Finding The Key To Help Each Client Unlock Their Limitless Potential ‒Interview With Susan Barbee

Susan Barbee is a certified leadership development and career coach – and former HR pro. After a long run in publishing, she found herself needing to jump-start a new career in a field with a brighter outlook. Hiring a career coach empowered her transformation into a completely new role as an HR consultant while igniting her dedication to guide professionals to unlock their potential and fuel sustainable growth. She is founder of GrowForward Coaching + Consulting, a boutique practice that builds capacity and support through transformative coaching, facilitation, career management, and leadership development services. Her clients include emerging- to mid-career professionals in transition, new and mid-career managers, and senior executives. Susan is also a frequent workshop presenter, group facilitator, panel participant and podcast guest. Her mission: To open pathways to growth for professionals at every stage in their career.

Susan Barbee, CPC, CCSP, PHR, Leadership Development & Career Coach

Introduce yourself!

I love to live a life of balance, and work hard to make sure I’m also living easy. What this looks like is doing the work I love to do (coaching) while making sure I recharge and refuel. Time for gardening, breathing, walking, reading, and more breathing. Time for family, friends, work and play. That’s a perfect way to bring joy to the day and presence to my clients--making sure I am showing up and bringing my full self to listen carefully and intuitively. What is your business name and how do you help your clients?

My business--GrowForward Coaching + Consulting--got its name from my mission: opening pathways for professional growth through leadership development and career coaching.

Clients tell me they most value how I work from the inside out to help them uncover what’s holding them back, gain clarity on the core value they offer, and create a vision and strategy to achieve what they want. Taking a holistic approach enables clients to tap into what’s most meaningful and valuable in their lives to reach greater satisfaction overall--often by making small changes that bring big impact.

What kind of audience do you target your business towards?

People who find and hire me are mostly emerging, mid- and senior-level leaders who want to better understand and tap into their strengths and core success factors. Their true pursuit? Most often, it starts with seeking greater confidence (and less “Imposter Syndrome”). The end-goal? More influence; often that next-level role.

My services also are targeted to corporate clients. Often, companies are looking to complement traditional leadership development efforts with a more customized approach to help leaders “grow human” and embrace new perceptions and behaviors. We co-design a strategy for each individual or team to feel more successful and reach higher performance levels, leading to more powerful engagement and productivity.

What is your work inspired by?

Finding the key to help each client unlock their limitless potential.

Tell us about your greatest career achievement so far.

I’m proudest of how I’ve pushed beyond perceived limits to redefine, reframe and reinvent my career over the course of three big transformations. I believe this lived experience has led to one of my biggest fortes – guiding others to take the helm through a process of positive change, which often involves letting go and embracing a new vision of what they want next.

My career-transformation journey started early; after launching a bargain-shopping business, I wrote a book and landed a job in publishing. From here I took a big leap from people management to human resource management, and after seven years, it seemed natural to tap into these experiences and pivot to coaching humans. Today, I am the person I’ve spent a life becoming: a coach partnering with people who just want to find more satisfaction and well-being.

Tell us about a pivotal moment in your life that brought you to where you are today.

After a long run in publishing, I needed to jump-start a new career in a field with a brighter outlook. Hiring a career coach was that pivotal moment empowering a transformation into a completely new role and field – a giant leap that took all the confidence I could muster. This pivotal moment eventually ignited my dedication to doing what I’m doing today: helping professionals unlock their potential and fuel growth.

Visit my website and submit a question from the Connect page; send an email; or schedule time on my calendar.

Follow me on LinkedIn for more info!

Read more from Susan!