What do you think new coaches need to be reminded of?
New coaches starting out may forget that once they’ve done fifty sessions, they’re going to be a lot more confident. And once they’ve got ten clients and they’ve got several testimonials under their belt and some really grateful clients, your confidence does increase a lot.
The other thing that I think helps is realizing that you don’t have to be a guru. You really don’t have to be any kind of incredible mystic that has the answers to everything, you’re simply there for support and to coach them as best you know how. It’s up to the client what they do with that.
That’s a major, major shift and all coaches go through it, or need to go through it, at some point.
The following is taken from David’s interview with Philip Cohen in 10 Super Coaches.
What method did you find most effective in getting your initial clients, and what advice would you give to coaches trying this method?
Use your database. However, one important lesson I had to learn was to not prejudge the people I contacted. People who I thought couldn’t afford coaching, found a way to pay for it. “Ask and ye shall receive.” If you don’t ask, you have said “no” for the other person.
Did you coach your friends and colleagues? If so, what invitation did you use that worked best and felt good for you?
I had no problem coaching colleagues. However, I made a distinction between friends and acquaintances. I don’t like coaching friends because it’s too easy to have the relationships blend into one. I didn’t want to take the chance of losing both a client and a friend. My current coach is a close friend, however, we’ve both been coaching for a lot of years and know how to set up the relationship so there’s no problem.
The following is taken from David’s interview with Anna Dargitz in 10 Super Coaches.
What training, experience and qualifications did you have when you started coaching?
The most important qualifications to coach masterfully are self-awareness and advanced communicating skills. There are many ways to obtain them. I chose transpersonal/spiritual psychology training, world myth and religion and family life. I obtained a PhD in clinical psychology. I worked in mental hospitals, outward-bound programs, Jungian psychology training schools and private practice. I was an executive director of a non-profit educational institution, a wife and a mom. Life teaches self-awareness and communicating skills to the ready learner in all kinds of environments.
The following is taken from David’s interview in 10 Super Coaches.
How would you suggest coaches find their niche?
I think there are two ways that you can do it. Firstly I would say – relax. If you don’t find your niche straight away it doesn’t matter. You can coach everybody and anybody for a couple of years and just see how it goes.
Secondly, you can work with a mentor coach, which is a great thing to do. I’ve worked with somewhere between eighty and a hundred coaches and one of the main things we do first is look at who would they like to coach, and what they would like to coach that person on.
Now once you choose your niche, it doesn’t mean that’s the only group you have to work with, but you can focus your website and your business cards and your business name on that niche and still coach other people who might be attracted to you.
The following is taken from David’s interview with Philip Cohen in 10 Super Coaches.
How would you suggest coaches find their niche?
I usually suggest letting a niche find the coach, instead of looking for one. Open yourself up to coach anyone and then look for patterns. This has several advantages: you might find yourself in a niche you never anticipated; you can build your business more quickly; you have an opportunity to coach a more diverse group of clients, which will add to your skill base.
When I started my coaching practice, I got a call from a person with a network marketing business. Before long, I had 6 or 8 clients in the same business. If I had decided to pursue it, I could have created a niche from there.
However, if someone comes to coaching with strong conections to a niche, then I would suggest they pursue it. For example, I had a client who was a new coach. Her previous job was executive director of a professional organization. She was on first name basis with all the significant people in her industry. She didn’t have to go through a gatekeeper because she had everyone’s direct phone number. I firmly supported her intent to create a niche in the market immediately.
The following is taken from David’s interview with Anna Dargitz in 10 Super Coaches.
Approximately how long did it take you to generate US$30,000 pa in coaching revenue?
4.5 years…If I knew then what I know now, it would have taken half the time.
Over this period, on average how many days per week were dedicated to coaching?
Each year brought increasing responsibilities and opportunities. I worked on creating client programs when I wasn’t coaching and was available four days a week, three weeks a month.
But it wasn’t until I began teleclass teaching and working with SOC about 18 months ago, that I obtained high visibility and my practice really accelerated. Last month I cleared $5,000.00 US dollars and I worked 5-6 days a week. Passive revenue from client programs hasn’t kicked in yet and that’s what is needed to make more and work less.
