Justin Bridge
Based in South East Asia Justin Bridge, a New Zealander, has consulted to, coached and trained leaders in organisations all over the world.
See Justin's full biography>
How did you first get into coaching?
I had recently made the jump from the world of a management consultant to that of a self-employed trainer and facilitator. My initial goal was to specialise in designing and delivering leadership development programmes. Then a former MBA colleague suggested that if I became a certified executive coach it would make me a significantly better trainer and consultant. I took this advice and have found it to be absolutely true.
How would you describe your coaching approach?
I'm quite pragmatic when it comes to coaching. I like to think I focus on helping the client move from where they are to where they want to be without getting too caught up in the process. After all, coaching is about the client and not the coach. My old mentor, a wonderful American lady (and former President of the International Coaching Federation) called Margaret Krigbaum once said to me "Tools and models are all very well but most of the time they get in the way of what a coach should really be doing: listening." I try to hold onto this as the most basic tenet of my coaching approach.
What are your areas of specialism?
The whole idea of a coach is that he or she can coach a client through almost any aspect of their work or life. This kind of negates the need for a specialism. Despite this I love leadership and do my best work helping clients bring their unique leadership talents to fruition. I first saw the power of leadership when I was a young manager 15 years ago. What fascinated me was the fact that people desperately want to be led (whether they know it or not). This gives the leader tremendous power and awesome responsibility. It also made me realise that if I really want to make a difference to people's lives and businesses I must focus on the leader. That's what I do.
What do you enjoy about coaching?
Like most coaches I enjoy it when a client makes a real breakthrough in his or her understanding of themselves or an issue that has been troubling them for years. More than anything, though, I love the sense of ‘letting go' (in a coaching session) of my urge to try and control or ‘cure' an individual, and allowing myself to hear only the client's desire to fulfil their potential.
What kinds of people in what roles have you coached before?
I tend to coach mostly at senior levels these days. My most ‘natural' fit with clients seems to be executives who have recently made or are about to make the transition from a senior functional role into a major leadership role. Most of these individuals have succeeded by being experts in a functional field. But they understand that what got them ‘here' won't necessarily get them ‘there'. They want and need support to understand what being a leader really means for them.
“Today [in which Justin facilitated a leadership development session with the senior leadership team] was an awesome day for me and a great “climax” for this first phase of my leadership coaching.
Very little, if any of this would have been possible if not for your great coaching.
You are a real master and I am very grateful to you!”
Serge Ozerov
Chief Executive Officer
Delta-Credit Bank (Russia)
