITA, an organisation specialising in air transport communication and IT solutions. We caught up with Amber to talk about her prize and what she got from it.

How did you get started?

“At first, I didn’t know exactly what I wanted to do with my coaching sessions. So I bounced a few ideas around. To help me narrow things down, Hannah introduced a tool known as the Wheel of Life. For me, this was a really useful concept. It helps you see how your career, relationship, health and friends are all interlinked. And, it asks you what you need to do to get to the highest point of the wheel in each area. By articulating your ideas and explaining them to a coach, the situation becomes clearer and more concrete. I was able to narrow my focus down to career.”

Once you knew what you wanted to change, what happened?

“I needed to do practical things as well as look at the broader brushstrokes. Since career change was important to me, I worked on interview techniques. For example, as an internal candidate, I could gather information before my interview that external candidates wouldn’t have access to. Hannah isn’t afraid to challenge how I saw myself, or how other people might see me – which I found incredibly useful. Coaching allows you to assess and confirm. We agreed on actions and targets at the ends of every session. Without fail, Hannah always asked about them in the course of the next session.”

Where are you now with your goals?

“So far, I’ve completed one interview for an internal role – which I felt went very well regardless of the eventual outcome. I was completely prepared and very pragmatic. Whatever happens, I’ve learned that it’s essential to have a plan. The preparation helps you focus your mind, and it definitely gives you the edge. You have to take responsibility, discuss and appraise.”

Hannah McNamara

What’s your opinion of coaching?

“I recommend it. By all means, start with ideas about what you want to discuss and achieve. But don’t limit yourself. You’ll soon start to see how interrelated the different parts of your life are. When you start making changes, there’s definitely a knock-on effect. What I liked about working with Hannah is her understanding of the marketing industry. I didn’t need to explain everything in detail. Every response she made was considered, personal and relevant. She’s very professional, but works very personally. And, she gathers your feedback along the way. So, if you have questions or issues, you can address them. She also provides you with plenty of tools. There’s a coaching agreement, checklist and other materials like the wheel of life that help you think in new ways. The materials are a real support when you want to go over things generally or go back to a particular insight. You can do it easily. Hannah works as part of a team, so there are other people and personalities to choose from.”

See the original case study here