2012 - Inner Firewalking

Ernest F. Oriente on Building a Business

The following is taken from David’s interview with Ernest F. Oriente in 10 Super Coaches.

How would you recommend coaches start to build their business?

I co-authored a book with my partner Judy Feld, titled ‘SmartMatch Alliances’. If we were building a business in 90 days and we put the driving principle of SmartMatch Alliances into play, we could catapult our business from nothing to something and be moving forward at a rate that is simply extraordinary.

The interesting piece, or the challenging piece, is that many and most coaches are not using this formula, and quite frankly they’re not building businesses that thrive and exceed their expectations. Many, many coaches are not making enough to even be considered a paycheck.

It took us thirty two thousand words to put this formula together. It took the entire first half of the book to explain the concept of ‘living in the world’ and having maximum exposure and having the foundation in place so that you can serve those who are your exact perfect audience.

The once you have that in place, the alliances, and all the additional services that you might provide for that audience, it just falls right into place like dominoes, it’s extremely easy.

Jim Earley on Finding Initial Clients

The following is taken from David’s interview with Jim Earley in 10 Super Coaches.

What top three methods, in order, did you use to get your clients in the first 2 years?

Normally I wouldn’t mention this one, but the thing I did the least, but which brought me the client that kept me in business, was cold calling HR directors. I only pursued the torture of cold calling for six months, but netted a client that provided up to $25K in revenue in a couple of years.

I joined the Minnesota chapter of ASTD (American Society of Training and Development), volunteered to serve on the newsletter, became newsletter editor, and was invited to join the board. I participated up to my ear lobes in that organization for about five years. That gave me lots of visibility and credibility with people in the training and development circles.

I also bartered a membership in an Inner Circle group; a facilitated peer coaching group for business owners. This was a miracle of the highest order. It gave me the opportunity to rub elbows with people accustomed to making a lot of money. It also gave me a source of accountability (I didn’t want to look like a chump there). In time, it led to some business.

Key Steps For New Coaches – Part 2

The following is an excerpt from the CoachStart Manual.

3. Once you’ve decided to go ahead, consider professional coach training. This will give you resources, insights, tools, and support. It will also help you to build your coach network — other coaches you can call on for help and advice. You should pick a school which has happy, successful coaches. Do you require face-to-face training, want the flexibility of teleclass (phone conference calls) training, the multidimensional impact of online learning, or a combination of these? And shop around — prices vary. For a list of training schools and the specials we’ve negotiated, visit: http://www.becomeacoach.com

4. Work with a coach to build your practice. Some people skip Step 3 and jump straight to working with a coach to enter the industry. People in this category are usually those with existing transferable skills (e.g. counselling, or a lot of personal development training). Or, they are people short on cash, who want to generate some revenue from coaching before they invest in a proper training course. A coach can help you avoid common mistakes, and build your practice faster, with less effort than you would on your own. What business systems do you need in place? Where will you find clients? How will you keep your clients? And how do you keep your chin up if you lose three in one day!?

Some new coaches like to combine Steps 3 and 4 by finding a training program which supplies them with a coach.

Key Steps for New Coaches – Part 1

The following is an excerpt from the CoachStart Manual.

Here are the key steps:

Interview 2-3 coaches to find out more about the career and lifestyle you would be getting into. They can tell you the good and the bad; how easy or difficult it is; and … how they got started.

Hire a coach and experience coaching for yourself. But don’t get coached on Becoming a Coach. Not just yet. Get coached on something else you want to achieve or something you want to alter in your life. This will give you the best feel for whether or not this is the career for you. AND, it’s actually the best training you can get. Training from a live course, teleclass, book, or online environment is great. But there’s no substitute for the experience of personally being coached, and seeing how an experienced coach moves you forward.

Develop a Relationship with a Successful Speaker

The following is an excerpt from the CoachStart Manual.

Ask for referrals of the ones he/she is not willing to do; e.g., they can’t pay enough. Offer to go along and assist at their talks. Many really are open to this kind of help. Or ask them what kind of help they could use. Many new speakers apprentice, and again, a local chapter of the NSA is a great place to find a speaker that one can shadow. Also, the local chapters of NSA have mentoring programs that match up new speakers with experienced ones.

Guarantees- What is their refund policy?

The following is an excerpt from David’s independent report on coaching training and certification.

If you’ve done thorough research, this might not be too important to you. However, you’ll have more peace of mind joining with a company that has a generous refund/cancellation policy if you’re not satisfied with the training and/or service. Often this shows they are confident in their service, and that they have a low refund rate.

If they don’t provide refunds at all – it’s possible that it’s to support your commitment. But you need to satisfy yourself that they don’t have a list of complaints against them by disgruntled students.

In any event, it’s a good idea to view testimonials, and even contact current or former students to have a chat before signing up.

Archive

Yearly Archive for 2012

Ernest F. Oriente on Building a Business

Jim Earley on Finding Initial Clients

Key Steps For New Coaches – Part 2

Key Steps for New Coaches – Part 1

Develop a Relationship with a Successful Speaker

Guarantees- What is their refund policy?