With self-help books, YouTube gurus, and the vast depths of the internet there is no short supply of information on leadership development and ways to better yourself on your own. So what makes “leadership coaching” worth the investment? Simple: the chemistry, connection, and creativity that a one-on-one leadership coach can provide. A leadership coach can help you achieve growth not only in skills and competencies but in your interpersonal relationships as well—all areas that directly impact you as a person and as a leader.
At Droste Group, we recognize that it is vitally important for you to select a coach that you connect with to get the most out of your engagement. That is why we have strategically assembled a diverse team of individuals who represent Droste through leadership coaching. As part of a regular blog series, we call “Coaches Highlight,” we will introduce the members of our coaching team and give you some insight to help you connect with the coach who is just right for you.
Meet Joe Walker
According to Joe Walker, a Droste Leadership Coach with over 30 years of experience, “Leadership coaches help coachees more clearly see what is right in front of them but can’t touch, while preparing them for what is around the corner.” Joe believes that a coach’s role is to guide the coachee on a path to growth.
Over the course of three decades, Joe has built high-performing teams in both domestic and international companies. Joe started his career as a trial lawyer with over 100 jury trials involving sophisticated and highly technical subjects, such as accounting, commercial transactions, engineering, insurance, medicine, and patent and trademarks. Joe worked his way up to management and eventually became the CEO/managing partner for his firm. During his time at the firm, Joe was recruited to another company to serve as general counsel and then president.
After spending most of his time in the corporate world mentoring and coaching people on an informal basis, Joe decided to become a leadership coach and consultant. He saw that a company’s growth was almost completely dependent on its people and that by coaching people “to do a little more today than they did yesterday,” he could help the company grow from that investment.
Joe believes that progress is much more incremental than people think it is. Instead of pursuing only the rare, dramatic “ah ha” moments, he believes in taking “little steps, little pieces of progress that when taken together over a period of time add up to substantial progress.”
Joe typically starts his coaching engagement with a simple question posed to his coachee: “What’s going on?” This, he finds, allows the coachee to consider growth in a wide range of areas, whether related to work or personal life. It also ensures that the coachee is engaged and eager to be coached, two things vital to the success of the coaching engagement. In Joe’s opinion, the best candidates for leadership coaching are those who are humble and have an appetite for learning. Everyone from up-and-coming leaders to experienced C-suite executives can benefit from leadership coaching if they are truly engaged and eager to learn.
If you’re interested in setting up a coaching experience with Joe or any of our other amazing coaches, email us at info@drostegroup.com. Leadership coaching is one-on-one development, focused on behavior change to improve overall performance and effectiveness. Leadership coaching is just one of the many services we provide. To learn more, visit www.drostegroup.com.
