Question 1

What is a career and life design coach?

Accepted Answer

A career and life design coach is a professional who helps individuals create a plan for their career and life goals, taking into account their strengths, skills, interests, values, and personal circumstances. The coach provides guidance, support, and accountability to help the individual achieve their desired outcomes. My services are customized to each individual and include reemployment life cycle activities. You may choose a service package that includes resume writing or one that includes resume development coaching. See services page for more information.

Question 2

How many coaching sessions will I need?

Accepted Answer

The number of coaching sessions needed varies from person to person, depending on individual circumstances and goals. Generally, I recommend starting with a minimum of three to six sessions to get started with developing a career and life design plan.  While my services are focused on coaching packages consisting of 6 sessions, please contact me @ JNelsonCC@protonmail.com if you would like to customize a plan that includes more than 6 sessions.

**Note that one or two sessions does not facilitate a transition plan geared towards individual  goal attainment.

Question 3

What common mistakes have you seen clients make in their career transitions?

Accepted Answer

I found that, regardless of my clients' backgrounds, among the greatest transition pain points impacting their career transitions/job search included:

• Not being clear on what they want moving forward
 • Not understanding their transferable skills/experience/strengths
 • Needing to develop or maintain self-confidence and resilience
 • Not understanding their value or their strength boundaries 
 • Not taking time for a reality check on their goals to make informed adjustments when/if needed
 • Lacking an intentional and values-based career design
 • Lack of focus on professional well-being
 • Not recognizing how career planning impacts life beyond work (which is why I incorporate career/life design modalities)

All these missteps can significantly impact one's professional and personal well-being. I will discuss military-specific pain points in a separate FAQ item.

Question 4

How do I prepare for coaching sessions?

Accepted Answer

Before your first coaching session, take some time to reflect on your strengths, skills, interests, values, experience and goals. Think about how you define yourself and what you want to achieve in your career and life, and be prepared to discuss your thoughts and feelings with me. Bring any relevant documents, such as your resume, performance reviews, and any other work relevant documents that tell a story about your work/training/educational/training background to the session.

Question 5

Can you connect me with job opportunities?

Accepted Answer

That is a good question. The answer is no, I coach and guide you through the transition process, mindset blocks, job search/reemployment life cycle activity coaching, professional resume writing (if requested), and career/life design. If you seek job placement, I recommend researching job placement agencies, recruiters, your local career center business services team who work with employers, or a head-hunter service. These can be good adjunct services to complement my coaching services.

Question 6

How can your services help me as a transitioning military service member?

Accepted Answer

A career and life design coach can help you in several ways, including:
•	Identifying your transferable skills and how they can apply to civilian jobs
•	Assessing your interests, values, and goals to determine your ideal career path
•	Developing a job search strategy, including networking and resume building
•	Providing support and guidance throughout the job search and application process
•	Assisting in the transition from military to civilian life

Unlike traditional career counseling or coaching approaches my career life design starts with a whole person approach that focuses on your non-work related interests, experience, and goals to inform your career transition strategy.  Career life design coaching for military career transitions, more than any other, involves a life transition as well as a job/career planning and is focused on pain points that are common to most transitioning service members and their families.

Question 7

Are you familiar with common military transition pain points?

Accepted Answer

Absolutely. As an Army Veteran and a spouse of a retired Army combat Veteran with 24 years of service, I have experienced this transition firsthand from both perspectives and understand how uniquely different our transitions are. I also coached hundreds of Veterans, who were in various stages of their transitions, and managed the local Jobs for Veterans State Grant Program (career center Veteran's services) for seven years.

Below is a sample of common missteps that lead to pain points experienced by military transitioners (do not worry, I made them once too).

• In my experience most military transitioners do not start their transition planning early enough and often do not understand the process or how to own their transition. 
 • Some have a network to work with, but most do not. Among those who do, many often do not realize their need to continuously expand/diversify their network. 
 • Placing too much emphasis on job acquisition instead of designing a career, which is an area that I focus on. 
 • Probably the greatest misstep is not understanding that military transitions are more than a career change. 
	   -   These transitions are a cultural change that is heavily influenced by a military identity (I conducted a four-month doctoral study 	           
                   focused on demonstrating the existence of military identity in the US Army and how it serves as a major stressor in the transition 
                   process). 
   -  As service members we are used to having a 'mission', and transitioning to civilian life and work often results in a lack of structure and 
      sense of mission that we are used to - do not overlook this...it is a big one!

These and other mistakes are quite common and collaborating with the right partner to design your next chapter and create sustainment strategies can help you either avoid or bounce back from them. I am more than glad to explore how I can support you in this process.

Coaching & Consulting LLC

Coaching & Consulting LLC