Today (Saturday) I spend 4 hours with my business coach, Taki Moore, while he was visiting Auckland. Yes, I am a business coach and I have a business coach too. I am always looking to up my game and improve the service that I can offer my clients. Part of that improvement comes from self learning, but it never hurts to have an outside expert look at what I am doing and make some suggestions. My coach is a specialist coach, who coaches coaches! Taki is very good at what he does, mostly because he specializes in one market, i.e. helping coaches.
I also figure, if I expect prospective clients to see the value in coaching, shouldn’t I “walk the talk” too? Fair question. The answer is YES. The value to my business, like any business, in having an expert make suggestions on how to improve my systems and processes is significant. The cost is not insignificant, but the pay-back is big, if the suggestions are implemented.
This is an example of Stephen Covey’s 7th Habit of Highly Effective People; sharpen the saw. It’s your choice. Either waste your time and energy struggling on with a half broken business, or take some time to sharpen your [business] saw and then watch your profits and efficiency expand, and your stress start to melt away. If you choose to work with a coach, your next decision is whether to work with a generalist business coach, or a specialist business coach in your industry. I specialize in the construction trades so if you own such a business, I can be more effective and better value than a generalist coach. But I guess I would say that! Difference is, I not only say it; I guarantee it.
Andy Burrows www.tradescoach.co.nz