Ava was an experienced certified accountant. Her long-term career ambition was to run for a leadership role in the national organization representing the 75,000 members of her accounting specialty. Not only was Ava hoping to advance her career through a leadership role, but she wanted to bring greater diversity to an organization traditionally made up of white males in their 50s and older. Ava contacted Anna to request a proposal for coaching on communication, navigating political terrain, and image consulting. However, Ava initially chose to hire one of Anna’s competitors instead.
A year later, Ava got back in touch with Anna. She had lost the first election and was running again. She had two months to prepare before the next election and wanted Anna’s help this time. Anna knew that there wasn’t enough time before the election to tackle everything she’d identified for Ava in the original proposal, but they quickly got started. Ava lost the second election in a runoff—the results were extremely close. She came back to Anna the following year, at which point they worked together on Ava’s image, public speaking abilities, navigating the challenges of a politically homogenous organization, and projecting confidence about her goals.
The third time did the trick—Ava was elected president of the organization by a wide margin. Her moving speech blew the members away.
Ava has a new goal: to become a CFO in the private sector. She is working with Anna currently as an advisor as she navigates a new set of political challenges in a corporate setting. Anna encourages Ava to be certain of what she wants, understand the risks, and pursue her desired outcomes.