Executive Coach Brent Hafele Is Helping Leaders Release Resistance And Live Vibrantly
Updated: Aug 10
According to a 2021 survey, nearly 60% of leaders reported they “feel used up at the end of a work day.” This feeling is often correlated to burnout, which the Mayo Clinic defines as “a special type of work-related stress – a state of physical or emotional exhaustion that also involves a sense of reduced accomplishment and loss of personal identity.”
In another survey by Deloitte, it found nearly 70% of C-suite executives are considering quitting to find a job that better supports their well-being. It’s no wonder it’s hard to attract and retain top talent when the leaders are burned out.
When a leader is not able to perform at their best, it trickles into the rest of the team and can contribute to low productivity, high turnover, and low engagement, severely affecting the entire organization.
Often, individuals don’t recognize signs of burnout, but there are 12 stages of burnout, a model developed by Herbert Freudenberger which includes:
Excessive Ambition
Working Harder
Neglecting Your Needs
Displacing Problems
Revision Of Values
Denial Of New Problems
Withdrawal
Impact On Others
Depersonalization
Inner Emptiness
Depression
Full Burnout Syndrome
The question then remains, what is the solution if you identify with these stages?
That’s where executive coach Brent Hafele comes in. With his executive coaching practice, Vibrancy Unlocked, he’s created a safe space for executives to feel heard and understood, and talk through both problems and exciting new ideas, all while providing action and accountability plans to be applied to their life and work.
He provides a non-judgment, intentional space for growth and vibrancy to flourish for apex leaders (CEOs, entrepreneurs, executive directors, presidents, etc.).
Hafele has worked with over 175 organizations across North America, often with CEOs, as a consultant and coach and knows first-hand the hardships that come with working in business.
“The work world can too easily strip away our humanity with expectations that prevent you from being you. Given the chance, it will challenge your values, divide your family, and leave you beat up,” Hafele discusses.
But he’s here to tell business and nonprofit executives it doesn’t have to be this way. Hafele believes any successful organization starts at the top with the leader. When a leader is healthy and vibrant, their team, family, and community follow suit.
Yet, the reality is, it’s not always this simple.
The role of an executive can oftentimes be extremely lonely, balancing the requirements of your position while meeting the needs of your family. And it may not be possible to talk openly with those around you. In that case, a coach is the recommended solution.
“I work with highly talented, intelligent people. They don’t need someone to tell them what to do – they need a confidant who won’t judge them, a thought partner who is not afraid to ask the difficult questions, a guide who will help them explore new ideas, and an encourager to cheer them forward,” Hafele emphasizes.
As a leader, you must be intentional, which requires vulnerability to release resistance, achieve your goals, and gain vibrancy in your work and life, a key aspect of Hafele’s executive coaching practice.
“If you don’t have vulnerability, you don’t have awareness. And without awareness, you can’t address the things that are making you vibrant and the things that are holding you from being vibrant,” he explains.
For some, the act of sharing your weaknesses and strengths is viewed in a negative light, but in order to move from a position of burnt-out to vibrant, you have to own the good and the bad. Because vulnerability is not solely about uncovering the things hindering your work and life, it’s also about noting your strengths.
“In our society, in this artificial intelligence and information age we’re in, no one pays for mediocre anymore,” Hafele says, and “what we really need to do is emphasize people’s excellence, their strengths, and help them to be as good as they possibly can be. Coaching is a great vehicle for that.”
As an apex leader himself, with two personal coaches, Hafele knows how challenging it can be to open up. And despite his position as a coach, he too is consistently working toward unlocking more vibrancy. Because as life evolves, there will always be areas to improve and tweak along the way.
“It is a constant process: I work with my own coach, with my own friends, I reflect on my own life, and I look at ways that I can be more vibrant in my life and in my work,” he shares.
“I want to be a voice of safety for leaders. I want to be a voice to create spaces, create environments where leaders, regardless of their faith, regardless of their choices, or their backgrounds, can feel safe, valued, and explore what might make their life or work more vibrant,” he highlights.
When asked what he loves most about coaching, Hafele answered passionately:
“One of the reasons I’m so excited about coaching … is when you help that leader, they are then going to help their teams, and those teams are going to help the rest of the company, and those people in that organization are going to go home and help their families, and all those families are going to serve their communities.”
Hafele is creating a ripple effect of positive change with every leader he works with by helping them be who they are and unlocking the great potential within them. And it all starts with intentionality.
Take your organization, and your life, to the next level with Brent Hafele and his executive coaching practice Vibrancy Unlocked.
Visit his website today to get started with a free Work Vibrancy Self-Assessment.