The Discomfort I Didn’t Expect - Part II

In March, I wrote an article about the intellectual discomfort I experienced while a student in Georgetown University’s Executive Certificate in Leadership Coaching Program. The timing was right, as we were finishing the program's final module. All that remained was a paper and a recording of a coaching session to be evaluated by an assessor. 

I thought I was done. 

Fast forward to a Saturday morning in May. I was eating a turkey sandwich in our kitchen after playing golf and decided to quickly check my email. 

Turns out I wasn’t done. 

My recorded coaching session didn’t hit the mark. I was encouraged to absorb the learning, trust the process, and take full advantage of the opportunities that a “do-over” process provides. 

Gulp.

After I read the note five times and picked my ego off the kitchen floor, I decided to do what the email encouraged me to do.  I tried to make this failure the best thing that ever happened to me. 

A six-month program turned into seven. I went overtime with my program director and advisor, dissecting what was missing and what I needed to work on. I realized I was too focused on solving my client’s problem and not paying nearly enough attention to who the client needed to be in the moment. 

I dove into several books by Edgar Schein to improve on “the gentle art of asking instead of telling.

Sometimes you hear people say they need to get out of their own heads in order to perform at their best. I needed to get a little deeper into my own. 

I resubmitted a month or so ago. I still wanted to pass, but if I didn’t then I’d have to find another level. Heads I win; tails I win. 

I passed. More importantly, I became a better coach because I initially didn’t. 

Thanks to Georgetown classmates Paul Robinson and Gregory Dwyre, who went overtime with me. I can’t pay it back but will pay it forward. 

A setback isn’t a problem; it can be an invitation to be better.