Possible?

It's within YOU.
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What are you looking for?

Give your best performance in an interview that really matters to YOU

If you are an experienced professional appearing for middle to senior management level, go for the Interview Preparation Playbook™ on-demand video course, a unique offering to help you prepare for the big day. Or try seeking personal one-on-one support to give you the edge and make you stand apart from competition.

Shape your career how YOU would like it to be

Your career is in your hands, but a coach can help you shape it, grow it, or even change it, should you want. Manage your career with clarity and confidence. Go for the Career Acceleration Roadmap or Career Compass Coaching and create the career you always wanted.

Shape your career how YOU would like it to be

Your career is in your hands, but a coach can help you shape it, grow it, or even change it, should you want. Manage your career with clarity and confidence. Go for the Career Acceleration Roadmap or Career Compass Coaching and create the career you always wanted.

Become the best version of YOU personally and professionally

What does progress mean when you are already at the pinnacle? How do you better what is already so good? It requires inner work which then manifests outwardly. Gain Clarity, find Congruence, make a Change. Get a coach.

Start a conversation

Get in touch with Neha Parashar by sharing some background information about you. Please write to info@valyoucoaching.com stating your interest, background and expectations. Let’s get talking.

Contact us

Have a question? Write to:

info@valyoucoaching.com

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is coaching for?

Coaching can help anyone who is trying to make progress. Coaching is a good investment if you have a goal that you want to reach. It could be a personal goal such as cultivating a new habit, becoming more productive, becoming more fit, having better relationships. Or it could be a professional goal – such as advancing in your career, improving a skill, better business outcomes, etc. The coach becomes a partner, supporter, sometimes even a guide on your journey. 

So if you have a vision of a better you or being in a better place than you are today, coaching can help you.

I have experienced mentors and friends I can talk to when I need guidance. Why then should I seek a coach?

You are lucky if you have a circle of people who can guide and advise you. But think back to some of your big achievements. Did you take coaching when you were preparing for any Entrance Exam? SAT/CAT/GMAT? Did you have a teacher who worked with you closely when you won a medal or prize in school? Have you ever worked with an instructor in the gym? If the answer is yes, you know the difference between doing it alone and having someone experienced on your side who is as focused on your success as you are.

A coach  can add tremendous value in the following ways:

  • A Coach provides an independent and external perspective that can help you gain new insights (it is likely that most of your circle of trusted advisors may be in the same environment as you and think like you)
  • Gives honest feedback that helps us improve (again, our well-wishers may be blind to our weak areas or be reluctant to give feedback)
  • Creates a safe space for you to share your innermost thoughts, fears and aspirations
  • A Coach doesn’t stop at one-time advice, rather is a trained professional who walks the journey with you, helps you with clear goal setting, tracks your progress, challenges you and holds you accountable. He/she can be a catalyst to your success.
  • The coach may be experienced in the path you want to walk and could share tips, tricks and techniques that may help you succeed.
Are there different types of coaching?

Yes, coaching approaches can vary. An important difference is between the common understanding of the word coaching, and the discipline of coaching.

In our colloquial understanding of coaching, the coach is part guide, part trainer, part consultant and advisor. Some examples of this could be fitness coaches, sports coaches, coaches that help you clear an entrance exam, job-search coaches etc. These coaches may have walked the same path as you, have a wealth of the experience in the same field and may have valuable tips, tricks, techniques they can share with you. There is a lot of sharing and ‘telling’  from the coach to coachee here. Often this type of coaching has a very specific end point – getting the medal, clearing an exam, etc.

But ‘coaching’ is also  a discipline. This discipline focuses not on giving advice, but helping you gain insights. Often the goal here is not an event, but progress. Progress happens by the virtuous cycle of generating insights, application of the insight, feedback and change. The focus in this type of coaching is on ‘asking’, not ‘telling’. The Coach, primarily through powerful questions, or through tools, helps you make progress through exploration, generating options, challenging yourself, shedding limiting beliefs and gaining clarity.  And then, in better goal-setting, action- planning and holding you accountable. 

This type of coaching is also goal-based, but since improvement does not have an event-based endpoint, one can choose to keep setting the bar higher and keep working towards it with the help of a coach.

So what type of coaching do you do?

The answer is both. When helping clients prepare for a Job Interview, for example, the tilt is towards the commonly understood meaning of the word coaching. I bring in my years of HR experience and training and share useful tips, techniques and advice help you. I’ll help you prepare, practice, polish and perfect your performance with a particular event in mind. It may require me to use some elements of the coaching discipline when it comes to working on your mindset, or say overcoming some limiting beliefs, but largely the focus is on perfecting your content and techniques.

In Career and Executive Coaching, the focus is often on improvement and progress. Here I lean more heavily on techniques of the classical coaching discipline. I may give advice, nudges, suggestions only as needed. In this approach, the intention mostly is to help you find your answers from within. We work towards helping you gain clarity, set meaningful goals , tracking progress and holding you accountable. I’m prescriptive or consultative only when I believe it will add significant value.

How should I choose a coach?

First, decide which type of coaching are you looking for. Is your vision of success  event based (clearing an exam/writing and publishing a book/winning Masterchef/ running a marathon)? If yes,  more than any kind of credentials or qualifications,  you need someone who has walked the path themselves. Someone who knows the turf, its challenges and ways to overcome them first-hand. This should be an absolute must-have. So check into the history of the coach for evidence of this experience.

If you are seeking a Coach for an area where you are seeking progress, or clarity and direction, you may need someone who understands and is experienced in the discipline of coaching. Here, my suggestion is to look for these:

  • Is the person formally trained in coaching and has a credential? Here, check the details of the credentialing body, how long it has been in existence, what values they follow, and if they are endorsed by other reputed bodies/organizations. Also, check their process of earning a credential. How thorough is it?  Does credentialing require training as well as adequate practice? Coach credentialing is now an industry in itself with many players in the market, so you need to evaluate this carefully.
  • What is the Coach’s background?  Is the Coach experienced or has sufficient exposure to the same environment as yours? For example, if you are in the medical profession, a coach with a medical background may be able to connect with you a little bit better than one who is not. Or if you are working in the corporate sector, does the coach have a sound understanding of the corporate environment? If not from the same environment, has he/she coached many people from this environment so as to develop an understanding about it?
  • Last but definitely not least, check for chemistry and connect. This is hard to define. Check whether you feel calm with the coach or agitated, nervous or anxious? Do you feel you can trust the coach with your innermost thoughts and that he/she will hold them gently and in utmost confidence? Does the Coach make you feel judged or as if you are being evaluated , or does it feel you are safe in this conversation? Very importantly, is the Coach a good listener and more interested in you, than sharing how great he/she is?   You can know these when you have your first pre-engagement meeting with the coach.

Also look for all material the coach has put out in the public domain – any YouTube videos, LinkedIn posts, articles, etc. These should give you some idea about the coach’s philosophy, values, style, views and even expertise. Go ahead only if you feel comfortable with these.

How can I be assured that confidentiality will be maintained?

Trust is a prerequisite of a coaching relationship. Coaches accredited by ICF are bound by client-coach confidentiality.  I sign on a confidentiality clause as part of the Coaching Contract with every client.  I will not publish even client testimonials with any identifying details or refer to anyone as a client publicly without their express and written consent. Your identity and details shared during an exploratory call, even if you do not engage me as your coach, will be held confidential.

Breaking the bond of trust with a potential, current or former client is anathema personally and nothing short of professional suicide.

Testimonials

Neha is a gem! She is a deep listener and asks questions that bring out great insights that you may not have even thought about. That’s the value she brings as a Coach! Before working with Neha, I was all over the map. She helped me with arriving at specific areas to focus on. She encouraged and motivated me to think about non-traditional career paths. We worked on creative ways to build my network and brand. Thanks always for shedding light in every conversation!

B.A

VP Business Services & Operations, Financial Services, US (17+ years experience)

Neha’s knowledge combination of international cultural understanding and commercial and business experience has ensured so many benefits to our time. Her understanding from a non-Indian viewpoint was so helpful as was her Executive Coaching experience. I so enjoyed our sessions. Being able to share business scenarios and work them through with her absolutely supported me in my transition to a Senior role to India and also grew my knowledge of Indian culture. Having the independence to work though my questions and fears as I have established myself here has been so beneficial and really helped me to adapt quickly, to understand and think about things differently. Thank you so much, you really have made such a positive impact and a real difference to me getting set up here and being happy both inside work and at home. I can’t thank you enough Neha!

W.J

Chief Risk Officer and Vice President, Global Insurance Major, US (18+ years experience)

I was quite impressed with her profile,  well-rounded industry experience with appropriate credentials… gave me confidence.

The first couple of sessions were on context setting and to nail down the exact Objectives. Neha’s style of rational thinking process backed by a structured coaching framework helped to declutter, clarify and focus on what should be the objectives. The subsequent sessions were well paced with clear agendas and expectations set up front. Through every session Neha enabled me with a thinking process to find the best or optimal solutions… For every practical situation, Neha would come up with an outside-in perspective, unbiased insights and questions, drawing upon her deep experience as well. Every interaction was stamped with authenticity and genuineness.

A rewarding experience for me, enabling me to succeed in my goals.

N.R

Sr. Director, Head of Finance, US IT multinational, India (24+ years of experience)

Neha supported me in a long journey for over a year during which  I had several important goals that I wanted to accomplish, including applying and interviewing for positions in the Foreign Service, Civil Service, and Private sector. Neha made significant contributions towards my successes in each area.  She gave valuable feedback on sharpening my narratives for several applications; conducted mock interviews; made recommendations on how to tailor my responses to anticipated interview questions; and helped me conceptualize and prepare for every interview, including the Foreign Services.

Neha had a successful career in the private sector and her extensive training and experience are evident in her coaching. She is very knowledgeable and I was able to benefit tremendously from her experience. Neha was an invaluable resource for me.  I contacted her frequently for guidance, support, and advice, and she was always very responsive. Thank you once again for all your support, Neha!

AL

Information Management, US Foreign Service (14 years of experience), US

Can coaching really help you?

Can you imagine a world-class athlete or your favourite sportsperson reaching the pinnacle without a coach’s help? In every field, there is real competition. A qualified coach helps you achieve your goal with their skills, knowledge and passion and by helping you discover and hone yours. Neha Parashar would love to be on your side and back you up with all her training and experience.

Have a topic for my blog?

Share a topic for my blog that can be of use to you and others as well. Write to info@www.valyoucoaching.com to suggest a topic.