145: Lessons from an Executive Coach — Matz Skoog

This week on 5.6.7.EIGHT, Aleksandra speaks with Matz Skoog, executive coach at Matz Skoog Coaching. Skoog, a Stockholm native, had an accomplished career in dance at several international companies. Following his career in dance, he became a sought-after tutor, which led to a variety of professional appointments, including Artistic Director of the English National Ballet and Royal New Zealand Ballet. Upon his exit from the stage, Matz founded Matz Skoog Coaching, where he helps others achieve their true professional potential.

As a dancer and Artistic Director, Matz had a passion for helping others fulfill their goals and achieve new heights. Through coaching, he’s now able to do this professionally, on a daily basis. Matz is a wealth of knowledge and challenges his clients to find satisfaction and achieve excellence in their careers. On the podcast, Matz shares invaluable words of advice for anyone that’s looking to maximize their fullest potential.

Moving Quotes:

"Coaching is about 3 questions. What do you want? What do you need to do to get what you want? And what's stopping you from doing what you need to do?"

"Coaching is not therapy... In therapy, you take a person from being dysfunctional to becoming functional. In coaching, you take a person from being functional to becoming excellent."

"The ideal moment to look for a coach is when you are already successful or when things are working well. Because, then, you can take your achievements to another level."

"You don't need to be someone else in order to be successful. You need to do things differently; you don't need to be someone different. And in the act of doing, you become someone else."

"It's important to take a little bit of action, every day. It needs to be conscious — something you choose to do towards a specific objective."

"Once you're a dancer, you're always a dancer — even if you're not actually dancing. You will always be a dancer."

"Many dancers underestimate their intellectual capacities. There are very few successful dancers who are not also intelligent. One way to explore this potential is to express yourself through writing... That way, you can see, on paper, that there's more to you than just legs and feet."

Bullet Points (w/ timestamps) - Highlighting key topics discussed:

3:09: Matz describes his career as an executive coach and how he was drawn to the profession.

4:33: Matz explains how coaching is different than mentorship.

5:38: Skoog discusses the ideal time for an individual to seek out coaching.

7:52: Skoog shares some tips for finding the right executive coach for you.

12:47: Matz shares a helpful tip for anyone who may be looking for a career shift but isn’t even sure where to focus.

15:32: Matz gives some advice for executing on goals.

18:52: Matz walks through his dance career and how he segued into dance leadership and, eventually, executive coaching.

25:58: Skoog discusses some lessons he learned as an artistic director that he uses when coaching dancers into new careers.

28:11: Skoog explains how finding other hobbies and outlets outside of dance can help dancers find alternative career paths.

31:26: Matz shares some of his biggest coaching surprises, including several clients that made full career pivots after their sessions.

Bullet List of Resources – 

Matz Skoog Coaching

• Website

• LinkedIn

• Instagram

• YouTube