What is Business Coaching?

Do I Need A Business Coach?

If one or more of the following are true for you, you could benefit from the services of a business coach:

• You want to achieve more
• You want to make more money
• You could really benefit from the accountability offered by a business coach
• Your work is not intrinsically satisfying anymore
• You spend too much time at the office
• You feel tired a lot
• You are procrastinating more
• Your personal relationships are suffering or non-existent
• You feel stuck
• You feel overwhelmed
• You feel stressed out
• You think about work all the time
• You could be more productive
• Your staff does not operate as a team
• Your staff productivity is low
• You have high staff turnover

Whether one or all of these apply to you, you are not alone! A good business coach can help you get back on track, so that you can enjoy your work, and more importantly, your life more fully.

Everyone, no matter how good they are at business, can use this service and surpass their expectations for success!
- Kara K., Real Estate Broker

What Is It Exactly?

Business coaching is for professionals who want to attain more control over their work and personal lives. Individuals who use a business coach benefit from another point of view, honest feedback, and real support in a confidential setting. This results in both personal growth and professional benefits. Good coaches help clients achieve breakthrough awareness levels and measurable results.

In the typical business coaching relationship, client and coach work together to identify a goal or a particular business roadblock. Together they explore possible root causes and develop strategies for taking the client's performance to a new level. The coaching process combines brainstorming, goal setting, action planning and progress reporting. Coaches hold clients accountable to their own objectives in a supportive, non-judgmental manner.

Benefits of Coaching are Professional and Personal

Individuals who use a business coach are often surprised by the gains made in their personal lives while they pursue professional goals. Who you are is closely intertwined with how you work and how you relate to others. When improvements are made in one area they can't help but positively affect other aspects of your life.

Following are some examples:

Business Goal	Personal Benefit
Increase Income	More self-confident Less worry &stress Better standard-of-living More fun in retirement
More Free Time	Happier More relaxed Reconnect with family & friends Spend more time doing what you love Enjoy life more fully
More Energy	Feel better More productive Procrastinate less Improved mood
Motivated Staff	Improved communication skills leads to richer personal relationships More time focusing on aspects of work you enjoy Better customer service which leads to more discretionary income for you!

Who Uses A Business Coach?

A wide variety of individuals use a business coach for an even wider variety of reasons. For example, business owners often use business coaching to increase revenue in their businesses and create more balance in their lives. They also use business coaching to motivate employees, decrease employee turnover, and provide themselves with increased accountability.

CEO's, executives and even mid-level managers often rely on their coach's ability to provide honest feedback because, as is often the case, very powerful executives don't have anyone who will be totally honest with them. The resulting opportunity for personal growth and professional improvement are lost. A good business coach will help an executive identify areas needing improvement, enabling that executive to reach new heights of success.

While mid-level managers often receive feedback from both superiors and subordinates, they, too, use coaching to advance their careers. A business coach can help managers learn how to create a motivated staff as well as how to interact with staff and superiors more effectively. Confident and productive management combined with a receptive and communicative work force is an undeniable recipe for success that is well within the scope of any business - including yours!

Sales professionals and individuals seeking a career change can also leverage the business coaching relationship to their benefit. It is not uncommon for a sales professional to use coaching as a springboard to increase sales, which generally translates to an income upgrade. Individuals wanting an occupation upgrade can use business coaching to identify a more enjoyable career path and develop subsequent strategies to follow it.

Whether you're looking to improve, redefine or change your work life altogether, the first step is to choose the right coach.

How to Choose A Coach

It is important for you to interview a prospective coach to see if there is a good fit, and many will provide a free consultation over the phone. Ask questions about the coaching process. Is everything you say confidential? Do they ask questions to help you clarify a vision and take action? Is it important to you that they have personal business experience that will enable them to understand what you are going through? Do they seem insightful? Smart? Basically, do they provide the services you are looking for? When you talk to them, do you feel good about it?

Of all the questions listed above, the last may just be the most important. If, even in a short conversation, you fail to make a connection with the person on the other end of the line and you don't feel good about them, continue to explore your options. Since you may discuss sensitive issues from time-to-time, your coach should be someone who puts you at ease while providing a safe place for you to truly examine your weaknesses, triumphs, failures, fears, hopes, goals and much more. An open and honest line of communication will help you address those issues more comfortably, and, hopefully, more successfully.

The results you get from a coach depend on what you are looking for and whether or not it aligns with the coach's ability to support you. It depends on the coach and their training. Some models of training focus more on traditional aspects of business such as goal setting, strategic thinking, and accountability while others may encourage you to create a vision for your work life and your personal life. Some may even combine all of the above, depending on what you want to work on. The single most important element is to choose a trustworthy business coach with the ability and experience to best suit your needs.

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