3 Things a Business Coach Doesn't Want You to Know

Through my four years of running a business, I've worked with a couple different coaches. I honestly have mixed thoughts about coaching, even as a coach myself. There's a time and a place for when you need a coach, but there's also times and places when you don't need a coach. Today I want to talk about three different things that a lot of your coaches don't want you to know, so that you can decide whether it's a good time for you to work with a coach or not.

I've been through coaching sessions, group coaching programs, as well as one-on-one coaching programs where I didn't feel like I got a lot of things out of it. I've been lied to. I've been really manipulated into signing on in a program that was not the right fit for me. Hopefully this will help you be aware and informed as you're trying to decide who to help you inside of your business.

ONE | There's a difference between a coach and a mentor.

A business coach is going to be someone who just really helps give you advice, but also gives you a lot of encouragement and tries to pull things out of you to where you are making the decisions. They guide you and help you create the solution. A mentor is someone who has been where you're at, who knows the steps and has walked the path. That's the biggest thing is that people look to coaches to kind of help them to get to the next level of business, but there's so many coaches out there that have not been through where you're at or to the next level... and yet they're trying to coach you to get to the next level. How are they supposed to coach you to get to the next level if they haven't been where you want to be?

So find someone that has been exactly where you are and has figured out the process to get to the next spot. Someone who can help you through the problems you're facing, and who can help you do the work to get to that next step.

TWO | Their promised outcomes are not a guarantee

A lot of people marketing for business coaches will tell you that "this program" or "working with me is going to get you to the next level." And I think a lot of times people don't realize that that's not going to be the case. Yes, coaches and mentors can give you advice to get to the next level. But if you're not willing to put in the work, or if you sign on with them during a super busy season and you can't fully commit, you're not going to get the same results as someone else is going to get.

Just because you work with a business coach or a mentor does not mean that you're going to get the same results as someone else in their program. And it also doesn't mean that they're going to do all the work for you. You have to be willing to put in the work.

THREE | Coaches are very hesitant to tell potential clients about the level of clients that they've served in the past.

So for example, I've worked with a coach who serves a lot of people that are in the earlier stages of business. Once I got in this group program, it was very frustrating to me because the other students were at a lot earlier stage than I was. I already knew the answers to the questions they were asking, so it wasn't benefiting me or helping me grow. Then whenever I went to ask my questions, there wasn't time to answer. So we just went over beginner level stuff that I'd already been though. There's nothing wrong with beginner level programs, but it wasn't what I needed at that time. So again, when you're going to look for a coach, you want to look for a mentor. Someone who has been where you're at. It doesn't have to be the same industry, but it does have to be the same type of business structure.

You want to find someone who has worked with clients at the level of business that you are in, whether you're at the beginning or whether you are 10 years into business. You want to find someone that is truly able to tell you if they can help you or not. And it's one reason why I do one-on-one work instead of doing a group program, because I want to make sure that it is structured to really help you with where you are specifically at.

BONUS TIP:

Another thing to consider is to look for someone who has the same lifestyle values as you. If they don't, they're not going to really understand or be able to help you through certain things. For example if you're really prioritizing slowing down and having things be sustainable for your lifestyle and a business coach is all hustle hustle trying to hit those sales goals or whatever it is. Or if you have kids and a business coach you're looking at doesn't, they might not always understand where you're coming from.

I have a variety of mentor students, and everyone is at a different level and going through different problems that we're working through. That's why I have a customized approach to all of my mentor students. Together we work on things like hiring and managing a team, SOP (Standard Operating Procedure) and workflow creation, marketing, niching down, and getting your time back!

Right now I'm opening up three spots for one-on-one mentoring to start in September.