Meet Gayle Tong
Direct, no nonsense and action focused - that’s Gayle, who we’re delighted to have as part of the Motion team. She believes you can achieve pretty much anything you want if you put your mind to it
And she brings all her retail and learning and development experience to bear when she’s supporting her clients to achieve their goals.
I asked Gayle what’s been going on in her busy schedule recently.
1. So, what are you up to this week?
This week has been a real exciting mix of activities. I’ve just started working with a new client and we have looked at her Colour profiling which includes her behavioural strengths and how she reacts in different situations, which is always a really powerful way to raise self-awareness. I’ve facilitated a senior leadership team development session where I am working with the team to help them leverage their strengths to become a great team. I delivered a virtual session about confidence at a networking event for over 70 business owners, which was great. Then I’ve done some networking with other Motion coaches where we share and learn from each other.
2. What’s the most exciting project you’re working on at the moment?
Not projects as such, but every single client of mine is completely different but with quite similar goals they want to achieve. This makes every coaching session exciting for me, because you don’t know what they are going to bring to the session.
One of my clients is working on her own personal branding and we have been looking at her values to help shape that. I did this exercise recently and it was really powerful – it proving to be powerful for her too, she can see how and why she does things and how her values determine decisions in her business and her personal brand too.
With another client we are working on her confidence in her role and we have devised a confidence ladder, so she can confidently climb each rung at a time, making everything feeling less overwhelming.
3. How are you finding your clients are coping at the moment?
It’s a real mixture out there. One of my clients has seen her business improve and prosper over lockdown with investors – interestingly she stopped coaching because she wanted to do it face to face and couldn’t cope with any more zoom meetings.
Some of my corporate clients are battling with working from home, furlough and all the challenges that have presented themselves with the current situation. Others are carrying on in a near normal way focusing on what they can control and working on their development.
It feels that now we have a roadmap out of the pandemic (fingers crossed) people are starting to think more about the future and I can hear my clients talking about this, discussing & starting to work through next steps.
4. How do you help them?
I’ve found that during COVID sessions have been more listening and the client always feels so much better once they’ve talked about everything. They know I’ll listen and ask some powerful questions when appropriate and they have said it’s given them a sense of normality in the crazy world we are in right now. I have also been aware of what role I can play for them, do they want a coach / an opinion / someone to share ideas with, so I always tell my clients that I’m happy to take off my coaching hat if they want me to, they just have to be clear with me.
5. Tell us a bit about your own background and experience
I started out in retail management and then moved in to retail training which finally became Learning & Development which was where I found my passion for coaching. I always loved watching people in my team develop and grow and watching their confidence soar. Coaching enabled me to do this in a more formal way, whilst learning lots about me and the type of coach I am. I’ve also recently qualified as an NLP Practitioner; I found I’d been employing many of the practices without the label of NLP so it was great to contextualise the processes and methods.
6. How do you draw upon it when coaching?
My retail background definitely helps me to be an action-focused coach and often that is at pace for my clients who aren’t always getting the results they want. Because I’ve interacted with lots of different people at different levels I am able to be relatable to them because I know and can empathise with what they are feeling and going through. I’m naturally a curious person, (some might say nosey), and this helps me to discover the truth and what’s really happening for the client.
7. How would you describe your coaching style?
My coaching style is direct, I’m not fluffy, I want to know what you are going to do and when you are going do it. I’ll challenge you, hold you accountable and I will be your biggest cheerleader – right behind you pushing you forward. I’d describe myself as a thinking partner; often you know the answers you need support to unpick them and put them into order. As a coach this is a role I play.
8. What tips do you have for executives who are struggling with Time Management?
Ask yourself what’s truly important to focus on at the moment, what is going to have the biggest positive impact on the people around me? Make the time to do the things you don’t want to because you’ll feel better for it. Prioritise – sounds easy I know but once you know what they are things will become clearer. If you are finding it hard to do this and don’t know where to start, grab a piece of paper and a pen then set a timer on your phone for 15 mins. Write down everything that you are putting off and when the timer goes off, pick one thing from the list and go and do it straight away.
9. How about workload and mental wellbeing?
Create boundaries, I am finding at the moment they have become really blurred between work and home. Agree them and stick to them no matter what. One that worked for me was finishing work, logging off and enjoying the evening together – it’s unlikely that if you were commuting you’d continue working when you got home so don’t feel the pressure to do it because you are working from home. Find things to distract you so you can switch off
Give yourself a break and accept that it’s okay, we are only human after all and it’s tough out there right now. What can you do that will make you feel good? A walk in the fresh air, a run, a drive, do it for you. Of course if you are really struggling there is support out there, don’t be afraid to ask.
10. How do you manage your own mental wellbeing?
Boundaries have worked really well in our house, they also help you to switch off from the day. I run 3 times a week and aim to go for a walk in the fresh air by the sea on the other days. Even if it’s just 20 mins walk it’s away from the screen, Zoom and social media. I read – but not text books – something that lets you truly escape. In the first lockdown I re-read every Harry Potter book, it was great escapism and helped to break the working day and evening too. I have a great group of cheerleaders around me too that I know I can call if I need a pick me up or just a chat.
11. What are you looking forward to most this year?
I’ve missed my family over the last year, they all live in Lincolnshire so with all the restrictions, it’s been a whole year since we’ve seen most of them. And being able to travel again. We love travel in our house, holidays and time away are really important to us – another thing that helps with mental health and well being.
12. What’s the one secret you think everyone should be aware of?
I’m a big believer that you can be and can achieve pretty much anything you set your mind to. One of things I talk about with my clients is pulling up your big pants. For me over the last 2 years the power of the big pants has really pushed me out of my comfort zone. Even though everyone smiles at the thought of big pants and pulling them up – I’ve seen clients whole physical being change when they’ve started to talk about them and how they’ve helped. So next time you need to make a tough decision or feel something is holding you back pull up your big pants, just like a hero wears a cape, and just do it. Whether you think you can or you think you can’t you are usually right!