9 Questions you must answer before you hire a coach
Are you considering investing in a life/confidence/ business coach this year?
The decision to hire a coach is one of the smartest investments you can make to truly start living your ideal life. Clearly, as a certified life and business coach myself, I’m a bit biased here! But I’m also a client myself - I’ve had both life coaching and business coaching - and I know just how valuable personal coaching can be. A reputable and professional coach will help you to clarify your vision and help you come up with realistic strategies to get you from where you are now to where you want to be. A coach should be 100% committed to your success and 100% confidential, constantly inspiring and motivating you (my clients call me their personal cheerleader), should believe that you can absolutely reach your goals and be supportive but also able to give you a swift kick up the butt when you need it! But here's the thing, having signed up for coaching myself, I know how confusing it can be deciding when to make that investment and who to make it with.
So here are 9 questions to ask yourself before you invest money with a personal coach this year:
#1 What problem or challenge do you need to solve in your life or business?
Are you struggling to know what strategies will help you grow your business? Or do you need help living life more authentically and incorporating your values into your business? Or perhaps you need support in overcoming toxic habits and gaining more clarity and confidence in your personal life? Only you will know the real challenges that are stopping you from living your ideal life. Spend some time getting as clear as you can on this as it will help you to choose the right coach for you.
#2 Are you truly committed to making any necessary changes?
Coaching is a future-focused, intensely empowering experience that WILL create results and uplevel your life, but it does require commitment from YOU. Most coaches will meet with you either face to face or virtually (over Skype or Zoom for example) weekly or fortnightly and there will often be homework for you to complete to consolidate your coaching sessions. These will usually be actions you’ll take or changes you’ll make in your life or business that will move you closer to overcoming your challenges and meeting your goals. Are you ready and committed to making a change in your life?
#3 What type of coach will help you overcome your particular challenges?
There are LOTS of different types of coaches - business coaches, fertility coaches, life coaches, mindset coaches… if you can think of a challenge, there is likely to be a coach out there who can help you solve it. For example, when I work with my clients I have a simple 4-step system to skyrocket the Clarity, Confidence, Courage and Consistency in their life and business. I help them to gain clarity and focus, rediscover their purpose and passion, boost their confidence, create real change and start playing bigger in their life and business. Looking at your answer to question #1 above, what type of coach is going to be able to support you best?
#4 Are you more excited by a group coaching programme or one-on-one support?
While most coaches will have a one-to-one programme, many also have group programmes that allow you to have both one-to-one coaching and/or group coaching with others who are facing the same or similar challenges to you. This can be a great way to see your problems from a different perspective and you can definitely benefit from listening while someone else is being coached or sharing their story.
#5 What is your financial position vs your potential coach’s offering?
Personal coaching is a worthwhile investment and working with the right coach will have a huge positive impact on your life, but it’s important to make sure that you have the budget for it. Some coaches (me included) allow you to spread the cost over weeks or months. This should be clear on their website, but if not it’s a good question to ask on a discovery call with them.
#6 Are your potential coaches getting results with their clients?
Reading a coach’s website is a good way to learn about what they offer, but you’ll also want to know what results their other clients have had. Any good coach will be happy to share testimonials either on their website or personally if you ask them for references. Look for clients that had similar challenges to the ones you’re facing now.
#7 Are you happy with your potential coach’s level of qualification?
Coaching is currently an unregulated industry which means that anyone can set themselves up as a coach without training or qualifications. This doesn’t necessarily mean that they won’t be a good coach, but a certified or accredited coach has to go through a prescribed training course and have certain a level of experience. All of which can give you that extra confidence before you commit to working with them. The main certification bodies are: The International Federation of Coaches (ICF), The Association for Coaching (AC), The International Authority for Professional Coaching & Mentoring (IAPCM). For example, I am a full member of the AC and my certification is with the IAPCM.
#8 Can you book a taster session or discovery call before you hire a coach?
Testimonials can tell you that other people are getting results with a coach, but there really is no substitute for talking to them yourself. I know, it’s a bit scary when you don’t know what to expect, but most discovery calls are just a way for you to get to know your coach a bit better, to ask any questions you might have and to decide if you’re a good fit for each other. After all, you’re going to be spending time together each week or month so it’s important that you get along!
#9 Can you wait 24 hours before you make a decision to hire a coach?
Some coaches will HATE me for telling you this, but that’s because their marketing and sales are based on ‘click bait’ - that webinar, video or ad that makes you feel like you have to sign up for their programme immediately or you’ll miss out. You know what I mean right? But any truly professional coach will know how important it is for you to be 100% committed to your growth and success BEFORE you start working with them. And for the right coach, 24 hours won’t change that.