Ignition Coach Spotlight: Punita Gandhi
Today’s coaching spotlight is part of a new series where we will feature and celebrate the diverse and talented coaches that work with Ignition around the globe. We hope you enjoy getting to know a bit more about the wonderful folks who make our work unique.
Our first spotlight is from Punita Gandhi. With over 20 years of experience, Punita’s area of expertise is partnering with and supporting leaders on articulating a purpose-driven strategy to shift their perspective from surviving to thriving in measurable, well-designed, and tangible ways that clearly demonstrate impact. For a full bio, visit her about page here.
Here’s what Punita shared with us.
What inspired you to become an executive coach?
I feel a sense of reward when people rise to their maximum potential and are able to realize their own purpose. The value of the trust and relationships that gets built is priceless.
What is your favorite thought leadership resource? (book, podcast, journal)
Among others, these are a few of my favorite resources:
Some of my favorite podcasts include:
What is a major misconception people have about your line of work?
There isn't one major misconception, I'd say there are few.
This is a space that hasn't had much regulation, as of yet, and no clearly established standard industry definition, so to speak. And so people are carrying in their minds a lot of different interpretations of what coaching really means.
Those misconceptions span a spectrum. Some people assume that coaching is too warm and fuzzy, and not connected to real-world impact and strategy, which is incorrect. Some others perceive coaching to be a type of or substitute for therapy. Another perception of coaching is synonymous with what is now loosely referred to as “life coaching”, which is a catch all for a lot of personal development work.
Coaching in actuality is a multi-dimensional and measurable experience. An effective coach can really help a client with improving their inner effectiveness with authenticity, and integrating what they do at work with who they are and what drives them at the core. I work with my clients to help them understand that behaviors are manifestations of conscious or unconscious feelings, which in turn are representations of deep needs that are looking to be met. This connection helps work at change more authentically through making sure that core needs are identified, understood and addressed; and goes much deeper than tactical practices alone. These aspects of coaching can be tracked and measured through tangible behavioral and attitudinal shifts.
In your opinion, what makes coaching impactful for clients?
Firstly, I think it's the focus that a coaching engagement has where both the coach and the client are clear about the objectives and the intended outcomes. And every session is a definitive step in that direction. Of course, it is necessary to pay attention to the fact that sometimes that direction can change midway with discovery.
Here are some examples of what coaching objectives look like:
preventing or recovering from burnout,
improving time management,
working with a difficult boss,
working with a new team,
being a first-time manager, or
being promoted into a new role.
Another critical aspect of coaching is client accountability. And that accountability is something that needs to get established right from the very start. When a client is accountable for certain very specific outcomes and is willing to invest energy and courage in the work during and between sessions, this is what really makes the shift. This tends to represent small wins for the client that are encouraging, help build confidence and which, cumulatively over time, add up to big change.
A lot also depends on the depth and width of skills that a coach brings to the table. The beauty about coaching is it can draw from so many different fields. If it's done well and skillfully, there are aspects that a coach can bring into their coaching from fields as diverse and relevant as neurolinguistic programming, stoicism, positive psychology, behavioral economics, decision shortcuts and any more that can provide very powerful yet pragmatic techniques and practices to create real impact.
Tell us a brief story about a moment you saw the impact your work had on a client.
Sometimes the small wins bring most joy to me – because they form the basis for authentic change. A female client, who was terrified of asking for anything in her (very competitive) field, found courage in her recognition of her own value through our work together and asked for a higher rate with lower hours. And got them both. This made a huge difference to the quality of her life, as well as her recognition of her own power and position.
Do you have a regular meditation or mindfulness practice and if so how does it help?
I listen to meditations by various teachers; they help me stay grounded, and keep me connected with reality and meaning. Sometimes, I receive a learning on a particular day that appears to be very relevant for a client - and I have the privilege to pass it on.
How have you been able to overcome the emotional and physical challenges of the pandemic?
Primarily through a continuous connection with gratitude and the recognition of the gift of each day. I also explored a much deeper connection with friends and family. And finally, instinctive faith that this inexplicable phenomenon had to be paving the way for a better, brighter, stronger future for us as a civilization and for our home, planet earth.
What has been the biggest adjustment in regards to how you approach your work during the pandemic? How have you adjusted your work with your clients?
The past year was tragic for almost everyone in some capacity. We cannot talk about 2020-2021 without acknowledging the loss of somebody we know directly or indirectly. And so to that extent it's been traumatic, it's been introspective, and a destabilizing year in a lot of ways.
However, from a coaching perspective, I'd say that a lot of good things emerged because all our interactions migrated to virtual settings. This opened up the coaching environment to becoming essentially boundaryless. We were no longer tied by geography or proximity, or even timezone for that matter. And I think this will be a permanent opportunity that's going to help the field of coaching in general.
Second, I found that conversations were more personal and vulnerable - with people willing to share much more from their intimate home settings, than they may have in a more formal work setting or a public venue.
From a coaching standpoint, much of what we typically work with our clients on is individual self-development, personal growth, personal leadership, and working through individual barriers. The pandemic highlighted an enormous need for connection and the value of collaboration, because all of a sudden, it exacerbated what the world would look like if we were all extremely high functioning individuals without our contexts: our people and our groups are what help to contextualize us. And not only that, the complexity of our world grew so much that no one person had the ability to single handedly understand or solve for them. We need others. And so, the coaching focus is shifting to effective teaming, collaboration, listening and so on.
And there was also an underlying platform of fear. For a lot of strong leaders, this space of ambiguity can be very unnerving. Our work environments have traditionally encouraged structure, form, and predictability a tremendous amount. And the ability to do any of that was essentially instantly broken. That triggered a fear response because for a moment there, people had no idea what to expect or how long this would last. Yet, fear in itself, as a human instinct, is a beautiful motivator to seeking out connection.