I Have a Coach Myself – Walk the Talk

Let me be completely honest: I have a coach.

Not just once, years ago, during a difficult patch - I work with a coach now. And I have done for years.

This isn’t a disclaimer. It’s a declaration of intent. If I ask my clients to go deep, to confront uncomfortable truths, and to evolve their leadership with purpose, then I must do the same. Otherwise, it’s just performance.

I’ve held senior roles - COO, CEO, Board Chair. I’ve carried multi-million-pound responsibilities, led turnarounds, and navigated situations that don’t get talked about in leadership books. And even with all that experience, I still need a mirror. A place where I can process complexity without judgement. A guide who isn’t impressed or intimidated by my background, and who will challenge me - sometimes quite sharply - to raise my game.

That’s what coaching gives me. Not solutions, but space. Not instructions, but perspective.

I don’t see it as weakness. I see it as essential maintenance for people who are serious about their impact.

Leaders are not exempt from growth

In fact, the higher you go, the fewer people tell you the truth. The more pressure you carry, the less space there is to admit doubt. And the more successful you become, the harder it is to separate your identity from your achievements.

That’s why I continue to invest in my own development. Because I want to stay awake to my blind spots. Because the questions change as life unfolds - family, ageing parents, health, renewal, legacy. And because I don’t believe that leadership is something you ever fully “arrive at.”

You grow into it, constantly.

That’s what I ask of my clients, and it’s what I ask of myself.

Under Clear Cut Leadership, I work with senior leaders who are ready to move to their next level - not just professionally, but personally. And I do it from a place of solidarity, not superiority. I’m on the journey too.

So if you’ve ever wondered whether coaches have coaches - the good ones do.

→ Schedule a call with me to talk about what growth could look like for you, too.

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