How do I choose a business coach?
What should I look for when hiring a business coach?
Today I’m going to talk about the topic of “How do I choose a business coach?”
Working with a business coach is very important and it can make or break your business, more likely will help you more than it will hurt you. And you’ve got to pick the right business coach somebody that is a good fit for you and a good fit for your business, that he or she has knowledge of what you do, or what you can do and how exactly you’re going to take your business to the next level.
How do I choose a business coach? (8 step process to choose your business coach)
1- You’ve got to like your Coach
He or she must be likable, you got to like them, and it must be the right fit in terms of personality both for you and for him or her.
Okay, so it has to be the right fit. And if you have the gut feeling that this person is not the right fit for you. You’re right, your gut is always right, run and then find someone else.
2- Is this Coach knowledgeable about their stuff?
Do they know business? Do they understand the whole process? Do they also read and update their knowledge on a regular consistent basis? Okay. So you would ask them, How often do you read a book? How many books do you read per month? Okay, what was the last book that you read? What did you learn about it? Okay, if they have a hard time answering that question, run, if they don’t update themselves and their knowledge, run. Ask them how often they attend a seminar to update their skills. How many times a month or week or day, listen to a podcast, watch an educational video,
what are they doing to update themselves? Okay?
rate them on that.
3- Does the coach specialize?
Do they specialize as a coach? Some coaches are business coaches, and they do everything about everything. But what you want to do is you want to go with the person that specializes in one thing. So we have coaches that focus on mindset, coaches that focus on marketing, team development, management, leadership, different niche areas. They only specialize in one thing, and that’s the only thing they do.
So ask them if they do a specialized? That’s a very, very good point for them.
And if they don’t specialize that is not good.
4- Are they certified coach or qualified coach, or both?
Now, what do I mean by that? You can have no business experience. And then some job opportunity, as a coach shows up, you can go get some training over a weekend or week and become a certified business coach, without much business experience. Even if you have a hard time spelling, the word entrepreneur, which most a lot of them do, not most of them.
And then you can be certified with a business card with a bunch of acronyms on it and say a certified business coach that has no clue about business. And then there’s qualified, qualified is a business coach that has owned businesses, maybe even multiple businesses and now they decided to teach others. That’s the qualified one.
Now, if you find someone that is qualified and certified, great, but you want to work with somebody that has owned a business before and has run a business before, like, if you don’t know how to ski, you cannot possibly teach me how to ski. Right? If you don’t know how to write a book, you cannot possibly teach me how to write a book. Right? If you have never run a business, you will do a very poor job of teaching me how to run my business, because you just don’t know how it works!
You need to work with a business coach that has owned a business before
5- Does your business coach walk the talk?
Do they only tell you how or what to do? Or do they not? Do they teach by example? Or do they not? And you can tell from their surroundings, from their business, the way they run their set their business and the way they do things? Does this person appear to be walking their talk? Or do they just say, Do as I say, not as I do? Right? So you want to check on that?
6- Is this coach challenging?
Is this person going to be challenging me on my business? Does he or she have the courage, confidence and honesty to call me on my shit? Right? If I am procrastinating if I’m not doing what I’m doing if I’m coming up with excuses if I’m coming up with B.S, does he or she have the confidence to call me on my shit?
If yes, great. If not, that’s not good. You do not want A Yes, man. You don’t want to Yes man to be your coach. You want somebody to hold you accountable that will support you and push you through.
7- Is the investment in the coaching program clear?
Is the price that I’m going to pay for the coaching? Is it clear because coaching could be expensive for some people? And, am I getting clarity on what am I paying? And what program am I getting myself into?
If it’s not clear, run?
8- Does the coach have references and testimonials?
You can check their LinkedIn profiles, they have their Facebook pages, their other listings and see what’s happening. Do not just suffice to one or two references.
That’s not enough.
You want to go for three or four or maybe more. And then check and do not be afraid to check for or ask for references for them.
Anyway, picking a business coach could be a tricky business. You got to like them and go through these things.
I’ve also put together a template or a little one-sheet that you can use to rate your business coach on these eight different areas and then give them a score and see if they’re a good fit for you
Download the Business Coach Rating Template to assess your business coach on 8 different areas and see if they're a good fit for you.
Hope this helps and if you know any other business owners that could benefit from it, please share it with them.
Please like and share this post.
If you have any comments or any feedback, please leave a comment below for me and I’ll get back to you.
And, don’t forget to subscribe to our channel and in my next video/post, I’m going to do a book review. It’s going to be an exciting book!
Mostafa Hosseini your business and marketing coach.
Have yourself a great day
Why is choosing the right business coach important?
Choosing the right business coach is crucial because they can greatly impact your business's success. A good coach can help you grow and improve, while a bad fit might not understand your needs or goals.
How can I tell if a business coach is right for me?
First, make sure you like them! It's important to get along with your coach. Also, check if they know their stuff. Ask about their knowledge and how they stay updated. If they don't seem knowledgeable or updated, it might be best to look elsewhere.
Should I choose a coach who specializes in one area?
Yes, it's better to go with a coach who specializes in one thing, like mindset, marketing, or leadership. Coaches who specialize can offer deeper expertise in their area, which can be more helpful for your business.
What's the difference between a certified and a qualified coach?
A certified coach has formal training but might lack real-world experience. A qualified coach has both training and experience, especially in owning or running businesses. It's better to work with someone who has real-life business experience.
How can I ensure my coach practices what they preach?
Look for a coach who leads by example. Do they follow their own advice? You can tell by observing how they run their own business and if they practice what they teach. It's important to work with someone who walks the talk.
