10 Reasons to Engage with an Executive Coach

A few years into a senior role at Google, a more senior colleague pulled me aside after a meeting.

"You're the smartest person in that room," she said. "But you're not landing the way you think you are."

That sentence stayed with me for a long time. Not only because it stung (it really really did) but because I knew she was right, and I had no idea what to do about it. I had the skills, the track record, the ambition. What I didn't have was anyone who could help me see myself, help illuminate my blindspots clearly, and do something about what they saw. 

That's what a good executive coach does. And for most of the leaders I work with now, the decision to seek one out came not from a moment of crisis, but from a quieter recognition: something isn't working as well as I'd like it to, and I can't figure it out alone.

The challenge is that the signs aren't always obvious. High performers especially tend to rationalize, push through, or attribute their discomfort to external circumstances. So here are 10 signs — drawn from years of coaching senior leaders globally — that it might be time.

1. You're Plateauing Despite Strong Performance

You're good at your job. Your results speak for themselves. And yet something isn't moving — a promotion that keeps not happening, a ceiling you keep bumping against, a sense that the next level is visible but somehow out of reach.

This is one of the most common situations I encounter. The skills and behaviors that got someone to where they are often aren't the same ones that will take them further. Leadership at senior levels requires a different kind of operating — more ambiguity, more influence without authority, more visibility. A coach helps you identify what's actually holding you back, rather than working harder at things that aren't the problem.

According to MetrixGlobal, 77% of executives said coaching had a significant impact on at least one major business metric. The ceiling is often moveable — just not through effort alone.

2. The Same Pattern Keeps Showing Up

You've noticed it. Maybe others have too. You keep ending up in the same conflict with stakeholders. You keep avoiding the same type of conversation. You keep getting the same feedback, year after year, on your 360.

Patterns that repeat despite awareness of them are almost never a knowledge problem. You know what you should be doing. And still, under pressure, the old behavior kicks in. That gap between knowing and doing is where coaching lives — and it's what no training program, book, or podcast can fully address. It requires someone who can hold up a mirror over time, in real conditions, with real stakes.

3. A Big Transition Is on the Horizon

A new role. A step up to the executive level. A move from individual contributor to people manager. A company transition — merger, acquisition, restructure. A shift from corporate to founding your own business.

Transitions are the highest-leverage moments for coaching — and also the highest-risk ones. Research consistently shows that leaders who navigate transitions with structured support perform significantly better and settle into new roles faster than those who go it alone. The window when you're new to something is also the window when you're most open to changing how you operate. That combination is too valuable to waste.

If a major transition is coming — or recently happened — it's worth thinking seriously about investing in coaching now, not after things have gone sideways.

4. Honest Feedback Has Dried Up

This one is subtle, and it's particularly common the higher someone rises.

At a certain level, the people around you stop telling you the hard things. Your team is cautious. Your peers are political. Your manager is managing upward and doesn't always have the bandwidth to develop you. And so you find yourself operating in a kind of feedback vacuum — praised when things go well, not told what's actually getting in the way.

A good executive coach provides the kind of honest, direct, confidential feedback that almost nobody else in your professional life can give you. Not because they're paid to be contrarian, but because they have no agenda except your development. That is rarer than it sounds.

5. You Feel Isolated at the Top

Leadership at senior levels can be profoundly lonely. The decisions you're carrying can't always be shared. Vulnerability feels risky. And the people you might naturally turn to — your team, your peers, even friends — either don't have the context to help or have a stake in the outcome.

Gallup's 2025 data showed that global manager engagement dropped from 30% to 27% in a single year — contributing to an estimated $438 billion productivity hit globally. Leaders who feel unsupported don't just suffer personally. It ripples.

A coaching relationship gives you a genuinely confidential space to think out loud, surface what you're actually worried about, and pressure-test your thinking without political consequence. For many senior leaders, it's the only space of its kind.

6. Impostor Syndrome Is Getting Louder Under Pressure

High-stakes presentations. A new seat at the table. A room full of people who seem more certain than you feel. The inner voice that says I don't really belong here getting louder exactly when you need it to be quiet.

Research suggests that up to 70% of people experience impostor syndrome at some point in their career — including surgeons, CEOs, and people who look, from the outside, like they have it completely together. The problem isn't the feeling. The problem is when it starts driving decisions: staying quiet in meetings, not going for the role, shrinking in the room.

Coaching helps you understand where that voice comes from, separate it from reality, and build the kind of grounded confidence that doesn't depend on the absence of self-doubt.

7. Your Communication Isn't Landing the Way You Intend

You know what you mean. But somehow, in the room, it doesn't come across that way. Your directness reads as abrasive. Your thoroughness reads as micromanagement. Your caution reads as indecision. You leave meetings unsure whether you influenced anyone.

Executive communication — the ability to command attention, build trust, and move people — is one of the most requested areas of focus in the coaching work I do. And it's almost impossible to develop in isolation, because you can't see yourself the way others do. A coach can. And they can help you make targeted, specific adjustments that actually shift how you're perceived — without asking you to become someone else.

8. You Know What to Do But Can't Make Yourself Do It

The difficult conversation you keep postponing. The delegation you keep pulling back. The strategic work you keep deprioritizing in favor of the operational. The boundary you keep meaning to set.

This isn't laziness. It's almost never laziness. It's usually something deeper: fear of conflict, identity wrapped up in being the expert, discomfort with being seen to be failing or not coping. Coaching creates the accountability and the insight to actually close the gap between what you know and what you do — consistently, over time, under pressure.

9. You're Carrying More Than Your Role

You're the go-to person. The one who everyone brings their problems to. The one who steps in when things fall apart. The one who's been absorbing the dysfunction of the team or organization without anyone noticing the cost.

This pattern is particularly common among high-performing women and leaders from underrepresented backgrounds — people who have learned to over-deliver as a strategy for survival and have never quite unlearned it. Left unchecked, it leads to burnout, resentment, and a leadership style built on unsustainable personal sacrifice. Coaching helps you examine why the pattern exists, what it's protecting, and what a healthier version of high performance actually looks like for you.

10. You're Making a Decision That Will Define the Next Chapter

Not every coaching engagement is about fixing something. Some of the most valuable work I do with clients happens when things are actually going well — but someone is standing at a genuine fork in the road.

Stay or leave. Build or join. Lead from the front or step back. Take the risk or protect what you have.

These decisions deserve more than a pros and cons list. They deserve structured, honest reflection — ideally with someone who can ask the questions you haven't thought to ask yourself, and who won't push you toward the answer that's convenient for them. That's coaching at its most clarifying.

A Note on Timing to Engage with an Executive Coach

One thing I want to address directly: most people wait too long.

Coaching is most often sought after a crisis — a performance review gone wrong, a role lost, a team that's fallen apart. Those are valid moments to seek support. But the leaders who get the most from coaching are the ones who come in before the crisis, when there's still space to build, experiment, and grow without the pressure of urgency.

According to the International Association of Career Coaches, 99% of people who work with a coach report being satisfied or very satisfied — and 96% say they would repeat the process. The question isn't usually whether it's worth it. It's whether you're ready to invest the time and honesty it requires.

Frequently Asked Questions about Executive Coaching

How do I know if I need an executive coach or a mentor?

A mentor shares their experience and offers advice based on their own path. A coach helps you find your own answers. Mentoring is directional — someone telling you what worked for them. Coaching is reflective — someone helping you figure out what will work for you, given who you are and what you're navigating. Both are valuable, but they're not interchangeable.

If you're looking for someone to help you think, not just someone to tell you what they did, coaching is what you need.

Is executive coaching only for people who are struggling?

No — and this is one of the most persistent misconceptions. Some of the most impactful coaching happens with leaders who are performing well and want to grow further, navigate a transition, or make a high-stakes decision with more clarity. About one-third of Fortune 500 dcompanies now use executive coaching as a standard leadership development tool, not a remedial one.

How is executive coaching different from therapy?

Therapy typically focuses on healing — processing past experiences, mental health, emotional patterns rooted in earlier life. Coaching focuses on the present and future — performance, behavior, goals, decisions. A good coach will recognize if something is better addressed therapeutically and say so. The two can work well in parallel, but they're not the same thing and shouldn't be confused.

How long does it take to see results from executive coaching?

Many clients notice shifts in perspective within the first few sessions. Behavioral change — the kind that holds under pressure — typically takes longer. Most structured engagements run three to twelve months. At Leadrise Coaching, every engagement starts with clear goal-setting so that progress is tangible from the outset, not just felt at the end.

What should I look for when choosing an executive coach?

Look for formal accreditation from a recognized body — the International Coaching Federation (ICF) or the European Mentoring and Coaching Council (EMCC) are the gold standards. Beyond credentials, pay attention to whether they have real leadership experience in contexts relevant to yours, and whether you feel genuinely challenged — not just comforted — in your initial conversation. Chemistry matters, but so does the ability to tell you what you don't want to hear.

If You Recognized Yourself in Any of These

You don't need to have ticked all ten. One is enough.

The leaders who benefit most from coaching aren't the ones who have everything figured out. They're the ones who are honest enough to recognize what they don't, and intentional enough to do something about it.

Merve K. Hokamp is an ICF and EMCC accredited executive coach, former Google leader across ad sales, partnerships, Cloud and data divisions, and INSEAD MBA. She works with senior executives, founders, and high-potential leaders across Europe and globally through Leadrise Coaching & Consulting. She is also a certified LEGO® Serious Play facilitator and Venture Partner at Loyal VC.

Interested in exploring executive coaching for yourself or your company? Book a complimentary discovery call.