6 Reasons Why You Should Have a Coach
TL;DR
A coaching relationship is all about helping you realize your greatness — what you most want to create, accomplish and be.
It can help you get out of your own way, provide accountability, and be the support system you've always wanted but never knew existed.
In my last piece, I talked about how to approach summer when it comes to balancing your career with all the good things that the season brings with it.
In that same spirit, we're going to be spending the month of June focusing on all things coaching — namely, how coaching can best support you and your career.
Not sure about coaching? I totally get it. So let me demystify the process and lay out the bare bones reasons why there is immense value in working with a coach:
1) YOU’LL GET TOOLS FOR LIVING BETTER.
Plain and simple, you will get tools from your coach on how to bring more of the "Real You" into your life and career. We're talking about tools that include how to:
Break through to the next level of your career
Have a difficult conversation
Prepare for a huge audition
Get you in the right mindset for the big job interview
Create more balance in your life
Transition out of a current field or...
Transition back into the business if you have been out for a while (Hello, all you parents out there!)
2) WE SEE WHAT YOU CAN’T.
Everyone has blindspots — the areas in your life where you are being or acting in a certain way but can’t see it. Coaches are trained to help you see these and then help you determine what to do about them.
This is why all the best athletes have coaches — sometimes they are so focused on certain parts of their performance that they're unable to see the places that could use some adjustment. It’s a no-brainer for them to coach with someone who can help them find and work through those blindspots.
We don't question the investment in a coach for sports or for perfecting your craft. But what about for the way you are being in your life and your career? Don’t you want to master that?
3) YOUR COACH ACCEPTS ALL OF YOU AND BELIEVES IN ALL OF YOU.
It’s a breath of fresh air to have a relationship in your life that is truly judgment free — the kind where you don't have to be afraid of saying what's on your mind and you don’t have to worry about hurting the other person's feelings.
I always tell my clients, "I'm not your best friend, I'm not your agent, or a family member. I have no agenda for your life other than to support you." In other words:
Coaching is all about you. My god, let me say that again.
Coaching is for and about YOU.
Yes, the process is a joint effort. But it's a joint effort focused exclusively on your needs.
4) YOU ACTUALLY REALLY WANT A COACH. YOU JUST DON’T KNOW WHAT TO EXPECT.
I get it, that unknown element of what happens in a coaching session can make people skeptical. So, let me dispel the mystery.
What will happen when you come to a coaching session?
We will have a conversation, but not just any conversation. This is the one you're looking for — the one you want to have but are afraid of because it will call on you to own who you are and how you’re showing up in your life.
When we coach we don’t just talk; we roll up our sleeves and get to work on whatever you say you want to do that you haven’t done yet...whatever you are frustrated with that isn’t going the way you planned...whatever is holding you back from doing the things you know you can do. It's a space for getting real about yourself. What's missing in your life. What you want more of.
From this place of awareness, you're able to get back to what’s possible for your life and your career. That's when we start planning — mapping out, committing to being your Best Self...the unafraid one.
Like a muscle that's atrophied, it feels difficult (if not impossible) to strengthen this way of being, at first. But with each small win, it gets stronger — you get stronger — and your belief in yourself becomes unquestionable.
And you don’t want this because…why???
5) ACCOUNTABILITY. ACCOUNTABILITY. ACCOUNTABILITY. AND DID I MENTION...ACCOUNTABILITY?
Accountability is EVERYTHING.
Think about one thing you wanted to accomplish in the past week that was important to you that you didn't get to. We all have one (and most of us have ten).
Now think about if you had a coach holding that action with you, checking in with you about it, supporting you in the deeper reason of why you want to do it. Think maybe you would've done it?
That's the difference here...often creative professionals don't have any accountability for their work unless it's part of their paid job. But sending that email, working on your website or getting in that meditation IS YOUR JOB!!! And we are here to support you so you don't have to hold all of those actions by yourself.
Coaching is accountability, and accountability is everything.
6) NOTHING GETS DONE BY JUST THINKING ABOUT IT (IT'S NEVER TOO LATE).
The truth is that we're often afraid to go after the things we want most in life. It's easy to not put yourself out there because the risk of failure is too much to bear. So you spend months...or years...or even decades thinking about taking action, but never doing it.
As your coach, we are your personal cheerleader — we BELIEVE in you. For real.
And part of our job is making sure that you are working within a world of action, not words.
The best part? It's NEVER too late to begin. Even if you're one of those people that have been putting something off for decades, all it takes is one choice to step toward that life you've been dreaming of.
And your coach is here to take that journey with you.
So my question for you is a simple one: What will it take to get you into action?
For some of you, maybe just reading this piece. Others will likely think it over and say, "I’ll wait to coach until I really need it or I have the money."
Let me be clear, the purpose of this is not to convince you to coach with me, it’s to get you off of the sidelines and into action where it matters most right now in your life!
If you know what you want to do, then great, take action. If you're stuck, then you owe it to yourself to allow me or some other fabulous coach to help you get to where you want to be.
However you find coaching, know this: it's worth the investment when you find the right coach. Our job is to help you get out of your way and stand in your greatness. And we LOVE what we do.
1 REASON WHY SOME OF YOU MAY STILL BE SKEPTICAL OF COACHING...
Because even after reading this, it’s easier and safer to stay a skeptic. I get it — I really do. To all the skeptics, I leave you with this Anais Nin quote:
"And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom."
