Senior professionals spend years working. But they may struggle with the decision on when to leave. Whether it is the role or organisation, when is the right time to let go? A career coaching session can give answers and insights to overcome this confusion.
When Is It Time?
The real question is not about when senior leaders should leave. But also what they feel. And how they react to or internalise the emotions. Several professionals stop finding purpose or meaning. From the outside, life looks normal. Meetings, discussions, product reviews or feedback are still a part of regular work. But the thrill and excitement that each new challenge brought are lost. You may have reached a stagnation or plateau with a disconnect between workplace and individual expectations.
These could be a few signs of you wanting to leave. But leaving does not only mean leaving the organisation. It can also indicate switching roles or outgrowing current responsibilities. Similarly, expats also face the quandary of deciding when to leave. To either return to their old workplace or a new role. This is when approaching career coaching services can be the turning point.
How does a career coach help?
As a professional, the career coach helps you understand your internal feelings and emotions better. By asking the right questions, the coach enables you to find clarity in thought. Is the sense of meaninglessness arising from a misalignment between the company and your goals? Is this just a temporary feeling because perhaps the role demands longer hours or a team that keeps coming to you for every query? Or is it a much deeper feeling of disengagement? Could addressing a particular issue help in overcoming the feeling of stagnation? If the team were changed or a different role assigned, would you still feel an emptiness?
A coach uses detailed questions to analyse your inner self. It helps to bring clarity and understand the root cause(s) of your feelings. Career coaching sessions can help create self-awareness among professionals. Based on their strengths, skills and talents, the coach can guide professionals towards roles that are better suited for them. Also, career coaching for expats is one of the best tools to help expats find the answer.
Leaving may not always be ascribed to things going wrong. It may perhaps be about understanding what is not right for you anymore.
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The Fear of Leaving
Sometimes senior professionals may not be able to judge when it is time to leave. It may be because of the underlying fears and social pressures.
As a senior leader, you may be used to a certain lifestyle and routine. There is stability and respect. The identity as a professional attaches itself to personal charisma and personality. All of this makes it difficult to want to leave. Also, the fear of starting afresh and being uncertain of the future. Besides, the age-old dilemma of what others may think of you. Can leaving amount to abandoning the team that you built with hard work and care? Can it mean letting down the family or peers who look up to your seniority and experience?
Thus, the fear of the unexpected, change or disappointment can also cloud the judgment of a senior professional. Again, career coaching services can help.
How does a career coach help?
Firstly, the coach helps you understand the fears. Next, overcome them. For instance, the coach, through questions helps you see your fears for yourself. You maybe afraid of losing your identity.This is not a reason to stay, but rather the reason not to leave. The coach, by highlighting your strengths can give you the confidence of your capabilities outside the job role. You gain insight and coherence on how your identity is not equal to the position or title you hold. And this gives you the confidence to decide when to leave.
Usha Nagrani is one of the topmost career coaches. Her career coaching sessions have helped hundreds of professionals to find clarity. With her thoughtful questions and deep listening skills, she has enabled several senior leaders to transition to different roles. She also works with expats and executives to help them gain confidence in deciding their future.
It is important to note, that the decision to leave is yours. But the coach helps you reach this decision with clarity. Whether you are stuck, deflated or afraid, the answers lie within you. And finding clarity over these answers means you have already won half the battle. What remains then to be done, is to make the change with confidence and self-awareness. The chances of succeeding and finding fulfillment are high, because your decision comes with a clarity of knowing what you want.
Usha Nagrani is a Doha-based executive leadership and career coach helping senior leaders and expats grow with clarity, confidence and influence. Reach out to her to discuss your leadership goals or challenges at usha@ushanagrani.com
