For Missy Grace, a QUEST alumna and member of Cohort 1, the transition from working in corporate to working in coaching just seemed like the right next step. A cancer survivor herself, she now partners with the company One Village and offers Vigeo Coaching services for cancer survivors.
Alumna Missy Grace
Missy Grace is the founder and main coach of Vigeo Coaching Services, a role she recently began after working in corporate offices for 23 years. Grace loved the corporate world and the opportunities that it presented her, including continuous growth and learning. However, she decided to switch paths and turned to coaching earlier this year.
As a career coach, Grace helps her clients focus on the positives when looking into their careers. She shared that many career coaches try to focus on what clients need to develop, but she takes a different approach. Instead, she encourages focusing on the values and strengths of her clients to maximize their potential. She also works on shifting her clients’ thought processes to be more positive. Since she’s working with cancer survivors, she finds it extremely important to understand that her clients have gone through a life-altering experience and to help them redefine themselves after. Grace shared, “Today’s world is complex, made even more so by the pandemic, so I help executives achieve their goals, become more self-aware, more socially aware, build more productive relationships, leverage their strengths, and discover more productive ways of being.”
As for her experience in QUEST, the Cohort 1 alumna shared the influence the program had on her and how it was a major push towards her successful professional career. Grace said, “Being a participant in the QUEST program launched my career and provided me with valuable skills to succeed in the business world. Without having participated in QUEST, I would not have found my junior year internship, or my passion, and I wouldn’t be where I am today.” More than that, Grace emphasized the critical skills that QUEST taught her, like collaboration and cultural competence. She still is involved in the program through QUEST Corporate’s Mentorship Program, which she conveyed is extremely rewarding for her, and also likes to attend the 490H capstone presentations each semester.
As for advice for current QUEST students, she said, “Every experience is an opportunity to learn and grow, if you pay attention. And when you’re ready to take your first job, don’t just look for a cool title or a big paycheck. Also look for something that you love, that you’re good at, and that fulfills your sense of purpose.”
Thank you for your wise words, Missy Grace! We wish you the best of luck in your career coaching endeavors and beyond!