Sumom Geevarughese is an ICF-certified career and business coach at Steady Focus Coaching. She is committed to helping executives, and seasoned professionals do and excel in the work they love. Before founding Steady Focus Coaching, Sumom spent more than 25 years in leadership roles such as financial management, business analysis, and strategic planning at Fortune 500 companies. As a coach, she works with professionals to maneuver through their own business and career challenges. She has advised all levels on Go-To-Market strategy, profitability, and customer experience.
In her practice, Sumom partners with individuals from C-Suite executives to junior levels to support their career and leadership development and transitions. She coaches teams to identify and lead with their strengths. Sumom guides entrepreneurs to balance their visions with execution. She leads workshops for job search strategies, team building and development using DISC and MBTI assessments, and strategic planning and creativity workshops for organizations.
Sumom is also a certified yoga instructor, which, according to her, plays a vital role in her career and business coaching.
Why Steady Focus Coaching
According to Sumom, who has an MBA, her career is never-ending, and there are two reasons she quit the corporate world to become a businesswoman. “Most importantly, I am a person who wants to learn, understand and continuously improve. Steady Focus Coaching is my way to achieve this,” she told WomELLE in an interview. At the same time; she wanted to motivate people to excel in this business. She wants to utilize her experience in finance to help people who are stuck in their business to move ahead.
According to Sumom, everyone is struggling somewhere or the other. People come to her when they are stuck in their business, and she tries to help them get unstuck both in business as well as personally.
About Steady Focus Coaching
Steady Focus Coaching focuses on individuals and businesses achieving their goals. Sumom says she works to understand people as human beings and know-how and why they are stuck. What are their goals, and who or what is hindering them from achieving what they want to? After she gets to know her clients, their problems, and what they want, she prepares a strategy to help them. She motivates them and allows them to get back their balance by encouraging them to make necessary changes, Sumom explains.
“Often, I feel that most people who come to me never sat down to understand what they want. Many have also not analyzed what their obstacles are.” She, sometimes, finds that the people who seek help are themselves the primary problem. She supports them in removing hurdles, draws up action plans, and helps them acquire new skills if needed.
Sumom says she mostly works with individuals and takes a holistic approach when talking about the type of business coaching she offers to clients. “When I say a holistic approach, I mean that I look into their business problems and help them to ensure overall wellness. I help them navigate their journey and coach them on different lifestyles.” She combines her curiosity for what motivates people with her analytical mindset in driving behavioral change to help others achieve their career goals.
She asks her clients about their vision, and strategic plans they are following and tries to find out where they are going. She asks them deeper questions to know them completely and then helps them communicate, lead, and execute their vision.
Being a Certified Business Coach
According to Sumom, being an ICF-certified coach gives her job a special meaning. While ICF sets a bar for coaching, it ensures techniques are followed, and the coach is also better equipped to handle different situations. It also means that she is not a street person who has suddenly decided to take up business coaching, Sumom explains.
Do the Work You Love – I Do!
Sumom says, “You get one shot at life – take the shot! Loving my earlier career, I found my real calling in coaching. While I’m no gardener, I empower people to bloom through my coaching.” She feels honored to be a part of her clients’ journeys as they “take their shots”! Life presents us with opportunity, and when it comes, we should take a shot at it – whether big or small. We should never wait for tomorrow because, who knows, tomorrow may never come.
A Certified Yoga Coach
Sumom came into yoga ten years ago. It has helped her with her breathing problems and given her physical benefits. Now, she can hear her inner self. “I tell my clients that when you are on racing paths, take a deep breath because it will help you to know yourself better while ensuring your wellness,” she says about the benefits of the ancient Indian form of exercise.
Challenges Faced
Sumom says that she is a very risk-averse person having her roots in finance. She has weighed the security of leaving a proper job and starting a business. It is all about mindset, adding that she wanted to be able to take some rest and, at the same time, offer people all that she had gained during her long career. Like all women, she too faced some minor challenges while starting her business, but she says she is much more fortunate than many.
Message for Young Entrepreneurs
It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Perhaps you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference,” she advises.
She goes on to say, “Don’t worry about sounding professional. Sound like you. Be clear, be confident, and don’t overthink it.” The beauty of one’s story is that it’s going to continue to evolve, and you can grow with it. One’s goal should be to make it feel right now. Later it will take care of itself. It always does.
A print and digital magazine for businesswomen focusing on leadership, business, and entrepreneurship that made its debut in 2017 has WomELLE Magazine.
