Coaching for designers: what does it encompass?
Coaching for designers involves a variety of services aimed at helping them develop skills, advance their careers, and improve their overall design practice. This can include career guidance, technical skill development, and even personal growth related to design.
We’re going to break down what this can mean in practice and highlight why a specialist design coach may be more beneficial than a generalised career coach.
Career guidance and strategy
Career Goals: Helping designers clarify their career aspirations and set achievable goals. This is often the very first step in any coaching journey. The job of the coach is to help the designer gain clarity on these goals.
Portfolio Development: Assisting with building a strong portfolio that showcases their skills and experience. We have coaches that specialize in this and a video showing the development of a top designer’s portfolio.
Job Search: Supporting designers in finding new opportunities and navigating the job search process. At Good Maven we can do much more than guide you through your job search, we can actually connect you to new opportunities - because we also recruit to some of the top design-led firms in the world.
Negotiation: Providing guidance on salary and benefits negotiation. We believe in ethical recruiting and we encourage our clients to post salary and benefits information up front.
Leadership: Coaching designers on transitioning to leadership roles and managing teams. Our specialist leadership coaches, Meg Rye and Melissa Hajj, are experts in helping you identify your pathway to leadership and the skills and expertise you will need to succeed.
Technical Skill Development
This is where our skills coach, Timothy Achumba, excels. Timothy is Principal Design Director on the Tooling team at Microsoft and co-founder of cult favourite Lovers Magazine, an inclusive online community for creative professionals.
Design Software: Enhancing proficiency in specific design software and tools.
User Experience (UX) Design: Developing expertise in UX design principles and practices.
Design Strategy: Understanding how to apply design thinking and strategy to solve problems.
Specific Disciplines: Specialized coaching in areas like graphic design, product design, or other design fields.
Personal and Professional Growth
Both Meg and Melissa are experts in this area and can help you identify weaknesses and support you as you develop your skills.
Soft Skills: Improving communication, collaboration, and leadership skills.
Mindset: Addressing issues like imposter syndrome, building confidence, and fostering a growth mindset.
Burnout Prevention: Developing strategies for managing stress and maintaining a healthy work-life balance.
Creative Process: Helping designers explore and optimize their creative process.
What difference will it make to work with a specialist design coach?
Whatever your needs for coaching, working with a specialist design coach means that your coach will have a much better understanding of the industry and overall environment you are working in. They will know the job types and hierarchy; the industry leaders and the start-ups to watch; they’ll be familiar with your industry jargon (you won’t have to explain your terminology) and they will have inside knowledge of the hiring processes, training opportunities and skills needed to be a successful designer.
And, if you choose to work with us at Good Maven (we hope so!) we can make those all-important connections with industry clients we are hiring for.
Sounds great! How do I get started?
We’re so glad you asked 😊
As coaching is quite an intimate relationship and can make a real difference to your development, it’s essential to find the right person to work with. That’s why we offer free chemistry chats with all our coaches. Find out more and please do get in touch if there’s anything you need clarity on.
