Mrs T . . .
I'm Helen, former headteacher and lover of learning and transformation, and Mrs T Coaching is the coaching concept I developed a few years ago. While struggling with the challenges of 2 intense headships in schools requiring a big improvement, I noticed the impact of leadership coaching - the value of spending time with an external coach with compassionate listening skills in a space free of judgement.
Not only did it help me to 'see the wood for the trees' but it also gave me the confidence to be a more values-led leader and develop the skills I needed to truly empower my team. I fell in love with the 'pure' coaching approach (as distinct from advice-giving and mentoring) and decided to retrain as an ILM Level 7 Executive Coach (check out my credentials here).
I coached my first leadership clients in 2021 via Zoom from the box room of my home in North East England (I'm based in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne) and over the last 4 years have worked with hundreds of leaders in the education sector and beyond.
I'm still just as passionate about coaching individual leaders as I was on day 1. I'm also now developing my practice as a supervisor of other coaches.
'It was a job I loved, but the way I did it always meant that it would come to an early end.'
I retrained as a coach in 2021 after a 27 year career in education, including 10 years as a head.
My own career as a head was cut short by stress-related illness, so I've seen both sides of the coin: searching for sustainability whilst in the job and building a new career on the other side.
Looking back, it was a job I loved, but the way I did it - at 100 miles an hour with very few pit stops - always meant that it would come to an early end.
In fact, the last year of my role was the one in which I had the greatest insights into how leadership could be different. But it was a bit too late for me.