Coaching Client Stories & Feedback
Here is a selection of feedback I have received from coaching clients I have worked with around career change, career progression, job search and leadership development.
Louisa, a senior commercial lawyer in London, was feeling unfulfilled in her career and wanted to explore alternative career options within law and outside of it.
"I was feeling unfulfilled in my role and had begun to wonder whether I needed to move away from law altogether. The prospect of changing my role and potentially my career was incredibly daunting and I had no idea where to begin.
After spending many hours researching new jobs online (which just added to my confusion) I realised that I needed some one on one help. I researched a number of career coaches but Matt’s profile and website stood out to me as someone who seemed to understand exactly where I was coming from (particularly given his own legal background). I decided to take the plunge and sign up for the Career Change Coaching Programme, and I’m so glad that I did.
I can’t emphasise enough how beneficial my sessions with Matt have been - for the first time in my career I was able to dedicate time and headspace to reflect on what I have done to date, what I am really interested in and where I see my future. With Matt’s expert guidance and encouragement to “trust the process”, what was initially a daunting and difficult challenge turned into an enjoyable project which helped me understand what is really important to me in my career.
As a result, I have taken on some volunteer positions to gain charity sector experience in an area I am passionate about, and when an unexpected career opportunity presented itself Matt worked with me to evaluate it in the context of the key criteria I had identified for myself during the process. I am looking forward to starting my new role shortly and am feeling very excited for the future.
I have greatly enjoyed working with Matt and highly recommend him to anyone who is trying to work out the next stage of their career."
Louisa, Commercial Lawyer, London
Simon, a senior in-house lawyer in the North West, was seeking help with a career transition and job search to progress his career to the next level.
"I began working with Matt in order to help me with my job search. At that point, the search was not going quite as well as I wanted. I was being invited to interviews but was yet to secure an acceptable offer of employment.
I decided to work with Matt because of his extensive experience as a career coach and particularly because of his background in the legal profession, including as in-house counsel in a corporate environment.
Over a series of thorough one-on-one consultations, Matt spent time to help me review my progress to date to work out how best to achieve my goals, he did this by encouraging me to talk about what kind of role I wanted, what I wanted to say in my CV and to then challenge my thinking to date, to develop/provide solutions that helped me better highlight my career achievements, sharpen my presentation skills and improve my overall focus. In the process, greatly enhancing my CV and interview preparation.
After these sessions with Matt, I felt renewed confidence and reassurance that, as my job search progressed, I would be able to make strong and successful applications.
I’m delighted to say that a short time afterwards, I was invited to interview for a number of roles and successfully secured a position as a senior in-house in a large commercial organisation.
I would happily recommend Matt to anyone looking to successfully complete a job search for a senior legal in house role and who feels they would benefit from Matt’s expert assistance. With his help I have been able to achieve what I wanted and in such a short space of time."
Simon, Senior In-House Solicitor, North West England
Katie, a 7-year qualified commercial lawyer in London, wanted to explore options for a career change out of the law. Katie quickly identified another career path that highly motivated her, and the coaching resulted in her securing a job she loved in that field. Here's what she had to say:
"After working in law for several years, I reached the stage where I knew I needed a change of direction, but had no idea how to bring this change about (or even where to start!).
I therefore consulted Matt for some guidance, having read up on his own experience and his style of coaching, and I was ultimately so glad that I did! He has a really open, down-to-earth style which puts you at ease and helps you to clarify your thoughts. After four sessions, I found that I had a renewed sense of purpose and much more defined idea of what I wanted from my working life.
Using the techniques and prompts Matt demonstrated during our sessions, I was able to identify my particular strengths and needs in terms of potential careers and ultimately found the area that I wanted to move into. I am now looking forward to starting a new job in a few months’ time and am hugely grateful to Matt for giving me the tools and helping me find the confidence to get me to this position."
Katie, Commercial Lawyer, London
Sarah was an 8-year PQE private client lawyer who wanted to change career so she could enjoy her work more and have better boundaries between her work and home life:
"Before my coaching, I had been researching my alternative career options for over 6 months but was no closer to making a decision about what else to do.
I found the idea of change really scary and Matt helped me work through this. He also took me through an invaluable process to generate ideas and help me explore realistic options.
Matt was clearly invested in my career change as much as I was and was an essential support. He also has heaps of knowledge and experience around career change which he shares generously. I think the fact he was a lawyer who successfully changed career himself also meant he got where I was coming from."
I'm thrilled to now be in a new career I love, which is a much better fit for me and the lifestyle I want going forward."
Sarah, Private Client Lawyer, London
Jack was a 2.5 year PQE lawyer at Clifford Chance in Amsterdam who was looking to make his next career move. He wanted to determine which roles he would enjoy most and get clarity on his strengths and areas of development:
"As a lawyer with 2.5 years PQE, I felt ready to look into different career options within the law. I wanted a role which matched my profile as well as greater awareness of my strengths, what I enjoyed and what I perhaps needed to develop in order to succeed and be more fulfilled in a job. Coaching seemed to be a useful means of dissecting and working on this.
Matt's professional and unassuming demeanour coupled with his structured approach enabled me to really investigate freely and candidly what elicits my enthusiasm/passion, what I don't enjoy or find meaningful and what I needed to work on in order to derive greater satisfaction. As a consequence, I am now more self-aware, but, most importantly in my case, self-confident. Matt also provided very constructive and practical support in looking at my CV, sample cover letters and LinkedIn profile to ensure I was presenting myself in the best possible light.
In terms of tangible outcomes, I applied for a number of jobs during our coaching sessions and progressed to final rounds in interviews for a number of the largest financial institutions. I also secured a number of firm offers. I am now very happy to be in my dream job working on fulfilling assignments and realising my full potential. This was certainly made possible with Matt's support and focus. The coaching was a very rewarding experience in my case and I recommend him most highly."
Jack Parker, Legal Counsel, Bank of England
James was a family law barrister who, despite building a strong practice, was unhappy and wanted to explore his options. We examined options both within law and out of law and identified some viable alternatives for him to choose from.
"I was finding the pressures of being a barrister harder and harder to justify to myself. So I reached out to Matt for an initial call to discuss his career change coaching programme.
It was soon obvious Matt is an expert in the field of lawyer career change and was a great support.
Matt guided me through a series of steps that led me to identify some realistic alternative career options.
I'm thrilled to have made a change and feel lighter because of it. I'm so pleased I found Matt to hold my hand through it all!"
James, Family Barrister, Manchester
Laura, a senior employment lawyer, sought some interview coaching for an important upcoming interview.
"I contacted Matt as I was looking for help with interviews, having not had an interview in 9 years. I chose Matt because of his background as a lawyer. This was definitely the right decision.
Prior to our session, Matt sent me interview prep guidance, which helped me with an imminent interview I had. During our coaching session for a second role, Matt had broken down the job description to help me focus on what the employer was looking for at the interview. I gave Matt examples of my experience, and he helped me understand what would/would not be helpful for that specific role.
The outcome of the session was that I decided to accept the first role I interviewed for; Matt's detailed breakdown of the job description for the second role made me realise what I wanted from a job.
Thanks Matt, your session was definitely worthwhile and the interview prep guidance definitely helped with my success in the first interview."
Laura, Senior Solicitor, London
Joanna was a senior commercial disputes solicitor who wanted to explore her options within and outside of law. The coaching process enabled her to get clear on what she wanted from the next stage of her career and supported her in carving out a great position away from the practising side of law:
"After 15 years as a litigation solicitor, I was looking for a change of role and a new challenge.
Matt helped me to examine what I really wanted from my job, and also to recognise what I had to offer in a new field. With his help and support, I was able to secure a job working for the same employer in a project management role. This is exactly the field I was interested in, and offers me the challenge that I want alongside the balance that I need.
Working with Matt gave me the time, space and confidence to consider my requirements, skills and options and ultimately to make the right choice for me."
Joanna Bromhead, Senior Lawyer, Dickinson Dees
Ben was 15 years' PQE when he decided it was finally time to make a change to his career, despite having been extremely successful as a lawyer.
"I had been burying my head in the sand for a year or two before I contacted Matt. I was stressed and no longer enjoying being a lawyer as much as I once had.
Starting the career coaching programme was a commitment to myself not to settle anymore.
Matt's coaching had the perfect balance of structure, guidance and flexibility. It was always tailored specifically to my needs and where I found myself at different points in my career change journey.
I had confidence in Matt given his experience working with lawyers on career change and given his own background of changing careers.
Working through the career coaching process was enjoyable and challenging in equal measure. I'm not sure I would have made it to where I am without it. I love my new career path and have lots of energy for my work again."
Ben M, Corporate Lawyer, London
I worked with Simon when he was working at DWF & planning a significant career change into lecturing & social enterprise. He had this to say about my coaching programme:
"Throughout my career as a lawyer I have worked with a number of executive coaches so I knew that coaching could be an effective personal development tool. However, when I engaged Matt as my coach the true power of coaching was really unlocked for me.
Matt was open, professional, empathic and organised – his non-judgmental style really forced me to seek answers /solutions to challenges I thought I did not know the answer to, which is where the real power of coaching lies for me, finding the answers for yourself.
I made significant improvements in the areas I wanted to focus on and I put that down to Matt and his coaching style. Matt’s experience as a lawyer also helped contextualise our discussions and enabled me get to the issues more quickly.
As a personal and professional development tool, I found Matt’s coaching the most effective process in my 20 plus years in the law. Highly recommended."
Simon Price, DWF
Duncan had recently become head of department for a regional office of a leading national law firm. He was keen to explore the benefits that executive coaching could provide in a challenging new role and we worked together over a 6 month period. He had this to say:
"Matt’s approach has unlocked my thoughts on a range of issues which are important to the role. Together we have explored areas which I knew needed attention, and which were taking me out of my comfort zone, and areas where I was confident but have been able to develop.
My experience of a number of issues and situations has been taken apart, investigated and put back together with pro-active strategies for addressing particular concerns or areas of development, allowing me to turn them into positive opportunities. Those strategies have been reviewed and developed during our time together.
The process has allowed me to become confident in areas where I was not, and to challenge my perceptions and those of others, which has been particularly useful.
Being able to spend 2 hours each month in an environment which gives me the freedom to explore my inner self has been liberating, inspiring and very enjoyable. The fact that Matt understands the issues we discuss, both because of his experience as a lawyer, and because of his questions, facilitates the freedom to explore issues, and to expand my focus, making the most of what is proving to be a very useful opportunity to concentrate on myself.
Rather than worrying about particular issues, I now find myself analysing situations in the way I do with Matt, coming up with strategies to challenge and develop my approach."
Duncan Hope, Partner, Irwin Mitchell
Rachel was a senior barrister who came to coaching after several years out as a full-time mum. She was seeking to return back into the work place & balance this with family life. She had this to say:
"Having never had coaching before I was unsure of how beneficial it would be. However, having been away from work for a number of years due to family commitments I felt very unfocused and at a loss as to how to return and indeed what form of work to return to.
A friend suggested coaching and I engaged Matt as I felt his legal background would give him some context for our work together.
When I started the sessions I had barely any focus and low confidence. However, with Matt's assistance in helping me to work through the challenges I was facing (some real and some perceived) I found that focus and crucially the confidence that I was lacking.
If you want a coach that will tell you what to do and what to think then Matt's style will not suit. His strength is in giving you the space and direction to answer your questions for yourself.
After only 3 sessions I had a newfound enthusiasm and a real sense of direction. Soon after our last session I was offered a fantastic job opportunity, something I would not have thought possible before I started the coaching.
I then had 3 subsequent sessions to work on my confidence and these have also been hugely beneficial.
The investment of time and money has been very well worth it and the coaching has been of huge benefit to me in my return to the legal profession. I can highly recommend Matt and his coaching style."
Rachel, Senior Barrister
Reshma is an international commercial lawyer in the Middle East who I initially helped to relaunch her CV. This work led to her to take up my career coaching programme to help her explore her career options, create a robust career plan and then secure a new role via the hidden job market. She had this to say:
"I approached Matt for some coaching with regards to improving my CV so that I can start making applications for a role as an associate lawyer. I feel that Matt’s services are unique as he has thought through every element of a CV and each element’s practical purpose for a reader and he imparts that understanding generously.
The process has enabled me to discover that I have plenty of achievements to talk about. It was interesting to develop the understanding that it is important to be guided by the purpose of my CV.
We worked together to focus on marketing my experience and skills so that they are impactful and highlight my achievements as opposed to just writing out a description of my work without tangible evidence like I had done on my previous CV.
Matt’s patient, professional and methodical approach enabled me to produce a CV with much more value and I would highly recommend his services.”
Reshma, International Commercial Lawyer, Saudi Arabia
Katrina initially opted for my Legal CV Review & Relaunch Service to help prepare for her newly qualified job search campaign. We also had a further strategy session to develop a winning job search plan. This resulted in her finding her dream role outside of the traditional advertised vacancy route. She had this to say:
"When I contacted Matt I was coming to the end of my training contract. I wanted to qualify into a niche area of law and was unsure how to best find a role.
Matt helped me develop a really strong CV and coached me on how to approach people in the area about the possibility of a role.
As a direct result of the methods he suggested, I secured a fantastic (unadvertised) role with one of the top firms for my area.”
Katrina, Commercial Solicitor, London
Becky was unhappy in her work, which was taking its toll on her health and home life. We worked together to explore alternative career options, culminating in a change to a more suitable career path.
"Matt helped me to see that I had options when I felt stuck and was really effective at challenging my limiting beliefs about myself and what I could achieve.
He helped me to see that there were a vast array of opportunities out there and this gave me hope whilst at a difficult juncture in my career.”
Becky, Commercial Solicitor
Freddie was facing an interview with a leading national firm & was keen to learn how to present himself for maximum impact. He had this to say:
"The one-to-one interview coaching was vital to gaining specific feedback on my performance and I was impressed with Matt’s ability to develop the strongest parts of my delivery. The coaching was key in giving me the confidence and preparation to perform well at interview and, ultimately, receive an offer."
Freddie, London
Francesca was a junior lawyer who came for some coaching on specific development areas, including greater confidence around public speaking. She had this to say:
"I was keen to use this transition to re-evaluate my goals and focus on some key career development areas. Matt’s approach to coaching really helped me to answer my own questions on how I wanted my career to progress and how I was going to go about doing this.
Public speaking was a particular development area that I had asked Matt to focus on, and by breaking down my experiences and working with him to come up with solutions to improve I was able to walk into situations that I had once avoided with much more confidence.”
Francesca Kinsella, Solicitor, DWF
Want To Explore How Coaching Can Help You Too?
Book a FREE 30 Minute Consultation
The next step is to determine whether we are a good fit for your career or executive coaching.
To book a free 30-minute consultation call (phone or Zoom) complete the form & click the "Book Your FREE Consultation" button
