Career Coaching
Kate James is a career coach in Melbourne, working with women for over 20 years. She specialises in offering career coaching to female leaders and business owners to improve confidence, find direction, overcome imposter syndrome and perfectionism and discover their unique values and strengths.
- Build your career confidence and self-belief
- Find your career direction
- Understand your unique skills and strengths
- Overcome ‘imposter syndrome’
- Identify and overcome your self-limiting beliefs
- Feel a greater sense of meaning and purpose in your career
- Discover your unique leadership style
- Find a side-project that boosts your confidence
- Transition into your own creative or wellness startup
- Create more balance and contentment in your life
Who Kate works with
Kate’s career coaching clients are people who know how to fit into mainstream culture but often feel that there’s something missing with a traditional version of success. Many are introverts who say they suffer from perfectionism, an overly vigilant inner critic or ‘imposter syndrome’ and they are struggling to create balance in their lives. You can read more about Kate’s ideal client here.
Career coaching sessions
Before we begin, you’ll complete some preparatory paperwork to gain clarity about your top career coaching objectives. We commence with a single session and from there, decide on the best way forward.
A standard coaching program includes five additional one-hour sessions with appointments scheduled fortnightly but you’re also welcome to begin with just one or two single sessions.
The career coaching program is designed to be a positive, validating and supportive experience. Clients report feeling a greater degree of career confidence, clarity about their direction and a higher degree of self-awareness. The result is improved motivation and focus, more effective communication, better relationships and a greater sense of balance.
Pre-coaching career coaching questionnaires
The prep questionnaires will help you gain clarity about the most important objectives for your career and your life and they’ll set you up to ensure a clear focus for your coaching sessions. If you’re interested to identify your strengths, we’ll invite you to participate in a strengths profiling tool before you commence your coaching.
Single session fee
60-minute session: $295
Coaching program fees
3 x 60-minute sessions: $850 (including an option to pay in instalments)
5 x 60-minute sessions: $1,375 (including an option to pay in instalments)
More questions about career coaching?
What is the difference between a career coach and career counsellor?
Career coaching is similar to career counselling in that you’ll be supported to find a career that you love. Kate’s coaching sessions offer the opportunity to explore your strengths, your values and consider what you want from the whole of your life so you can choose a role that will feel meaningful to you.
Career counselling sessions typically also include psychometric testing, resume writing and interview coaching too. We offer low-cost strengths testing and we’re very happy to review your resume and support you with interview coaching too.
How do I know if Kate is the best career coach for me?
Kate specialises in working with clients who have some sense of what they’d like to do. With over 20 years experience, Kate works with clients online from all over Australia and offers in-person career coaching appointments for clients in Melbourne and on the Mornington Peninsula. She has worked with lawyers, creatives, psychologists, bankers, consultants, technology professionals and leaders from all walks of life. She’ll work with you to help you to move in your chosen direction as well as helping to build your confidence and self-belief.
Read more about Kate and the clients she usually works with.
I’m not that interested in mindfulness. Does that mean you’re the wrong career coach for me?
Not at all. Not everyone we see is interested in mindfulness but it still influences our approach to working with you. Being mindful is really just another way of saying being present, curious, self-aware and non-judgmental. If those qualities appeal, you’ll enjoy working with us. We are not at all dogmatic in our approach and we’re respectful that it might not be everyone’s thing.
If you have more questions, check out our frequently asked questions.
What our career coaching clients say
‘I can’t recommend the coaching sessions with Kate James highly enough. I was very sceptical about them before starting – imagining they would be full of corporate psychology jargon. But in fact, I gained far more from them than I ever imagined, on both a personal and professional level. The career coaching sessions are interactive, conducted in a warm and positive manner that encourages honesty and self-reflection, and are extremely practical in focus. Their great strength is that they focus on your whole life and the way you live it, not just on your role as a manager. I’ve learned a great deal both in terms of how I lead my life and how I perform in management, the one informing the other. This holistic, down-to-earth approach has been the most helpful and realistic career counselling I’ve ever had.’ Executive, Melbourne
‘When I began career coaching sessions with Kate, I was at a very low point in both my personal and professional life. Kate’s thoughtful guidance has proved to be a turning point. She created an environment of complete trust that allowed me to provide information that was at the heart of the matter. In response, Kate was both kind and firm, as required. Her personal follow-ups created a clear set of practical action items, without losing sight of longer-term life goals. I have now emerged from my darkness, and Kate’s advice continues to guide me toward a more positive future. I strongly recommend Kate James to join your own personal team.’ Business Professional, Melbourne
‘I’m a lawyer and I approached Kate for career coaching to seek direction about my future practice. Kate was fantastic. Together we worked through the ideas and workshopped the different career options available. From our discussion, I decided to start my own law firm which was something I previously had not fully considered. I have not looked back. Through this process, Kate offered advice and assistance from the preparation of the business plan and projected earnings to advising on the branding of the business. Without her assistance, I would not have achieved what I did in such a short space of time. Highly recommended.’ Dennis Danaher, Director Danaher Legal
‘My thanks to you for your career coaching guidance and direction over the past six weeks. You have provided me with the focus and tools to think deeply and broadly about where I am at and what I want to be and given me insights that have shone a light on what I need to do and how to go about it. It has been a truly rewarding learning experience.’ Executive, Melbourne
‘Hi Kate, it’s a while now since I’ve seen you, so I hope you remember me. I came to see you in the first half of 2005, when I was working at a big corporate law firm and trying to work out what to do with my life – primarily in a career sense, but, of course, that led to all sorts of other questions. As you may remember, with your encouragement I eventually applied for a different role which fit much better with my personal goals and values.
I was so ready to change directions, but I just couldn’t find a way to do it without that support. And the conversations that we had and the resources you gave me – the questions about values and the books you referred me to – were so helpful then and are still helpful now. I really value the experience of working with you, it has made me appreciate the choices I have so much more and realise that whenever I feel like I’m not where I want to be, I can do something to change it.’ CH, Lawyer, Melbourne
Still not sure if you’re ready to engage a career coach?
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