Lumen Impact Group
Lumen Impact Group

Who Needs Professional Coaching? 

Published: January 9, 2024

By Lisa Diaz and Dr. Laura Groth

Welcome to a fresh new calendar year! At Lumen we believe one of the most powerful tools in each of our toolbox is looking forward – designing the vision of the work and life you want and then taking specific, actionable steps to make it real. If you too have goals, hopes, and dreams for the future, but need support or structures to get started or sustain that work – now might be the time to consider a professional coach. 

What Does Professional Coaching Look Like?

Professional coaching means committing to working regularly (generally once a week, or every other week) with a professional, experienced coach to bring your goals to fruition. It means committing to your own growth and working with a trusted, confidential partner who is fully invested in helping you access your whole range of strengths and assets, while finding new and creative ways to work through the barriers that keep cropping up in your life. It means carving out regular time to do that forward-thinking in a structured, effective way to help you work towards real change and growth.

At Lumen, we believe strongly that coaching is for everyone. 

Who Needs a Professional Coach?

Professional coaching might be a great fit for you now if:

  • You’ve been in the same role for five years now and you’re feeling a bit stuck. Each day feels like Groundhog’s Day, and you don’t know in what direction you want to grow, much less how to get started.
  • You’re an experienced leader used to managing teams and working towards big goals – but lately you’re finding it’s a bit lonely at the top. You have a great team working with you, but managing is hard work even with a strong team. And let’s not even talk about the time element – how are you supposed to manage a team, think big picture strategy, and also do your own work??  (School principals, we see you!)
  • You’re new to your leadership team, or new to this whole industry, or new to this company, and you’re feeling a bit nervous about getting your feet on the ground. You feel your nerves every time you walk into a meeting or suggest a new idea, and you want to make sure you’re moving in the right direction in this unknown space.
  • You are on the hamster wheel and no matter how hard you run it feels like you can’t keep up.Your little hamster legs are getting very tired. 
  • You have this idea you think could change the impact of your organization but things keep getting in the way of moving it forward. 

Any of that resonate?
If you’re interested in learning more about the coaches at Lumen and Lumen’s coaching model, contact us at info@lumenimpactgroup.com.

Testimonials

"Lisa did a fantastic job with our entire strategic planning team. Her process was beyond organized. As a new administrator, I was able to lean on Lisa for her expertise and knowledge of strategic planning. She did everything from meeting organization and to facilitating subgroups, focus groups and staff culture surveys. Her work with the school board and administrative team was respectful, while also filled with appropriate advice and constructive feedback. I could not imagine going through this process without Lisa. She will continue to be a trusted resource for years to come."
Jamie DeWitt
School Leader, NexTech High School
"Lumen Impact Group has been critical in supporting Bluum’s efforts in Idaho to manage our $17.1 million federal Charter School Program grant. As one of the country’s first non-profit organizations to receive federal CSP funding, the stakes for our work are very high, and our efforts to help open, expand and replicate public charter schools face scrutiny. I sleep better knowing Lumen Impact Group has worked closely with us to build our processes, procedures and playbook for managing the responsibility of directing and overseeing a significant federal grant. I highly recommend them to others. They are true pros."
Terry Ryan
CEO, Bluum
"As a family-owned and operated company, we needed to preserve our culture and define our mission, vision and values better as we grew. Lumen Impact Group helped capture a variety of diverse perspectives and hopes for the future in a way that connected everyone involved. Lumen Impact Group helped us create a clear strategic focus and for our future stabilized our culture. Lisa also coached our leadership team in supporting implementation."
Mark Smith
President, Krapohl Ford & Lincoln
"Lisa Diaz and Lumen Impact provided invaluable support to Colorado Charter Facility Solutions during our start-up phase. I was the new non-profit organization’s executive director (and only employee at the time), and Lisa knew answers to questions that I did not even know to ask. She made sure the board of directors was set up correctly and that the organizational documents were in place. Lisa helped me establish the organization’s goals and ways to track progress. Lisa is organized, patient and kind, and worked quickly, thoroughly and collaboratively. She is a good listener and even acted as an executive coach/therapist at times. When necessary, Lisa can be direct, yet she is always focused on the goals of the organization and its success. I highly recommend Lisa Diaz and Lumen Impact Group. "
Jane Ellis
Executive Director, Colorado Charter Facility Solutions
"I have worked with Lumen Impact Group at both the individual and organizational level. As a coach, Lisa has a natural ability to get to the heart of the matter quickly and to ask questions that help her clients translate insight into action. Each team member who has worked with Lisa in a coaching capacity has demonstrated visible growth that has positively impacted individual and team performance. As an organization, we are trying to be purposeful about the culture we are creating, as a means of best fulfilling our mission. Lumen Impact Group has been a tremendous thought partner along the way and has facilitated critical steps in a collaborative yet efficient and fun way. Our team was in awe at how much we accomplished collectively in a short period of time. We are moving toward our ideal culture much more quickly than I thought possible, and I have no doubt it is because of Lumen Impact Group’s guidance. "
Kasey Miller
Chief of Staff, National Association of Charter School Authorizers