We’ve welcomed a new FlexCoach on board and can’t wait to share her expertise with you! Our FlexCoaches can help you with any number of career and work-life questions and situations, and each month they share some of their best tips with you through blogs and videos.
We chat to Louise Gilbert below to learn a little more about her and why she’s so passionate about helping people excel at work and life.
Tell us about your career history?
For the majority of my career, I led large scale complex change and transformation programs for companies like ANZ and NAB. So I’ve been fortunate to work on a variety of things that needed people to change- whether that be technology, new products, new operating models or different organisational cultures.
After having my first child, I noticed my relationship with my husband took a hit. We were fighting and I was becoming very grumpy and resentful towards him. I looked into this issue that I was having and learnt that most couples (2 in 3!) experience something similar after they become parents. It’s a very tricky change and transition period.
Long story short, I left my corporate role, re-skilled and formed the social enterprise, The Intime Collective so more people could be better equipped to have stronger relationships- at work and in life more broadly.
What was your motivation to become a coach?
Being a coach is one of my favorite hats to wear.
I think one of the reasons I love coaching is that I know change starts with a conversation and people are so unique and I love to work deeply 1:1 with people.
I’ve been a coach on and off for many years and always been a fan of taking a coaching approach to leading people because fundamental to coaching is this belief that you have in others.
When I’ve been able to share in the triumphs of the people I’ve coached, it makes me want more of that goodness!
What are your areas of coaching expertise?
Coaching as an approach to change can be used across a number of topic areas so I can (and do) coach people on a range of topics, goals and challenges.
I love to ‘pan for gold’ and help people explore possibilities of how they might be. The topics I tend to get asked to coach people on relate to:
Change, Habits, Managing Work and Life, Relationships, Wellbeing, Entrepreneurship and Career Progression.
What do you love most about coaching?
Bringing out the best in someone creates a ripple effect that extends beyond our coaching conversation. And that aligns to what I want to contribute in this world. I like that do good, feel good cycle.
What’s the number one career challenge you’re asked to solve?
In my role as a Founder of The Intime Collective, I left my senior (and secure) role in HR to create a business that seeks to solve an issue that I personally experienced and most parents experience.
I often get asked about confidence, imposter syndrome, relationships, personal brand and how to take a leap that might seem terrifying or unachievable.
How do you define career success?
The definition is a very personal one and it’s wonderfully unique to everyone.
For me personally, I love having a career. It’s a source of energy and I take great pride in my work. My career success links to my family, friends, community and my personal goals. They reinforce each other.
Career success is about doing something I love that’s values aligned and doing something that’s needed in the world. After all, in the end, I want to fight for something meaningful and say that I made an impact.
What’s your vision for the future of work?
I see a world of work that’s full of purpose and intention. I see more collaboration between people and business and clarity around the role tech plays and the role of people. We’ll stop muddying the two. I see the work environment taking more responsibility for supporting their people and family in a meaningful and impactful way- well beyond what we see now. I see a larger focus on the importance of belonging and building community.
The future of work knows that to stay alive, it needs to help people have better lives and it actively works as a system to add value to people as individuals, at home and also in the community.
Thanks so much for your time Louise.
You can book a free Career Clarity call with Louise here or find out about her relationships, wellbeing and managing work and life workshops here.
Louise Gilbert has lead large scale change and transformation programs for corporates in Australia, is an entrepreneur, coach, relationship and wellbeing educator, facilitator and has a passion for supporting people to create meaningful change and habits that stick.
She’s warm, she’s caring and challenging at the same time. Louise is a mum of 2, a makeup artist, former foster carer and keeps things real and practical and has a wealth of wisdom people love to tap into.
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