Transitioning to a coaching mentor: Christian Woodfield’s story

CASE STUDY

Final Rank: Cpl
Years Served: 12
Age: 29
Enlisted: 2005
Specialisation/trade: Mover
Service branch: RAF

Please tell us which military qualifications you have obtained so far during your Service career?
Defence Instructor, Junior Leadership Management, Dangerous Goods And Explosive Movements qualification.

… and which civilian qualifications?
English and Maths GCSEs, English AS level B, High Ropes Instructor, First Aid at Work and Lifeguard.

When and why did you register for ELC?
February 2017. I saw ELC advertised in the education centre. I wanted to start a logistics management degree and needed a leadership management qualification before I could apply.

What qualification have you received as a result of using your ELC?
Coaching Mentor and Leadership Management level 5.

Who was the training provider?
Andy Greene at Inspired2Be.

Tell us about the course?
It is three weeks’ intensive insight into the learning and skill-sets required to be a coaching mentor, while also learning the difference between leaders and managers. It showed me new skills I wouldn’t have learned from military courses. It was very professional and very well taught. The study was a mixture of classroom-based and open learning to complete the courses set. The studying was manageable thanks to the high-quality teaching I received. Classes had follow-up study sessions the next morning to check our understanding.

The course has built on my earlier qualifications – and has improved my overall confidence. I would like to carry on my teaching as a coaching mentor so will look to take this further.

The course covers a broad spectrum and Andy is a great teacher who could be invaluable to teaching all ranks of the RAF on how to mentor and manage better.

Before you started, what did you hope the course would give you?
An overall knowledge, and different views on how to help my work and my mentoring grow. As for my military career, that it would help me grow as a leader and to develop future airmen.

These hopes have now become fact! The course will also open doors to management positions, so I can succeed once I leave the Forces. It will help me use my skills and new confidence to take chances I wouldn’t have taken before.

What advice do you have for others registering for or using ELC?
If you have a course you want to do, and believe it will better you in all aspects of life, don’t wait to leave – do the course and realise your potential!

To find out more, visit inspired2be.com