Searching for My Ideal Client

Right before getting a job at Flatiron School in February 2019, I'd been on a personal journey to track down what we in the coaching industry call "my ideal client." Meaning: the type of person I am most energized to work with; someone who could benefit the most from my style of career coaching. I don't think it's a coincidence that I'd just about figured it out when an internal recruiter from Flatiron contacted me and, not five days later, I'd been hired!

Naturally, I threw all of my energy into learning the new part-time job. I've learned so much, and I love what I do at Flatiron. It's challenging and infinitely rewarding. Our coaching approach to the job search really does change lives.

In the midst of training and coaching a mixed roster of Software Engineering and Data Science students, I put my own business on the back burner. (It's so much easier to focus on one thing at a time, wouldn't you agree?) It takes a surprising amount of emotional and mental energy to learn a new job. Now that I've had several months to learn it, I am feeling ready to coach clients again in my own practice, while continuing to coach bootcamp grads.

Back to how I went about figuring out who I want to work with. . . . Thanks to fellow coach, Charles Gosset's, recommendation for a book I have yet to finish, Book Yourself Solid, by Michael Port, the process included a lot of journaling that went something like this:

That was a fun list to make, one that poured out of me without much thought. And then, drilling down, I came up with this:

You may be wondering: What is anabolic energy? Fair question, and one I'd love to talk with you about at some point. Perhaps another blog post!

More importantly, this list shined (shone?) a light on exactly the kinds of people I prefer to work with. And, you know what's cool? Most of the people I work with at Flatiron fit right in to the above descriptions. They are wonderfully creative, intelligent, and - at times - eccentric people. They are often in their thirties or forties. Many of them have previously been a part of planned obsolescence. For some - as it did for me - losing a job unexpectedly through a layoff became a catalyst for pursuing a new career.

This (that intersection of pursuing a newfound passion with hope and feeling incredibly uncomfortable, without an anchor, and a little lost) is where I meet my clients and where I've found I can serve them best.