Is your current work role unfulfilling? Are you trying to take your career to greater heights but facing challenges while at it? Do you ever question your current career line? Do you dream of making a massive career change? If the answer to one or more of these questions is a YES, you might be best served by employing the services of a career coach.
What is a career coach?
Career coaches offers expert planning and strategy for your career. Their skills lie in resume building, interviewing, and negotiation. As professionals, they are always up-to-date with current hiring practices because their job entails helping job seekers find positions that they can thrive in.
What does a career coach do?
Having a career coach can be compared to having team that will help you rebrand and define your personal brand. This is because career coaches pin-point your strengths with regards to your professional experience and help you to market your skills in the most striking way so that you maximize your chances of getting an interview with potential employers. Career coaches are therefore required to be experts in writing and renewing resumes, planning careers, motivating job seekers, and network building.
Career coaches are seasoned professionals in recruiting and/or human resources. They find fulfillment in finding long-term positions for job seekers’ dream careers, as well as helping job seekers create a workable plan in order to get closer to their dream career.
Most people assume that they can only hire the services of a career coach only after they have sent out job applications and failed to secure a position. While desperation is a great motivator to get professional services, hiring a career coach is not reserved solely for securing a position after a period of joblessness. A career coach can help you at many other tricky situations where your career is involved.
A career coach can help you when you are just starting out and trying to define your career path, when you are chasing a newly discovered passion, or when you are ready to move to the next level of your career. For people who are serious about being better in their profession, the services of a career coach, as well as a different perspective from a professional, can be extremely valuable.
When you are trying to leave a current position – for whatever reason – the best decision you can make is to get the services of a career coach even before you make a decision or hand in your resignation letter. Waiting until you hate your job can negatively affect your mental health and your overall performance at work.
It is important to know that all career coaches do not fall under the same umbrella. Some career coaches prepare you for interviews while others help with negotiation and guide you towards getting a better salary and benefits. For this reason, it is important to find a career coach based on what you are hoping to achieve.
In order to find a fitting career coach, you are advised to keep your ear on the ground and find recommendations from your networks. You can also find leads through social media and do some research on Google in order to find the right match. Once you find a coach that you can work with, then you can hire them based on their specialization and track record.
How much do career coaches cost to hire?
The total cost for using a career coach will vary depending on several factors like their experience, specialized field, rate of success, overall credentials, and where they happen to be located. A well-known local career coach who is respected in his profession with a stunning track record may be able to charge more than a career coach who is just starting to build a portfolio. Career coaching experts that work in fields that are very competitive can also tend to be more expensive.
Generally, hiring a career coach may set you back anywhere from $75 to $150 per hour. If you are in a more cutthroat field, services from a career coach may cost you anywhere from $250 to $500 or more. It is important to note that when choosing a career coach, it is better to go with a career coach who ticks all the boxes in our requirements list. Going with the lowest cost coaching alternative will not necessarily yield the greatest results.
One of the most effective forms of marketing is word of mouth, so you may want to speak to a person who has worked with your potential career coach. This ensures that you put in money towards building your career using the services of a career coach who is proven to deliver results.
