Are you ready to take on a leadership role?

How to prepare yourself for a leadership role so you can step into leadership with great confidence, communicate with presence and become the authentic woman leader you were meant to be.

Introducing an online coaching programme for women:

The OPAL Programme

On the Path to Authentic Leadership

Here's why the OPAL programme is important for women preparing for leadership...

Many women are faced with wanting to develop a leadership style that best reflects their more natural feminine gender base while still being seen as credible.

This issue of leadership style and “fit” is one of the main reasons women choose to not put themselves forward, or if they do, find that their new role is difficult and stressful. The demands of leadership require the ability to demonstrate confidence, self-assurance, decisiveness, and a strong focus on results.

As women managers move forward toward becoming future leaders, they need to have the ability to communicate a strong presence and be able to handle and initiate challenges with significant presentation and influencing abilities. It is critical that women learn to manage themselves and their messages so they project a strong presence while maintaining their authentic feminine preferences and characteristics.

The OPAL Programme addresses key concerns of women in corporate organisations as they prepare for that important leadership role.

Here's how the step by step teaching in the programme will help you. You'll be able to:

assess your own power base and discover the basis for your own personal authentic power

(so you will know exactly which situations lead you to feel powerful and powerless; understand where your authentic power lies and realise the benefits of accessing your own personal power)

remove the obstacles on your path to authentic leadership by overcoming the internal barriers in your head

(and switching your mindset from a negative one to a positive one will give you benefits in all areas of your life - not just your career)

synthesise the masculine/feminine energies in yourself and identify when you need to use each

(yes I do believe that there are major differences between most men and most women in style and context so let's move the discussion away from “better” and “worse” and look at valuing ALL of them and providing people with easy access to each)

develop a leadership presence so you are seen as a leader even before you get your leadership position

(let's examine exactly what “presence” looks like and how you can be seen as a leader even before you get your promotion)

reduce your stress levels

(by examining the effectiveness of your short term solutions to stress and laying down a strategy for dealing with stress long term)

discover the essential qualities of an authentic leader and draw up a plan for acquiring then

(including exploring the connection between authenticity, inspiration and leadership)

identify your biggest challenges in managing home/work integration more effectively and draw up an action plan for overcoming them

(hint: what you believe about your responsibilities as a wife/partner and as a mother will be critical here - as will the ability to say “no”)

examine your communication style and sharpen up its effectiveness so that your message is never mistaken

(and that means making sure your verbal and non-verbal messages are saying the same thing as well as being able to handle formal presentations)

So how does an online coaching programme work?

There are four parts to the programme:

1. The instruction - Modules will be posted online monthly in a secure Coaching Members Only website. You will be given instruction and teaching by a combination of video and audio presentations. There will also be handouts you can print out.



2. The online individual coaching - You will have a series of questions and exercises to work through. You will need to allow yourself a chunk of time to work through the questions. I suggest you set aside an hour in the first instance. Your answers will be posted online and seen only by me. I will respond to them and this is where the online coaching will be given. You will be able to see only the communication between yourself and me - not the responses of other participants.



3. The group coaching calls - Every month there will be a group coaching tele-class where women in the programme can interact directly with me in a live call and discuss particular queries and concerns they have. The timing of the calls will be such that women in different time zones will be able to access them at a reasonable time! However, it might not be possible for you to make every call so if you are unable to attend the session you'll be able to submit your questions beforehand and I will answer them on the call even if you aren't attending live. Each tele-class will be recorded and the recordings will be sent to all participants in the programme.



4. The Forum support - There will be a Forum set up so that participants in the OPAL Programme can "talk" to each other if they so wish and support each other in the programme.

An online coaching programme means that I can work with many of you personally, no matter where in the world you are, via your comments/questions and my responses and get to speak to many of you personally on the group coaching calls.

Here's a summary of what's covered in each module:

There are 8 modules divided into 3 areas. The first area - Exploring Concepts will be ideas and insights to help you to think about your own leadership style. The second area - Overcoming Obstacles will look at what might need to change in your thinking and in your life so that there is nothing that will hinder your progress into leadership. The third area - Taking Action will encourage you to be pro-active about your leadership presence and journey.

 

**** Plus there will be a special “mystery” module to complete the nine month programme ****

 

So let's look at what kinds of things we will be covering in the training.

Exploring Concepts Module 1 Concepts of Power the 4 types of external power accessing your authentic power attributes of people with personal power Module 4 Concepts of Masculine/Feminine Differences how to recognise communication differences are there masculine/feminine differences regarding moral reasoning? independence and intimacy differences between men and women Module 7 Developing Authenticity the link between authenticity and your purpose the link between authenticity, inspiration and leadership the qualities of an authentic, inspirational leader

Overcoming Obstacles Module 2 Removing Internal Barriers the main barriers which hold us back personal costs and personal payoffs of the internal barriers developing a new positive strategy Module 5 Managing the Home/Work Integration more effectively dealing with the guilt trip tried and tested time tips the key to it all - being able to say “no” Module 8 Thriving Instead of Surviving (a stress strategy that works) checking your vulnerability to stress and counting the cost short term strategies which work - and which don't work easy tips and a long term strategy

Take Action Module 3 Stand Up and Speak Out getting the non-verbals right easy ways to make great presentations key assertiveness skills and easy ways to acquire them Module 6 The Positive Path to Promotion dealing with the culture trap and the role pressures a career strategy checklist the definitive action plan for the successful professional woman Module 9 Mystery Module!

Who are the women who would most benefit from the OPAL programme?

You will benefit from this programme if:

• you have recently been promoted into a leadership position
• you are keen to progress into a leadership position
• you are reluctant to adopt a masculine style and want to develop your own unique leadership voice
• you want to increase your self confidence to match your competence and contribute fully to organisational success
• you are preparing for leadership and need to be able to develop your own personal power so you can become an inspirational leader

The OPAL programme can help you develop your own unique leadership style, raise your confidence levels and help you to access and work from your authentic power base.

So why am I qualified to be your mentor and coach?

Well, I have been working with women in the corporate world at all levels for the last 25 years. It's my favourite work!! But in case you haven't worked with me before, let me share with you some thoughts from a few people who have seen at first hand the impact of the material I want to share with you...

Personal Testimonials

So what will you be investing in your leadership journey?

I have been committed to women’s development for all of my professional life. But the numbers of women I can take for individual coaching are limited - and the cost of a one hour coaching session is €400. By offering an online coaching programme for individuals and including a monthly group call I can still work with you personally for a fraction of that price.

Your investment in the 9 month programme is:

€195 per month for nine months

OR

€1500 for the whole programme if you want to pay for the whole programme upfront (saving €255)

This programme is launching in May 2012 and there will only be 50 places available. If you would like to be informed ahead of the launch date to give you the chance to be one of the 50, please complete the form on this page and in return I will send you a FREE report on CAREER PARAMETERS. The report will help you to think through the important issues regarding personal ethics, work values and personal boundaries as you plan your next career move. If you have any queries about the OPAL programme feel free to contact me at geraldine@powerfulwoman.net.

You can download the report on CAREER PARAMETERS right now and it’s FREE. Just fill in your first name and email address and watch for the email with the link to the download. First Name: Email: Don't worry -- your email address will never be rented, traded or sold. Your complete confidentiality is guaranteed.