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The Story Behind “Q&A With Sharmin” Series
I was answering the audience questions during a recent speaking engagement when the host said, “pay attention, Sharmin is coaching.” Even though I was pleasantly surprised that he saw it that way, it was no coincidence that I was coaching. My focus for the last few years has been on my coaching presence. Being present to the audience and listening deeply gave me the ability to coach on the spot effectively. Responding to the audience’s question in such a manner has been an enjoyable part of my speaking lately. This insight prompted me to put this into an experiment, and “Q&A with Sharmin” was born. At the core of it,…
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Career satisfaction, Coaching, Executive Presence, Happiness, productivity, Stress Management, Success Strategy, Time Management, WorkLife balance
Are You Sabotaged By Your Inner Hyper-Achiever?
A high-tech leader, let’s call him Jason, said, “I can’t relax; I always have to do something useful. Nobody makes me do so; it’s me. This is how I am”. Jason is not alone. Many of us have such hyper achievers in us, pushing us to do more. This trait may have helped us be where we are, yet its overuse cause more harm than good. Growing up, we all developed traits that kept us safe, got us what we needed, and helped us achieve success. Other than hyper-achiever, pleaser, perfectionist, victim, are to name a few. My top two are hyper-achiever and pleaser. Psychologists Hal and Sidra Stone call…
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My DYI Project – A Video Introduction
Last year, when everything went virtual, I had to create videos for a couple of online events. It allowed me to hone my video shooting and editing skills. Recently, we had a few sunny days in Seattle, giving me natural lights for this video shoot. Here is a 2-min video where I described my coaching philosophy, ideal clients, and their challenges. The time constraint reminded me of that famous quote, “I wrote you a long letter because I didn’t have the time to shorten it.” I picked the most common client challenge even though there are various others. Life is a continuous work in progress and this is a snapshot from…
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What Intrinsically Motivates Us (Hint: It’s not money)
David, a tech leader and a father of two, was in a big dilemma about a job offer. The money was higher than what he was making in his current job, but something else didn’t feel right. His friends said he should take it – “after all, you do the work for money, like a mercenary.” Humans are driven by only money and materialistic rewards is a false premise. Research shows that additional money doesn’t increase our motivation when we have enough money to meet our regular needs (higher than just basics). Especially if the work needs creativity or deep thinking, money doesn’t guarantee higher performance. In his book, Drive, Daniel…
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Empower Your Teams With 4 Coaching Questions
Six-skills are in demand in the post-pandemic workplaces, said Gwen Moran in her fast company article. Five of those six, self-direction, adaptability, empathy, communication skills, and motivational skills can be cultivated through a coach approach. Leading organizations are staying ahead by investing in coaching skills for their leaders. It will be a strategic advantage when the leaders could use coach-like conversation empowering their people. ICF coaching’s core premise is that the client is whole, capable, creative, and resourceful. The coach’s job is to facilitate the client’s process so that the client can untangle their thoughts and get clarity to make progress towards a meaningful goal. Some common characteristics of coaching conversations are :…
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What Makes Seahawks’ Pete Carroll A Great Leader
The Seahawks began the 2020 season with a good all-around showing in a 38-25 win over the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday (source). Amid the Covid-19 pandemic and the more recent massive wildfire through the west coast, this victory has brought some well-deserved breeze of fresh air among the Seahawks fans in the region. Those who have been following may know that Seahawks’ head coach for the last ten years, Pete Carroll, has been the catalyst behind the team’s rise. It got me thinking, what can corporate and business leaders learn from him. The one answer I got is his self-awareness, a clear sense of purpose, and the genuine desire to…
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Why Hire a Coach When There Are So Many Books, Podcasts?
It will be almost impossible to find someone who hasn’t read a self-help book, listened to a podcast, watched a TED talk, or any other YouTube videos that tell you how to improve your productivity and wellbeing, so on. I do have some of my favorites, giving me ideas, insights, and validations. One might ask, why would someone work with a coach when all such advice is already available? The short answer is, they are not mutually exclusive. One does not replace the other – both are useful. Reading books, listening to a podcast helps our overall awareness, we learn a thing or two. And there are times we need…
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ICF Coaching Client Study – top motivators: Self-esteem, work-life balance & career
Here are some nuggets from the ICF Global Coaching Client Study 2009: Clients are generally satisfied with the coaching experience. In addition to awarding very high ratings to all of the coaching criteria tested, the vast majority of clients also indicated that they were very satisfied with their experience. Further confirming the success coaches are having is the fact that almost all (96%) clients showed that they would repeat the coaching experience given the same circumstances that lead them there in the first place. Interesting facts –96.2 percent of coaching clients report they would repeat their coaching experience. — 82.7 percent of coaching clients report they are “very satisfied” with…
