The coaching process often involves expanding on concepts from one session to the next. I’ve been working with a leader named Naomi, who’s been at a crossroads in her personal and professional life. We used the concept of “The Quiet Compass” in the previous coaching session to prompt her to reconsider how she has been orienting herself in her life.
A few weeks after our last session, Naomi and I met again. This time, her energy was more focused.
“I’ve been thinking a lot about the compass,” she said. “About how it doesn’t show the whole path and just points north.”
I nodded. “Have you had any moments where you felt yourself feeling guided by it?”
She paused. “Yes, and they’ve surprised me. It hasn’t been some grand epiphany. It usually shows up as a person I keep thinking about, or an idea I can’t seem to shake. It’s subtle, but it’s there.”
That was her Quiet Compass beginning to speak.
I explained that the compass rarely shouts, and it usually doesn’t lay out a ten-year plan. But it does speak softly, sometimes as peace, discomfort, or as a tug toward something before you understand it.
“We live in a very noisy world,” I said, “and learning to trust that whisper might be one of the most courageous things you can do as a leader.”
We did the “Whisper Exercise”. I asked her to take a deep breath. Then I asked three questions:
- What is quietly calling you right now?
- What are you pretending not to hear?
- What would you do if you trusted that whisper?
“What’s calling me is the work I used to do mentoring women in the early stages of their careers,” she said once she opened her eyes. “I keep coming back to it.”
“What are you pretending not to hear?” I asked
She exhaled, and I could see her physically release tension in her shoulders. “That I’m ready to let go of a part of my current role that no longer fits. I’ve been holding onto it out of obligation, but it’s draining me.”
Then I asked. “And if you trusted that whisper?”
“I’d start shifting my time. I’d have a conversation with my boss about restructuring part of my role. And I’d finally start that mentoring group I’ve been thinking about for years.”
That was the moment her compass turned from idea to action.
She left the session with something we often don’t get: clarity. With that clarity came the courage to take the first step.
Clarity is something that starts to collect over time. When you pause to listen, your direction will come to you clearer than it ever has before.
That’s the heart of the Quiet Compass. It’s about learning to trust your direction, one step at a time.