Posts by Farah Hussain, MBA, CPCC, PCC
My Interview in Forbes about How to Lead in a Diverse World
Forbes contributor and executive coach Heather MacArthur and I met in April through a LinkedIn message. Little did we know then that two months later, she would be interviewing me about the insights I published in Voices of Executive Women of Color, Part 1: Lived Truths. Our conversation is now represented in her June 2024…
Read MoreGrow Your Career with Confidence: 7 Tips from My Journey
As I grew my career in the tech industry, people often looked at my LinkedIn profile and said, “Wow, you’ve grown so steadily. How can I do the same?” While the career progression looked smooth on paper, the reality behind the scenes was far from it. As you grow your career, perhaps you can relate.…
Read MoreVoices of Executive Women of Color, Part 1: Lived Truths
Six months ago, I noticed that every client in my coaching roster was a woman of color. I had never branded myself as an executive coach for women of color. They came my way, they said, because “You’ll understand.” I’m a woman of color, and have experienced othering throughout my life. But as I built…
Read MoreVoices of Executive Women of Color, Part 2: Recommendations
Last week, in Voices of Executive Women of Color, Part 1: Lived Truths, you were called in to read about the raw and real leadership experiences of 22 executive women of color. We don’t often get to hear the personal views of executives who fit this profile, and certainly not as a collective. As a…
Read MoreMy Interview with Steph Balzer of Cento
This month, I had a special opportunity to chat with the mission-minded coach, writer, and strategist Steph Balzer as part of her coach interview series. She created a welcoming space for me to share my background and perspective on coaching. The Steph Balzer interview, below, was originally posted on her Substack, Cento, which explores how we shape…
Read MoreIs Time Management Your Enemy? 4 Ways Coaching is Your Friend
I frequently hear from leaders like you that time management is one of their biggest challenges. On a normal day, you are in back-to-back meetings, dealing with fire drills, and responding to pings from Outlook, Teams, Slack, your phone, and more. You’re caught in a cycle that you feel you can’t disrupt. You also desperately…
Read MorePreparing for an Executive Coaching Session: How to Pick a Session Topic
One of the most important aspects of a one-on-one executive coaching engagement is that you, the leader, are clear on what the focus of your engagement will be. You and your coach will align on that focus at the start of the engagement. Where are you now, and where are you trying to go? You…
Read MoreHow to Hire an Executive Coach: 7 Steps to Finding a Great Fit
Hiring an executive coach for one-on-one coaching can be daunting when you’re facing the task alone. What should I look for? Where can I find one? How do I know if a coach is the right fit for me? Asking these questions is a great start. It shows you want to be thoughtful about your…
Read MoreA Peek into the Coaching Experience, Part 1: Personal Leadership
Coaching is_____. Every once in a while, I come back to this piece I wrote on LinkedIn three years ago when I was still training as an executive coach. It reminds me of those first moments of surprise that coaching is not about telling leaders how to tackle their challenges and goals. Instead, it’s about…
Read MoreA Peek into the Coaching Experience, Part 2: Turning Inward, Together
How Coaching Works. I still recall the first time I was coached using the principle I wrote about in Part 1 of this series: coaching as a means of developing self-consciousness. I felt like someone had suddenly spun me around with my eyes closed. When I opened them, I found myself facing an inner truth…
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