by Sharael Kolberg, Staff Writer, California Business Journal
“If you can’t get people to follow you, it doesn’t matter what your title is. You need to be the kind of leader people want to work with, not have to work with. My clients become the leaders that others want to follow.”
Nancy Steiger uses, what she calls, ‘Nancyisms’ to inspire change in the next generation of leaders through leadership development, personal career development, mission, vision and values development.
“In my opinion, my generation of leaders hasn’t done a great job of empowering the next generation for what’s ahead of them,” she says. “I try to inspire the next generation with the knowledge, skills, and experience to tackle the challenging problems that lay in front of them.”
Example:
• “Knowledge is not enough to change behavior.”
• “Your calendar and checkbook is all I need to see to understand your values.”
• “People will not remember what you say or do, but they will remember how you make them feel.”
• “Leadership is about influence more than power.”
No matter what stage someone is at in his or her career, it’s imperative to find the “why” that got someone to where they are and is “driving them to where they want to go,” Steiger says.
With 30+ years of executive experience, including 25 years of healthcare leadership, Steiger makes a profound impact as an Executive Coach’ she helps individuals who are unsure of which career to pursue and who want to transition to a new career — or jump up the corporate ladder.
“I help them become clear on their mission, vision, and values that lead them to success. Finding your ‘why’ really matters. The mission is the ‘why,’ the roots. The vision is the ‘where,’ the wings. Values are about the behavior and are intricate in creating culture.”
One of the first step in Steiger’s program is to find your why, your mission. Her sessions focus on transitional coaching for newly promoted leaders, relational coaching for leaders faced with interpersonal conflicts, and performance coaching to help leaders reach higher potential for themselves and their teams.
Leaders, she says, have to be effective at “inspiring followership.”
“If you can’t get people to follow you, it doesn’t matter what your title is. You need to be the kind of leader people want to work with, not have to work with. My clients become the leaders that others want to follow.” — Nancy Steiger
For Personal Career Development, Steiger uncovers clients’ true purpose and passion, and establishes goals toward professional success and personal happiness, unlock their potential and break through barriers holding them back at work and at home.
“I also motivate clients to improve their health and start thinking about their next job. What is the best next job? What’s their perfect North Star? If you didn’t have to work, what would you do? Switching for money is not a good idea. I assist them with getting clarity and learning how to measure success.”
Through a combination of career planning, leadership development, coaching and mentoring, “I equip client with the skills required to reach their highest potential by engraining the knowledge, skills, behavior and self-awareness to lead generative, sustainable change and endurance for years to come.”
Steiger’s Mission Success program provides those in a leadership role with tools to ramp up operational performance and clinical excellence. She teaches executives how to uphold the vision of their company, set the course for how to manage the company, and to create a culture of respect and care within the company.
Some of the most common problems leaders possess is listening and interpersonal relations. “Listening is an undervalued skill — listening with the intent to truly understand – and show how much you care.”
“You can’t manage everything around you, but you can manage your response and your reaction. What you see depends on where you stand. I coach a lot of people on seeing others’ points of view.” — Nancy Steiger
One of the most impactful tools Steiger provides is teaching clients to manage their calendar. Sounds a little silly, huh? Not so. What she does is help clients “avoid being victims to their calendar.”
“People need to manage their energy, not just their time and have a cadence to their calendar. If you don’t manage your calendar, it manages you. We all know that there are limitations to what you can manage with your calendar, which is not an excuse for not managing the parts that you can.”
The biggest challenge as an Executive Coach, Steiger says, is getting people to actually do the work that needs to be done to get them where they want to be. “If you are not achieving what you want to achieve, you have to find the time, space, and money to invest in coaching and be willing to do the work. You will find more happiness and be more effective.”
Her favorite clients are those who are highly motivated. “I love watching people get the ‘ahas.’ It’s like watching a flower bloom.”
Steiger typically works with clients twice a month for an hour, for about four to six months. She says clients typically see results in the first couple of weeks and by week four they feel empowered, not stuck.
As for Steiger’s perspective on the state of the Executive Coaching industry, she says that it has to be relevant and respond to specific industries. With regards to the future of the healthcare industry, she reflects on the enormous impact COVID has made.
“The cost of healthcare is intolerable,” she concludes. “Tele-medicine and wearables will change how healthcare is delivered. We have to figure out how to bring the cost down, which means restructuring everything from strategy and finance to operations. We need to re-create a future that’s more accessible to everyone.”
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This article was edited and published by Rick Weinberg, California Business Journal’s Founder, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief. Click here for Rick Weinberg’s biography.