Episode 19: Coaching In Action - 3 Stories of Leadership Breakthroughs | 12MinuteLeadership

Big transformations often start with small, strategic shifts. 

In Episode 19 of 12minuteleadership, you’ll hear how three leaders used executive coaching to create ripple effects across their organizations:

• Jennifer cut stress and earned a promotion by setting strategic boundaries. 
• Alan prevented costly turnover by choosing empathy over rigid policy.
• Catherine mastered capacity management, accomplishing more without burnout.

Each gained clarity, empathy, and practical tools—and the courage to lead differently.

If you are considering hiring an executive coach or are already coaching others, this episode has the receipts for the return on investment. 

If you'd like to explore more stories and insights, you'll find them in my book Lead Anyone available now on Amazon. If you know another leader who could benefit, share this episode with them.

Follow on Instagram: @12minuteleadership

Order my book, Lead Anyone!

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:03):
Welcome to the 12-Minute Leadership Podcast
where, in 12 minutes or less,I'll share small things that you
can put into immediate practicethat will make a big difference
in your leadershipeffectiveness.
I'm your host, eliseBoggs-Morales leadership
professor, consultant and coach.
For the last 17 years, I havehelped thousands of leaders

(00:25):
level up their influence andachieve remarkable results.
If you want to trade compliancefor true commitment and create
your dream team, you are in theright place.
Get ready for a quick hit ofpractical wisdom to increase
your team's engagement, inspiretop performance and retain your
best talent.
Ready to level up yourinfluence and get better results

(00:47):
.
12 Minutes starts now.
Hi everyone, elise here,welcome to episode 19.
Today we are wrapping up ourseries on executive coaching.
If you are just tuning in, Iencourage you to go back and
listen to episode 15 to getcaught up In our final episode

(01:08):
for this series.
I thought we could talk aboutthe real impact of coaching, so
today I'm sharing stories ofsome of my most favorite client
breakthrough moments and thedifference coaching made in
their ability to win inleadership.
You can also find their storiesand more in my new book Lead
Anyone, available on Amazon.
For each person, I'll share thechallenge that they were facing

(01:30):
the insight that shiftedeverything, what actions they
took and what their wins were.
My hope is that you can takethe lessons you learned today
and incorporate them into yourown leadership practice.
Whether you are consideringexecutive coaching for yourself
or in your role of coachingothers, I know today's episode
will inspire you.

(01:51):
So let's start with my client,jennifer.
When Jennifer stepped into abrand new role as director of
people operations at anarchitectural firm, she was
immediately overwhelmed Becausethe position hadn't existed
before.
Everyone brought theirquestions to her, from minor
office issues to major HRconcerns.
Her office's location near acommon space, meant constant

(02:15):
interruptions.
She couldn't focus and thestress left her distracted in
conversations.
Before long, she had gained anunfair reputation for being
disengaged.
Through coaching, I introducedJennifer to the
control-can't-control exercise.
On one side, she listed whatshe could control creating a

(02:35):
clear role description so thatpeople knew what to come to her
for, setting office hours forpeople to meet with her or drop
in for questions, and blockingfocused work time to work on
other office initiatives withoutinterruption.
On the other side, she listedwhat she couldn't control, which
turned out to be a surprisinglyshort list.

(02:56):
This clarity empowered her toact.
She implemented structure,communicated expectations and
modeled healthy boundaries.
Six months later, her stresswent from a 10 to about a three.
Her team respected the clarity.
And Jennifer, she not onlythrived, she was promoted to an

(03:19):
executive level position.
So the lesson here is clarityand boundaries aren't barriers.
They're a gift to both leadersand their teams.
The next story I'll share withyou today is about my client,
alan, the CEO of a successfulconsulting firm known for his
fairness and thoroughness.
One year he faced a challengewith Kevin, a leader who had
added tremendous value bystreamlining processes, saving

(03:41):
the company money and elevatingHR practices.
When it came time for bonuses,kevin's unique role didn't fit
the firm's formula.
Alan stuck to the standardprocess, knowing Kevin would
probably be disappointed.
Their meeting was short, felt abit transactional and left
Kevin feeling undervalued.
In a coaching session, Iencouraged Alan to ask Kevin

(04:06):
some follow-up questions and digdeeper to see how he really
felt about the decision.
Alan followed up, askedquestions and discovered that
Kevin felt unseen and wasconsidering leaving.
Instead of defending hisdecision, alan chose empathy.
He acknowledged Kevin's value,explained the constraints and

(04:28):
promised to work on a solution.
And Kevin stayed.
And nine months later, alanpersuaded the board to update
the process, awarding Kevin theraise bonus and eventually, a
promotion.
The lesson here is thatprocesses matter, but empathy is
what retains top talent.
Leaders who listen and digdeeper prevent costly turnover

(04:51):
and build loyalty that moneyalone can't buy.
And finally, catherine's story.
Catherine had just beenpromoted to her dream job as VP
of marketing at an advertisingagency.
While excited, she feared therole might consume her.
She had inherited the beliefthat exhaustion and overwhelm
were just part of leadership.

(05:12):
Through coaching, she learnedthat capacity management isn't
optional, it's a leadershipskill.
Together we calendared the bigcommitments for the year,
including vacations.
First, we mapped deadlinesbackwards, rated the time and
energy each project required andconducted a margin audit to
ensure white space for theunexpected.

(05:33):
We also built a delegation planidentifying tasks her team
could own and developing them tohandle more responsibility.
The results weretransformational.
Three years later, catherine isaccomplishing more than ever
without burnout.
She feels empowered and incontrol of her calendar, and her
team is thriving.

(05:53):
Perhaps most importantly, sheis modeling a healthier way of
leading, showing that highperformance and well-being can
coexist.
So the lesson here is thatsmall, intentional shifts in how
you manage capacity can rippleinto both personal resilience
and stronger team culture.

(06:13):
So, in closing, what do thesethree stories have in common?
Jennifer learned the power ofclarity and boundaries, alan
discovered that empathy retainsgreat talent.
And Catherine mastered capacitymanagement as a leadership
skill.
Coaching gave each of them anew lens, new tools and the

(06:34):
courage to act differently.
The result wasn't just personalgrowth.
It was organizational impact.
If you've been consideringcoaching for yourself or for
your leadership team, I hopethese stories show you what's
possible.
Coaching isn't about fixingweakness.
It's about unlocking potential,building influence and leading
in a way that creates lastingresults.

(06:56):
I hope you've enjoyed thisseries on executive coaching.
If you'd like to explore morestories and insights, you'll
find them in my book Lead Anyoneavailable now on Amazon, and if
you know another leader whocould benefit, share this
episode or series with them.
I'll see you next time.
Like what you heard on today'sepisode and want to go deeper,

(07:19):
subscribe to this podcast so younever miss an episode.
You can also pick up my bookLead Anyone on Amazon.
Then go to my website to checkout ways that we can support
your leadership goals.
From executive retreats tocustomized training and coaching
.
My team of experts will helpyou level up your leadership and

(07:39):
accelerate your results.
Go to wwweliseboggscom for moreinfo.