Kathy is someone I used to work with at Microsoft.  While we never worked together directly, I knew and heard of her work from others.  She is one of those ‘get it done, can do, we’ll get thru this” people you want on your team. She is the voice of reason and has an ability to bring calm to the most chaotic of interactions.

She is also someone who quit her day job to pursue her dream job.  Her desire to help others maximize their personal and professional potential is her wheelhouse.  She was and is a successful mentor to many and now uses her intuition, skills and learnings to ensure others live their best lives. 

Kathy is currently seeking to engage with motivated clients. I encourage you to reach out to her to explore all possibilities for personal growth and fulfillment as well as corporate workshops & trainings. Contact her at http://www.kathypearce.com

You worked in the technology field for approximately 15 years prior to receiving your Certified Professional Coach (CPC)  and Associate Certified Coach (ACC) certification. Tell us a bit about your career to date.  What motivated you to start your own business.

Thanks, that’s a great question Yvonne!  I’ve owned my own business previously, so leaving Microsoft to create my own coaching business wasn’t as scary as it may sound.  Throughout my entire life I’ve had people reach out to me looking for insight, guidance, and support especially when new to a role, or during tough or challenging times, or when they’ve had a major decision weighing on them.  I’m happy, motivated and confident and I believe that it is this coupled with my empathy and compassion that draws people to me.

So, when I completed school and began my career, it was natural that I continued being there to support my friends, family, peers, and colleagues – both personally and professionally.  As my work experience and business success grew, I was able to share this experience and knowledge as a formal, and informal, mentor.  At Microsoft alone, I’ve mentored and supported hundreds of amazing individuals!

The thing that really intrigued me about coaching is that it’s the opposite of mentoring.  As a mentor you’re providing your wisdom and guidance based on your own life experience.  A mentor is a trusted ‘expert’ and guides from this perspective.

With coaching, I am not telling or directing anyone about what to do – the client is the expert in their own life.  Instead, as a coach I hold no judgement or answers. I am grounded in the belief that my client is whole, capable, creative, and resourceful.  As a coach my role is ‘the art of discovery”.  I ask questions to stimulate my client’s imagination and creativity; I listen, focusing on heightening my client’s awareness; and I facilitate my client’s commitment and accountability – enabling transformation for my client.  It’s so exciting and liberating!

A few years ago, while mentoring at Microsoft, I talked with my manager about my desire to add value in another way.  It was important to me that I support and help move forward the shifting Microsoft culture.  The values of coaching resonated for me and seemed exactly the way in which I could accomplish this. 

My manager was so supportive and enabled me to train for my coach certification – no small feat since I was directly supporting him at that time, a Corporate Vice President, which is pretty much a 24/7 role. 

So I had my day job (which I loved) and was also participating in an immersive 18-month coach training program through InviteCHANGE.  I was in a hybrid training (part in person and part online), I was being coached myself, doing fieldwork, and I was beginning to coach clients.  It was a VERY busy time for me – and those 18 months absolutely flew by!

Throughout it all, my manager, Brad Anderson, continued to be overwhelmingly supportive.  As I successfully graduated and received my coaching certifications, I was so grateful for the opportunity to positively impact so many lives.  To this day, I’ll never be able to thank Brad enough for his ongoing support. 

After continuing in my existing role, while juggling to carve out time for my coaching clients, there came a day that I realized that coaching was where my heart was.  I realized that when I’m on my deathbed, I don’t want to look back and say, “I wish I’d given it a try”.  That moment was life changing!  I was at a crossroads – I could continue to work at a job I loved at Microsoft and squeeze in my coaching clients when I could find the time, or I could make that leap of faith and resign in order to have more time to truly focus on my coaching clients.  I chose the latter and resigned from Microsoft to open my own coaching practice.

So now I combine my personal attributes, strengths, and my successful entrepreneurial and career experiences, with my coach training and experience – bringing my dynamic and unique perspective to my coaching.  I now spend my time on my priorities and am living my purpose each day!

You have worked for/with both large corporations and small companies. How do their coaching needs differ and how are they alike? 

First, it’simportant to understand the definition of ‘coaching’.  The ICF defines coaching as partnering with clients in a thought-provoking and creative process that inspires them to maximize their personal and professional potential. The process of coaching often unlocks previously untapped sources of imagination, productivity and leadership.

The focus of coaching is to discover and align with what you want to achieve and encourages self-discovery and client-generated solutions and strategies. The client-generated part is critical, because this helps separate coaching from consulting. Coaches help clients uncover possible solutions that the client identifies; consultants offer possible solutions and advice. Coaches see their clients as the best expert in their own lives.

So, in my experience, small companies and entrepreneurs are wanting someone who will help them grow and run an efficient business. Nearly every small business client comes asking for advice and brainstorming (aka consulting). They rarely come asking for a coaching relationship as defined by the ICF.

Instead, they’re looking for a consultant, someone who can give them answers, help them think through big projects or big decisions, and work with them to solve problems and grow their business. They’re looking for another set of eyes and ears paying attention to their business. That’s why I encourage small business owners, like you, to obtain clarity on exactly which type of help you are looking for.

    • Are you looking for a coach in the sense the ICF talks about?
    • Or, are you really looking for a “coaching consultant:” someone who can wear both hats and help you grow your business using the best tools, skills, knowledge and experience available?

As a coaching consultant I will sometimes wear the coaching hat, and sometimes wear the consulting hat, knowing when to shift from consulting to coaching and back again.

Large corporations, on the other hand, are usually clear on what it is that they’re seeking and so my role as coach is clearly defined. Organizations with the strongest coaching cultures use coaching broadly and deeply to help individuals reach their full performance potential and to help them strengthen targeted skills. They also invest in training managers how to coach and leverage the talents of peer coaches.  The coach’s role is to provide personalized, one-on-one support to help executives, managers, and individual learners develop their leadership skills, build relationships, overcome challenges, accelerate their development, and achieve their goals.

One element of your coaching is “Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging”. How and why has diversity training/coaching evolved to include “inclusion and belonging”? What are key take-aways from this type of coaching?

This is such an important and extensive topic.  I’ll lightly touch on my experience and observations as it relates to DIB since otherwise, we could talk for hours!

    • Diversity describes the breadth of range of talent – are you reaching and attracting people from many backgrounds, ethnic heritage, gender, sexual orientation, socio-demographics, parts of the world, different styles of thinking? This matters because you need to appeal to the best talent.
    • Inclusion means, actively including everybody in tasks, teams, conversations and developments. This matters because it means the organization is making the most of all its talent, and because it means everybody has a fair basis to contribute to the organization and fulfil their potential. It’s rewarding and motivating for everyone.
    • Belonging means being part of a group, sharing the confidence, security and allegiance that brings. Belonging is both individual and collective. It’s deeply programmed in our tribal nature. Belonging matters because it’s how we share effort and resources to get further faster.

Diversity and inclusion describe characteristics: belonging is much more personal and emotive, it runs deeper. Belonging is really where it all comes together: unity from our diversity, effectiveness from inclusion. A positive sense of belonging transmits directly into morale, productivity and effectiveness.

Belonging is hard-wired in our brains. Research in neuroscience and psychology shows that our need to belong is a basic human characteristic, and the pain of social exclusion – not belonging – is felt in the same receptors as physical pain. It shapes behavior: we will be guided by our sense of belonging more than the stated rules.

It’s how we pull together for collaboration – but it can also lead to conflict, if we define ourselves too far into separate tribes: and this is when diversity can become exclusion, or inclusion can become partisan.

Belonging is about commitment: from the employer to the employee, from employee to employer, and from employees to each other and to the business and communities they serve.

So, diversity efforts fall short unless employees feel that they belong – not simply are included – that they truly belong.

I really love these 2 quotes by Pat Wadors, Chief Talent Officer at ServiceNow:

“Yes, diversity and inclusion matter, but it’s how we help each other feel that we belong on the team, in our community, and in the organization that matters most.”

“Companies need to focus on belonging moments – to create the space for someone to feel they belong. It makes it easier for people to give to others, and then they share back. That’s the power of belonging.”

Given the many challenges and changes in our world and workforce, what do you see the top 1-3 coaching needs are today?

It’s so interesting.  People seek out coaching for a variety of reasons, both personal and professional.  They may have a very specific focus to start (“what do I need to do to get that promotion?” or “how can I increase my executive communication skills?” or “I’m not sure what to do about this decision in front of me” or “I should be happy, but there seems to be something missing for me”). It’s interesting that as we develop our coaching relationship, build trust, and begin to explore a bit deeper, there are universal commonalities which begin to arise for most people.  Research also bears out these findings.  These ‘top 10’ needs and motivators are:

    • Self-Esteem / Self Confidence (79%)
    • Work/Life Balance (75%)
    • Relationships (73%)
    • Interpersonal Skills (71%)
    • Communication Skills (70%)
    • Work Performance (70%)
    • Career Opportunities (65%)
    • Wellness (64%)
    • Personal Organization (62%)
    • Business Management (60%)

Mentoring is one of my favorite topics! How does mentoring play a role in coaching?  Why do you feel mentoring is important today and how does your coaching help define and foster this? What has been your own most successful mentoring experience? (Either as a mentee or mentor)

Mentoring is one of my favorite topics too.  For me at this stage, I am a transformative Empowerment & Success Coach, so I defer to this perspective and am clear with my clients about the differences between coaching, mentoring, and consulting (diagram below).

I do have a few clients who have a formal coaching agreement in place which also includes mentoring and consulting.  With them I wear all hats, knowing when it’s appropriate to shift, and always asking permission to do so during a coaching session.  Mentoring continues to be so important – to help people learn from your experiences and offer possible solutions and advice.

As I mentioned earlier, there are times that an individual simply does not have the experience to draw from and so if they have contracted me to also mentor and/or consult, I will absolutely share my experiences and insight.  I had one client who originally came to me for coaching around gaining some clarity about a decision she had upcoming.  She also asked for help with some techniques and suggestions on how to ‘manage up’ with her manager.  Our agreement allowed for coaching, mentoring, and consulting so most of our sessions were true coaching sessions, and in this case I offered to do a mentoring session and share with her some ways in which I have approached this in the past with my own managers.

My own most memorable mentoring session…well, let’s see.  That’s a tough one since I’ve been blessed to have so many remarkable mentors!  I had one mentor who was absolutely wonderful and amazing.  She gave me such great advice and suggestions on a myriad of topics.  There did come a time where I had to make a difficult decision about 2 separate roles – very different roles – which could take my career in very different directions.

My mentor was very successful in the traditional sense and she said to me, “I followed the usual path and here I am with a great career, but it’s so time consuming that I don’t have time to see my friends or my family as much as I’d like. I have to say it was also part of the reason for my divorce since I spent most of my time here at work instead of investing in my marriage.  I don’t regret it; it was my choice.  But what I’d say to you is be very clear on what you want your life to be like.  Seek out experiences which support that over job titles.  Whichever role offers you the experiences you want, allows you to learn and grow, and allows you to live the life you want, that’s the one you should go for.  Don’t let anyone tell you what your own personal ladder of success should be.”  It’s one of the best pieces of advice I’ve ever received!

Think ahead to five years from now.  Where do you envision yourself?

I’m a firm believer in prayer and intentions manifesting themselves in my life.  It’s happened for me so many times, so I’ll share them with you here since this is how I see my life:

  • My relationships are vital, magical and life affirming, and I relish loving, intimate, open and honest relationships based on authenticity and integrity
  • Creativity flows through me as I discover limitless ways to enjoy and embrace life with a sense of wonder
  • I cherish and celebrate my family, lovingly expressing my appreciation for them and bringing joy and harmony
  • My professional endeavors are fulfilling, rewarding and successful and I am filled with enthusiasm, determination and pleasure as I assist my clients in manifesting more fulfilling lives
  • I enjoy a peaceful home which helps me feel grounded and gives me serenity
  • We are all interconnected and it’s important for me to live in a balanced harmony of giving and receiving for a life well lived
  • I enjoy and thrive with exceptional physical, mental, emotional and spiritual well-being as I easily expand my awareness and connection with my higher and best self
  • I gratefully count my blessings for the unlimited variety of sources of my abundance, my investments and contributions
  • With profound trust, I enthusiastically seek guidance and support whenever necessary or desired, and I celebrate, rejoice and appreciate the caring people, individually and within community, who have affected my life in so many positive ways
  • I humbly give all credit to God as I make a positive difference in the world
  • My life is stimulating and rewarding with direction and fulfillment as I discover and utilize my unique gifts and talents and strive to be the best I can be, reaching my full potential and living my best life with passion and joyful freedom

What are the top 1-5 things that you are looking forward to in 2019?

  • Spending time with my amazing and remarkable husband, Rod, laughing, exploring, traveling and living life to its fullest!
  • Presenting (Re)Connect with your Authentic Self a fun, interactive and experiential Coaching Workshop during the Wellness Weekend at Carnation Farms (Nov 1-3). 
  • Partnering with great individual coaching clients, inspiring and empowering them to manifest more fulfilling lives
  • Spending time with my friends and family focused on sharing fun, new adventures
  • Providing valuable and useful Corporate Workshops on topics such as leadership, risk, change, building trust, improving communication, clearing teams’ blockers, collaboration, creating team values, etc.)

Please include any sources that people can use to connect with you.

You bet – happy to!