Maternity coaching

Although anyone taking time out from their career to care for their young children will face challenges both before and after their parental leave, many women in particular face a unique set of demands. For professional women, taking a chunk of time out of their career to become a mother is a life-changing event, and one that can have a massive impact on their self-esteem and identity. Whether a new mother or not, the experience can be daunting as well as one of the happiest times of their lives.

Preparing for maternity leave can be challenging and full-on and might mean putting a long-awaited  career on hold. Added to this, mothers-to-be might be  coping with tiredness  and overwhelm whilst ensuring key tasks or projects are either completed or handed over well to colleagues. Letting go of tasks or projects that are enjoyable and give purpose and fulfilment can be challenging emotionally.

After maternity leave, making the transition from maternity to work is a crucial step for women in their career. Often, women can feel as if their values and motivation are challenged. They might experience feelings of overwhelm and isolation and may lack the confidence to navigate a return to the workplace.

Maternity coaching can provide women with a safe haven, in which they may share their feelings openly and without judgement. A maternity coach helps  mothers to look at their situation from a variety of perspectives, gently challenges any assumptions or self-limiting beliefs and helps them to re-engage with their career.

People Business offers a tailored programme of one-to-one maternity coaching

A typical programme will kick off with a chemistry meeting for the coach and client to meet and discuss their individual needs and objectives for coaching.

This is followed by six sessions each lasting 60 minutes. These are very much led by the needs of the client, however, in our experience, we find it is helpful to structure sessions so that they include conversations that cover the key stages of maternity leave; before maternity leave, before returning to work and post return to work.

Typical subjects that we help our clients with are:

• Building confidence,
• Feelings of overwhelm and anxiety,
• Preparing for key career conversations,
• Establishing a good work-life balance
• Putting in place strategies to help transition to a new working pattern
• Preparing for and getting the most out of KIT days

Offering coaching support in addition to KIT days is invaluable and prepares mothers  for pre-maternity leave, pre-return and post-return.

For employers, this type of investment helps mothers to transition well into their new working pattern and ultimately reduces the risk of an experienced employee leaving.

Sessions are structured, using a three-point framework; focusing the parent to speak openly about their concerns, options and actions to move them forward practically and confidently.

To find out more get in touch with one of our consultants and read our blog on maternity coaching.