What most people don't realize is that the majority of the CEOs, pro athletes, and other high-achieving individuals they admire have received some form of career coaching in their lives. This isn't just a coincidence.
The truth is, those who find career success seldom do it by themselves. They have people guiding them along the way, empowering them with tools to build better habits and set ambitious, yet achievable, career goals. So, why are you still afraid to ask for help with your career?
You're not expected to know how to do everything on your own. And you shouldn't have to.
If you still have a stigma toward career coaching, here's what you need to know...
School Teaches Us Everything Except How To Get The Job
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We spend the first two decades of our life in school preparing for our future career. We have teachers, professors, and mentors. We try to learn as much as possible and develop as many skills as we can. But after graduation day, we're suddenly without that guidance we've been used to all those years.
Worse, school teaches us everything except how to achieve career success. It teaches us everything except how to get the job.
From day one, we're expected to know how to get our first job, grow our career, and eventually achieve the career success that we want. That's such a harmful assumption, leaving people who can't do this feeling like they aren't good enough. That something is wrong with them.
This is why career coaching shouldn't be stigmatized. Nobody innately knows the right and wrong way to interview, make a career change, or ask for a raise. The career questions you have, thousands, if not millions, of other professionals have them too.
Don't be afraid to ask for help. When it comes to not knowing how to grow your career, you're truly not alone.
Working "On" Your Career Is Different From Working "In" It
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One of the most dangerous things you can do as a professional is to only work "in" your career and not "on" it. You can't go to work every day, work hard, and assume that's good enough.
The hard truth: If you're not growing your career, you're dying.
Again, nobody told us the importance of your personal brand and making sure you're staying relevant by developing your skills and continually growing your professional network.
But a career coach will tell you this. They'll tell you exactly how to work on your career to ensure you aren't becoming irrelevant, and slowly killing your career in the process.
Career Coaching Isn't A Sign Of Weakness
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We can compare the stigma of career coaching to the stigma of mental illness.
There used to be an incredible stigma around mental illness, but now we're realizing that when we need help, admitting we need help is a strength, not a weakness. Nobody should be ashamed of asking for help and getting the treatment they need in order to better themselves.
The same is true with career coaching.
Career coaching isn't a sign of weakness. It's a path to greatness.
When we need help with our career, we should get help. No shame. No hesitation. No questions asked.
The only way we erase the stigma around career coaching is by spreading awareness about how difficult it is to navigate our career on our own.
The next time you're struggling in your career, remember that it's okay to ask for help. You'll be stronger—and better—for it.
At Work It DAILY, we believe the stigma of career coaching is going away, but not fast enough. Career coaching should be accessible to everyone. You deserve the same opportunity to grow your career, the same resources and support, that CEOs, pro athletes, and millionaires get. Don't let anybody convince you otherwise.
If you're ready to take ownership of your career and achieve the success you know you can, we'd love to see you inside our community.
Become a member to learn how to UNLEASH your true potential to get what you want from work!
This article was originally published at an earlier date.
