Help is out there for those who seek it
Redundancy is, by its very nature, an end; but coaching can help it be the beginning of something new, an opportunity to reassess and build something better
Redundancy usually comes as an unwelcome and hugely unsettling shock to the system; it can cause financial insecurity and a profound sense of loss and uncertainty about the future, and it can undermine self-confidence and even one’s sense of identity.
No two people’s experiences of redundancy are the same; everybody is different, everybody’s circumstances are different and everybody has a different response to change. However, you are not the first (and will not be the last) person to be made redundant, and it is possible to emerge from it both stronger and happier.
For some, the dust begins to settle relatively quickly, and redundancy is even seen as a release; a chance to change direction and try something new. But for others, it throws everything up in the air, and it takes time and effort to process and accept what has happened and then begin to rebuild.
Whatever your situation, coaching can help. Coaching inspires and empowers people to take back control, providing them with greater clarity about what motivates them, what they would like to do and how they can go about it.
Coaching is all about change and about moving forward, and it is easy to see how it can help. It can provide support both to those who are finding things particularly challenging and to those who have not, perhaps, been quite so profoundly affected but who are nevertheless still having to navigate some pretty choppy waters. Everybody is on their own journey and coaching helps make that journey more focused, structured and manageable.
Coaching is different from consulting or mentoring in that a coach is not there to provide you with answers. It is founded on two fundamental principles:
- that you have the “answers” and are the expert in your own life and situation; and
- that the role of the coach is to draw those answers out (using questions that raise your awareness and enable you to articulate what is in your mind) and then to keep you focused, motivated and committed to moving forward.
Coaching can help you with:
- coming to terms with the fact of your redundancy;
- understanding your priorities – both your personal values and drivers and your responsibilities; and
- identifying your desired direction of travel and your next steps.
In short, coaching can help you wrestle back some of the control that you may feel you have lost as a result of the redundancy process, and encourage you to take responsibility for moving forward. By doing so, it can restore your confidence, your sense of purpose and direction, and your positivity and drive.
With nearly 20 years of Family law under my belt before setting up as a coach, I am used to helping people who are facing a new future and are having to rebuild. If you would like to find out more, please contact me, Ed Heaton, at ed@edheatoncoaching.com. I am always happy to have an initial chat to explore whether coaching is for you, so do please get in touch. For more information about me, my coaching and what my clients have had to say more generally, please visit my website, www.edheatoncoaching.com.
“As a result of working together, I was able to take the time needed to really understand what I needed to do to move forwards, making the whole thing seem less overwhelming and more manageable.”
“The sessions helped me identify my goals and align with what is important to me and to work out how to get there. I was able to increase my confidence and motivation and overcome self-critical beliefs, which were holding me back.”