Full Focus Limited
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David Martin: 0274 902 401
Kathy Martin: 027 2800 564
Recent Focus February 2008
Estimated reading time for this issue: under 5 minutes
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Business coaches … are they worth it?
If you’ve ever wondered about hiring a business coach chances are you’ve weighed up the cost of engaging one vs the payoff you’ll get. Maybe you know someone who’s had a business coach before and their success was less than mediocre. So it's a good question to consider. Engaging a business coach won’t automatically mean you’re going to succeed and achieve some unheard of results. There are some things you’ll have to bring to the party as well:
1. Be prepared to invest some time
Your business coach will want to meet with you regularly. These meetings will be crucial for achieving outstanding results. This is your face-to-face time with your coach … to round up what you did and didn’t achieve since the last meeting, celebrate your successes and look at ways to improve results that weren’t so successful. Advice will be given, ideas put forward and your energy and enthusiasm reignited.
Don’t make the mistake of thinking you can skip these meetings … they may not be as urgent as other pressing matters … but they are vitally important. Make sure you can allocate time regularly or your business coach won't be able to do his job properly, and neither you nor your coach will be happy.
2. …. And some energy
You can’t just sit back and expect your profits to soar merely by virtue of engaging a coach – you’ll have to be prepared to put in the yards yourself. That, of course, is what makes your accomplishments so sweet when you achieve them. This doesn’t mean you’ll have to work 10 times as hard. Your coach should help you to work smarter, not necessarily harder.
3. Be prepared to change
If you keep doing what you’ve always done, it shouldn’t be any surprise that you’ll get the same results. So be prepared to change. A business coach will provide new ideas and challenge the way you do things. Here’s a great little quote that says this wonderfully …
“The world that we have made as a result of the level of thinking we have done thus far creates problems that we cannot solve at the same level we created them at.”
Albert Einstein
4. What to look for in a business coach
Your coach must be someone you can relate to .. someone who talks your talk. 
Make sure he’s tough and durable …. he’ll need to be if he’s going to do a great job! You’ll want someone who won’t back down and will stand up for you and for your success! He’ll make you feel uncomfortable when you’re not at your best and probably get in your face more times that you’d like to remember.
Make sure you’ve got a business coach who is unafraid of telling you how it is, even when it’s perilous for him to do so!
5. Finding your business coach
Don’t fall into the trap of thinking you’ll find your coach within your existing organisation/team. He might be there, but he’s probably not willing to risk losing his job to do what needs to be done. He may not be prepared to challenge you ... stand up and confront you and not back down - which is perhaps what you’re going to need if you’re interested in your business being as successful as it can be.
You’ll most likely need to look elsewhere for your coach. You’ll want an independent business coach who has no ties with your business. Someone who has nothing to lose when he tells you you’re full of it …. (except perhaps his contract with you!).
So ... is a business coach worth it?
If you’re prepared to invest the time, energy and money (actually the money is the booby prize) and watch your business develop over time, a business coach can make a world a difference.
He’ll help you set goals and objectives that excite you and you continue to feel inspired about. You’ll begin to see exactly what you can do – and 
how great your business can be. You’ll achieve some outstanding results – but they won’t just happen overnight. A business coach isn’t usually a quick fix, although he can set the wheels turning in pretty short order. But if you want to achieve sustainable growth, change and development you must be prepared to see it happen over time.
Although investing in a business coach can sound like a giant leap of faith, a great business coach is worth his weight in gold. In fact he should more than pay for himself by the increase in profits you accomplish through his coaching. More than that, the results will be sustainable – the return on your investment will continue to come in long after your coach has gone (that’s if you ever decide you can do without him!)
“If we did all the things we are capable of doing, we would literally astound ourselves.”
Thomas Edison
We’ve got more information on this topic and on how to choose the right coach … and where to find him.
You may also like to see our special report “Is this the age of the Consigliere”
Do you know someone we might be able to assist? Please give them our contact details, refer them to our website, or provide us with details so we can contact them. Click here to see how we’ll handle your referrals
Read the previous issue of Recent Focus (3 quick tips for your business)
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