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3 reasons to hire a professional coach

A good coach can help you level up, get inspired, and set goals you’ve been putting off for way too long. Yet “coaching” has become a saturated industry with a range of providers, from academically-trained professionals to Instagram influencers charging fees anywhere between $40 to $3,500 per session. How can you determine if a coach can help you and what should you be prepared for when you begin?

I’ve listed three ways in which the right coach can add value to your work and life:

  1. Confidence. A focused coach-client relationship can build confidence over time through task achievement, heightened goal setting behaviors, and improved self awareness. Confidence comes through accomplishment; the simple act of showing up to a coach session can boost esteem and feelings of productivity.
  2. Performance. Targeted questions can encourage even the most experienced professionals to measure and analyze their own performance. This, in turn, can maximize professional development and catalyze personal growth. Just as sports coaches help players succeed, business coaches can help clients “see the field” within specific industries and relevant verticals.
  3. Progress. From business to personal settings, stagnation can occur for a variety of reasons — boredom, lack of inspiration, the absence of motivation, ineffective routine. A coach can motivate clients to set and change patterns so progress can take place. Whether you’re trying to write a book or grow your business, use a coach to help you identify areas of opportunity and make plans to stay on track.

I take on a limited number of coaching clients. Send a message if you’d like to learn more.

Own your story

Your value proposition may change.

Your origin story will not.

While small businesses may not have the resources needed to build huge international brands, we HAVE STORIES.

Use those stories. Own them.

Stories connect. They can rally communities, encourage investment, and help people remember who you are and why you’re doing what you’re doing.

Remember: YOU are the secret ingredient as you build your business. Why? Because no one is creating the way you create.

No one builds as you build.

Your uniqueness is an asset.

Want help understanding your story? Reach out.

Baseline for success

The course you’re planning to launch, the community you’re trying to engage, the interview you hope to conduct, the podcast you want to record, the book you’re hoping to write — yes, you could fail. The project might end up in disaster, and nobody likes it.

But what if one person does? What if your work helps one person feel inspired, find strength, start something new, or keep going?

Before stressing about the outcome of your work, take time to define what success looks like for you. What is the minimum you need to see to know that your efforts are worthwhile?

Anything above and beyond that is gravy.

When you’re not sure how to begin, continue

Beginning anything is heavy. Expectations and pressure can weigh down even the loftiest ideas — to the point those ideas never catch the wind they need to sail.

Before we start, our ideas grow heavy with fear: this might not work, I don’t know how to begin, my plan is not complete, what will they say, it’s not the right time.

Don’t worry about starting; instead, continue.

Take the gold of what is now and keep going. The future is imaginary.

Don’t waste a moment questioning what is next. Continue.

Embrace mess

Side steps. Mistakes. A missed call. Broken code. Messes are often where innovation is found; the places we release control and let go of perfection is the space the unexpected is allowed room to breathe.

Julia Margaret Cameron’s smudgy photographs became her hallmark. Navajo rug weavers intentionally left imperfections in their work. Wabi sabi ceramics celebrate imperfections. Silly Putty wasn’t meant to be entertainment, and Potato Chips were the result of a complaining customer.

The next time you feel like you’ve made a horrible decision or dropped the ball, see if you can reframe the moment as an opportunity.

Have any of your mistakes worked in your favor? Tell me @redheadlefthand.