The following is taken from David’s interview with Mike Turner in 10 Super Coaches.
What method did you find most effective in getting your initial clients?
Getting work through my existing network.
Initially, I took every opportunity to try and sell my coaching services whenever the opportunity presented itself. After I had been doing this for a couple of years, I reviewed where the work I was doing had come from. What I found, to my surprise, was that none of it had come directly from the people to whom I had been trying to sell it – instead it had all come from unexpected directions.
But what I also realized was that it was important that I was putting myself about rather than just sitting around at home waiting for work to show up. The principle here seems to be that, if I put out my energy for coaching into the world (by talking about what I do, by writing about it, and by taking any opportunity to demonstrate coaching), this energy comes back in the form of work – but by a circuitous and indirect route.
And when I realized this, I stopped trying so hard to sell coaching to the people I met and instead focused more on promoting coaching – which in turn makes the energy flow more easily.
The following is taken from David’s interview with Mike Turner in 10 Super Coaches.
In order, what where the top three sources of your clients in the first 2 years?
From people who had been clients in the time before I was a self-employed coach. The work arose from on-going conversations with them about what I was doing and what the challenges facing them were. This was the main source.
From my website – this only brought a few clients but one at least has now been with me for 6 years off and on.
From a magazine article which mentioned me.
The following is taken from David’s interview with Mike Turner in 10 Super Coaches.
What advice would you give coaches about charging clients?
Set a fee rate that reflects the most value you can deliver. Be very clear with clients that this rate reflects the value you deliver. If the client can’t afford this rate, find trade-offs you can make which reduce the amount you charge. For example, you might suggest that if the client commits to a certain number of sessions that you will reduce your rate by, say, 10%. But be clear that the value of your coaching has not been reduced.
Do you recommend offering free coaching?
Generally not, unless their hunger for coaching is very high. If someone is paying, even if only a nominal amount, they are more likely to value and get value out of the coaching.
The following is taken from David’s interview with Mike Turner in 10 Super Coaches.
Would you advise coaches to pursue certification?
Yes, if only because, as the profession settles down, organizations will increasingly only use certified coaches.
If so, at what stage in their practice, and through which accrediting body?
From as early as possible, be clear what the accreditation criteria are and work towards satisfying them. That way, if the accreditation question comes up, you can say that you are working towards accreditation and state which of the requirements you have met or are close to meeting.
Are there any particular school(s) you would recommend?
The London-based School of Coaching, which is part owned by the Work Foundation (a charity that campaigns to improve the quality of work life). Whilst the fact that I am on the faculty might suggest that I would be biased, the reason I work with the School is because of the high quality of its work.
The following is taken from David’s interview with Mike Turner in 10 Super Coaches.
What are your coaching niche(s)? How did you discover this?
My niches are executive coaching and mentoring, transition coaching, and metavising/supervising other coaches. I discovered these by noticing what the work I was actually doing was, what I felt drawn to do and what I enjoyed.
How would you suggest coaches find their niche?
Discover what you are naturally good at and do it. This sounds easy but is often quite difficult since we tend to be blind to what our natural gifts are. So, notice what interests you, what you feel drawn to, and what you enjoy doing. Get feedback from people who know you, about what your natural strengths and talents are.
Then go with the flow of what is already present and seek to expand and enlarge it so that what you do is aligned with what you love and what you are naturally talented at.
The following is taken from David’s interview with Mike Turner in 10 Super Coaches.
What was the most disheartening for you while building your practice?
What was most disheartening was not getting enough clients – and wondering if I should persevere or go back to being a consultant. I coped with this by working my fairly small network more and by seeking out a couple of organizations which were active in the coaching field and trying to develop affiliate relationships with them.
Although my early attempts to develop such relationships didn’t lead to any work, spending time developing the relationships did mean I was around people who were active as coaches and this sustained my confidence that my work would eventually expand – as it eventually did.
What was the most interesting or exciting thing for you about building your practice?
The point at which I realized that my practice was self-sustaining and that I no longer felt a day to day anxiety about whether I would be able to pay the bills that month!
