My four coaching sessions with Gilly were very impactful. They came at a time when I was unhappy in my medical career and in real need of support in making career decisions. Because of the stress, I was experiencing in my current work I was finding it very difficult to assess my needs, skills and values in a balanced way. Gilly immediately struck me as someone with whom I could be very open; she has wonderful interpersonal skills and quickly put me at ease. I found her very encouraging but at the same time objective. Gilly supported me to bring new ideas to the table and contributed suggestions only where necessary and in a very neutral way. She made observations based on my input that were valid and fair and often sparked new thinking.
From the sessions I was able to identify my core values and skills and to understand which aspects of my current work were and weren’t working for me. I was able to explore future career options and to realise that I needed a break from my current work that would make me feel valued, which I found in the form of a 1 year fixed-term teaching job. This work allowed space for further reflection and I went back for a final session with Gilly many months later to explore career options from a different perspective. This last session allowed me to create an action plan with which I felt confident.
Gilly’s sessions were incredibly powerful in giving me space and permission to listen to a voice that had been buried and to understand and validate what I need in a career in order to gain long-term work satisfaction. As a result of the sessions, I was able to understand myself better as an individual, to confidently name my skills and to identify a career path about which I am now optimistic.
The sessions also enabled me to understand that I have choice in my career – something that often feels like it’s not the case in medicine – and to understand that should things not go right the first time round, there are plenty of things that can be done to use this unforeseen time in a valuable way. It was empowering to realise that I had lots of these ideas already within me – they just needed bringing to the surface.
I will use elements of these coaching sessions when faced with difficult decisions in future and feel that they have afforded me skills that I can use to help myself to find solutions.
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