Are career coaches a thing in publishing?

April 24, 2019 10:37 AM

My mom is leaning on me to talk to a career coach, but I'm not sure that would be helpful given where I'm at professionally, and how teeny-tiny and ultra-specialized publishing is. But maybe I'm wrong?

I've been freelance for a long time, but due to changing circumstances I may need to look for a more reliable income sometime soon.

I'm reasonably well-connected for someone who's never actually worked full-time at a publisher or been part of a literary agency, and the people I know are, in turn, very prominent and well-connected. My plan is to talk to contacts at various imprints and agencies, tell them that I'm looking for work, and ask them for information and advice about what my options might be.

But as I said above the fold, my mom thinks I should also be talking to a professional career coach to help me with this process. Given that I'm already pretty established in my industry, and given how weird and small said industry is, a career coach seems like a silly idea, but maybe I'm being wrong-headed about this?

Some possibly relevant info:
- I live in NYC
- I've been active in publishing for about 15 years
- I'm freelance editing two books for a major imprint, one of which is a Big Deal title. This is prestigious satisfying work that pays very poorly, about $8K a year before taxes
- My extant professional commitments mean I'd probably want a part-time job with flexible hours

My assumption, going in, is that my best bet is probably going to be some kind of work with a literary agency, since I have specialized knowledge of an expanding part of the business and am well-connected to that community of authors. But I still have a lot of research to do!

Any and all advice is appreciated!

posted by Narrative Priorities to Work & Money (5 answers total)

Given that I'm already pretty established in my industry, and given how weird and small said industry is, a career coach seems like a silly idea, but maybe I'm being wrong-headed about this?

Career coaches typically aren't specific to industries, nor are the skills they coach you on industry-specific. Neither is being established in your industry a reason to not use a career coach. I know several CEOs who work with career coaches -- and most of those CEOs started working with coaches after they became a CEO.

The value of a career coach is bringing an outside, experienced perspective to how you build your career, how you develop or emphasize the skills and characteristics that are going to help you achieve those goals, how you present yourself, how you handle yourself on the job, how you lead (because not everyone leads the same way), etc. A career coach is going to help you clarify your career goals, put together a plan to achieve them, and help you stay motivated and on track.

So, yeah, I think you're being "wrongheaded."

What you should consider is researching a number of career coaches and contacting them. All of them should be willing to set up a 20-30 minute introductory call with you at no charge. (If they're not, skip and move on.) They should also be able to provide references. Those introductory calls and references will give you a better idea of what a career coach can provide.
posted by gritter at 11:20 AM on April 24, 2019 [3 favorites]

I have spoken to a few career coaches, but I've never spoken to a good one. The ones I have talked to had been working in the career coaching industry, in positions without hiring responsibilities, for so long that their advice tended more toward outdated platitudes than practical tailored advice. I'm not saying they're all like that, but many certainly are.

I think your plan to go through your established network is excellent. If, after six months or a year, that approach isn't bearing fruit, you might look into coaching then - but from what you describe, there's a very good chance you won't need it.
posted by showbiz_liz at 12:18 PM on April 24, 2019 [2 favorites]

I was in medical publishing for about 10 years. I was in a similar position to yours, but in that specific part of the industry. You need contacts, which you have. You need experience, which you have. You want to find a job (part-time might not be feasible). Unless you want to head into management or the c-suite, i don't think there's a huge amount of value in a career coach.
posted by misanthropicsarah at 12:47 PM on April 24, 2019 [2 favorites]

I think this is going to depend on your needs and your flexibility. I worked in magazine publishing on the website end for 15 years, and then moved to digital marketing, and now I've made a career left turn.

To get a job in the kind of publishing you've been working in, you probably already have the best network you are going to have. However, that presumes that there will be jobs at the right level for you at the salary you will need. If your salary and personal needs mean that you have to expand your search to different-but-related publishing industries, or to make a more lateral shift to a different kind of editing, I think a career coach would be helpful. Good luck!
posted by warriorqueen at 2:10 PM on April 24, 2019

I have spoken with career counselors and I work in publishing, and I don't think you need a career counselor. But you might benefit from a recruiter or headhunter, which is maybe what your mom means when she says career counselor. Especially given your constraints of part time and flexible, which is not common in non-freelance publishing jobs.
posted by peanut_mcgillicuty at 6:01 PM on April 24, 2019 [2 favorites]