Latest / The SmallBizChat with Melinda Emerson / Beware of New Business Barbie

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Beware of New Business Barbie · The SmallBizChat with Melinda Emerson

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  3, 10, 1, 0, ignition, liftoff, Ending small business failure.
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  Welcome to the Small Biz Chat podcast with a number 1 small business expert Melinda Emerson.
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  Belinda's goal is to end small business failure, and she'll give you the information
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  you need to succeed and live the life you've dream of.
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  Now here's the small Biz lady herself.
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  Melinda Emerson.
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  Hi, everybody.
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  This is Melinda Emerson, the small Biz lady, and you are listening to the smallbizchat
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  podcast.
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  Today, smallbiz lady diary posts, we're gonna be talking about Beware of New Business Barbie.
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  Now let me tell you something, you guys.
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  The coaching industry is unregulated, and that means it's not like being a doctor or a lawyer,
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  you do not need any specific credentials or degrees to be considered a coach.
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  Therefore, anybody can call themselves a coach.
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  But, listen, that's not a good thing.
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  There's a lot of people out here, and I call them new business Barbies.
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  And they are people who've been in business barely a year or 2, and now they're a coach.
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  Now they're gonna help you.
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  Listen.
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  That is a mistake.
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  Do not get lord by how many followers somebody has on Instagram And so whether or not they
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  would be a good coach for you or your business.
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  Do not get lured by purses and clothes and shoes and and people that look like they're
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  constantly on vacation or riding in private jets.
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  Listen.
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  Nobody's life is as good as it looks on social media.
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  And I am so tired of people who've been in business for 2 minutes suddenly putting their
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  shingle out and saying they're gonna teach you.
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  Listen to me.
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  There is a difference between teaching and talking.
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  People who spend all their time interviewing people about success are not successful.
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  They're just good at interviewing people.
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  And so you wanna make sure that just because somebody has a podcast, just because somebody
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  has a huge following on Instagram, does not mean that they are a business expert.
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  What you wanna do is check them out.
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  Go see, are they showing up any place else other than Instagram.
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  Do they have a blog?
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  Have they written books?
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  Do they have a ton of recommendations on LinkedIn?
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  You need to find out who these people really are that you are wanting to hire to be your
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  coach.
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  I'm very concerned that I see people spending money on experts that, you know, that are not
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  experts, and they haven't done their homework And then the next thing I know, I see them out
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  online talking about why coaching doesn't work and how they wasted a bunch of money and that,
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  you know, you should avoid it because everything you need to know about running your
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  business, you can find out from Google.
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  Well, that's actually not true.
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  You know, if you feel this I'm sure that you feel this way because you went out and hired a
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  new business, Barbie.
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  You hired somebody who doesn't know what they're doing.
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  And I, you know, I do not do rants too often, but this is definitely a rant podcast because I
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  want you to work with someone who's been where you are trying to go.
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  You cannot get coaching from someone who's a solopreneur and you're in the process of
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  scaling up your business, and they've never had employees, never paid payroll, never paid work
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  with compensation in It it's madness, but I see it happening constantly all over the place.
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  Let me just let me just tell you something.
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  I define coaching as an expert who works with their clients to clarify and raise awareness of
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  their goals and supports them in removing obstacles that are preventing them from
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  achieving business success.
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  That's what a business coach is.
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  So do not think that these folks that are out here promising you all these results, you know,
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  and the other thing too is I'm not really sure you need to be working with somebody who's
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  gonna tell you they've been working with certain clients for years.
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  That's not how coaching works.
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  You should be working with somebody 3 to 6 months on specific goals they need to get in
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  and they need to get out.
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  And so I'm gonna talk to you today about, you know, how do you know that you need a coach?
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  And then the reasons why people aren't successful with coaching, and then we're gonna
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  talk about how to hire a business coach because I want you to know that having a coach will get
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  you further faster, but you've gotta know why you need 1 and and and what it is.
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  I mean, certainly, as a business owner, you might think that you have everything figured
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  out, but that simply is just not true.
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  You know, we all have talents and and leadership skills and things like that.
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  But there's always things you can learn along the way.
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  And if if you hire a business coach, that person's gonna, like, sort of, like, guide you
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  and and give you some support so that you can start grow or develop a business.
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  Almost like a sports coach, you know, pitchers have pitching coaches.
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  So you need to really understand exactly the thing that you need that you want to develop
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  and the skills and resources you need in order to be successful in your business.
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  But I I think that there's a few things that are big indicators for when you need a coach.
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  Sometimes you need a coach when you're first starting out because you're like, you got this
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  idea, but you don't know necessarily how to execute it.
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  But then sometimes once you're running your business, you might just constantly feel like
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  you are up to your ears and alligators like you are constantly overwhelmed.
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  When you get to the point of overwhelm, you need a coach.
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  Sometimes you just really want a confidant to talk to about your business, and and that's
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  what a coach is useful for that too.
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  You also might need a coach.
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  If you know what to do, but you don't know how to do it or you haven't been doing it, You know
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  what to do, but you haven't been doing it because you need somebody holding you
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  accountable to get it done.
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  If you need to adjust your business model, that is a good use of why you might wanna bring in a
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  coach.
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  If you're just not getting the results you want, that's another reason because somebody
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  else can look at what you're spending your time on, what you're spending your money on, and why
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  it's not getting you the results.
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  And sometimes an outside person is exactly what you need.
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  Sort of like to help you look at that But if you wanna save time and money, somebody who's
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  been there, done that can definitely help you.
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  So coaching is good for that.
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  If you find yourself really listening only to your own ideas, that's definitely a telltale
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  sign that a coach would be good for you.
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  If you just feel stuck and just frustrated with everything that's going on in your business,
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  you know, you might need a coach to help you get things organized so that you can fall back
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  in love with your business.
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  And, also, if you're ready for your company to grow, sometimes you need a coach to help you
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  help your company grow.
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  Now sometimes, you know, people aren't successful with coaching.
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  And they and honestly, there are, like, three main reasons why people don't have a good
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  experience with business coaching.
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  Number 1, they don't know what coaching is.
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  Number 2, they hire the wrong type of coach.
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  Or number 3, they expect something that a coach can't deliver.
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  You know, a coach is not a magician.
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  It's like going to the hairdresser and saying make me look like Beyonce.
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  Well, if you don't look like Beyonce, that's gonna be an impossible task.
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  I mean, so you you really wanna think through if you think that you are ready to hire a
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  business coach, there's a couple of things that you need to think about.
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  Number 1, you need to be clear about what you're trying to accomplish, you know, get
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  clear on your objectives.
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  And then you wanna ask other business owners for referrals.
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  Other people who are successful are using coaches guys.
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  So ask other people who they've worked with.
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  You wanna make sure that, you know, you understand if you need a code, but sometimes
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  you might just need a consultant, somebody to come in and do something for you to improve a
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  specific area of your business.
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  Or you might need a trainer.
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  You might need to just go take a course, you know, for a day, for a weekend.
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  I mean but if you think you really do need a coach, the best resource in the world is other
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  business owners.
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  My new book fixture business is really about encouraging people to take back control of
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  their business and change how their businesses is run.
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  It's not okay to skip paychecks.
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  It's not okay to never feel like you can take a vacation, and it's also not okay to not know
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  how much profit you've made in your business until your taxes are done.
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  I really want business owners to stop letting their businesses be runaway trained I've
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  written this book to teach people processes and systems to help them run their businesses
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  intentionally.
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  My goal is to help existing entrepreneurs create a business that allows them to live
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  their dream life.
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  Now
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  when you know that you want to hire a coach, one of the things you need to do is hire the
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  right fit.
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  So just like you wouldn't hire the first employee you interviewed, you should hire the
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  first coach you talk to either.
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  You need to talk to at least three people who are full time business experts and coaches.
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  You know, most people will give you a free introductory meaning to discuss your objectives
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  and, you know, just see if you guys like each other.
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  I mean, because, listen, good chemistry is is key to making this process work.
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  So you wanna make sure that you you talk to several people.
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  And then you wanna also make sure you ask them what is their typical timeline?
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  Like, how often do they work with people?
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  I think it's really important to know what kind of, you know, programs do they offer?
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  Do they offer, you know, like, for in my practice, I offer VIP coaching day.
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  I offer a one off, one conversation.
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  That's it.
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  I also offer, you know, a 3 month coaching program.
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  And and, certainly, I do payment plans and things like that too, but what you wanna find
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  out what kind of coaching programs are they doing?
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  Is it group coaching?
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  Are they doing a mastermind program?
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  Is it just an intensive?
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  Is it a retreat?
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  What is it?
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  You wanna make sure that you're really, really clear about what kind of work you're going to
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  be doing with this person.
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  And then you definitely want to check their track record.
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  You do not want to hire any coach who you have not talked to people who work with that coach.
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  About and specifically, you wanna talk about what kind of results they have.
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  You also wanna check out their social footprint You know, have they written books on business
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  success?
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  You know, someone who can't provide that, it's probably a new business Barbie.
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  Because they've been in business for 2 minutes, and now they decided their business is
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  coaching.
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  Listen, I've been in business for 20 years.
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  You wanna know how to build a business that you can sustain that long?
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  You might wanna look at a coach like me.
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  But but, again, you just wanna make sure that you do your homework on these people.
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  A lot of people that are out here doing coaching aren't just really, really good
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  salespeople.
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  So you wanna make sure that you know how this person works, that they have a structured
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  process for working with coaching clients, and that they this is what they do and they have a
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  track record of doing it.
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  And more importantly, that they have been where you are trying to go, that they've been there
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  done that so you can benefit from their experience.
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  That's the whole reason why they're a coach so that they can pour into you what they need.
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  Now the other thing you wanna do is find out from your coaching, potential coach what how
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  they work with people, like you know, are you gonna have a set time every week that you guys
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  are gonna talk?
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  Are you gonna work together for 3 months or 6 months, or, you know, are you gonna talk
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  weekly?
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  You need to establish when you're talking to them initially, how they work with people.
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  Because here's the deal.
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  If you go work with a coach for too short of a period of time, You may get some quick wins,
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  but that won't maximize the value of coaching.
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  But if you go to work with somebody too long, you might become dependent on your coach.
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  And and be aware of of coaches that tell you they've been working with the same people for
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  years.
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  That is a telltale sign.
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  You want a coach that's gonna work with you and leave you with this information to go forth and
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  prosper.
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  You do not want somebody trying to hang on trying to keep getting more and more money out
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  of your pocket.
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  That is not the kind of coach that you need, and that's not the kind of person you even want
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  in your life.
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  That's constantly looking for the upsell with you.
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  That is not it.
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  You also, you know, if you're gonna take on a coach, there's There's a couple of things that
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  you have to do.
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  Number 1, you gotta be prepared to be honest.
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  And you've gotta be prepared to hear the truth.
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  You know, the one of the top factors and whether or not a coach works is if you are
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  coachable.
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  And if you're willing to tell the ugly truth about what's really going on with you, and your
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  business.
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  And you gotta be willing to accept feedback and alternative perspectives.
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  You know, it's important to realize that you may need to change your behavior or mentality
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  in order to achieve your desired business results.
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  And and This is what is required to grow.
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  So if you go with what you already know, you're gonna get the same result.
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  So don't hire a coach if you're not ready to be coached.
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  Okay.
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  It it you gotta be coachable.
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  It is really key to how you're going to be able to be successful.
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  And you've gotta be able to commit and take action.
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  You know, if you're not gonna be committed, none of this matters.
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  You should not waste your time or your money.
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  But when you hire a coach, you know, a lot of the results come from your ability to act on
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  the things that you guys talk about.
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  So if you're not willing to do that, don't bother.
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  If you can't set aside the time you need to meet with your coach each week and have the
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  time to actually, you know, put action plans together Don't do this because it's you're
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  gonna be frustrated.
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  You're gonna feel like you wasted your money because you didn't have the time to execute on
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  all of the things that you guys talked about.
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  So it's really, really, really important.
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  So you've gotta be honest with yourself.
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  You've gotta take sort of, like, yourself to task and say, okay.
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  Can I slow my schedule down enough to talk to this person every week?
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  You know, because you need a confidential sounding board.
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  You need advice.
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  Sometimes you need specific things done.
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  And, you're gonna have to be the person to do them, though.
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  You know, a really good coach as somebody who listens and directs, but most of the the
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  answers come from you.
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  Your coach is just gonna pull that information out of you.
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  So you think that you're ready for a coach, please, please, please, don't go out here and
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  grab one of these new business reason, coach you in your business.
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  Do not do that.
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  Do your homework.
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  Make sure this person is actually the success that they claim to be And then, you know, have
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  an honest conversation with yourself.
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  You know, make sure you're coachable.
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  You do not wanna waste your time or your coach's time.
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  And, certainly, you don't wanna be paying money for coaching.
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  If you are not gonna listen to the coach, you have to respect that you do not know at all and
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  then you gotta be open to feedback.
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  That is the only way coaching is going to work for you.
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  But honestly, guys, hiring a business coach can really be a good thing.
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  I know every time I've ever had to take my business to the next level, I've used coaches,
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  and I've had multiple coaches over shoot, certainly over 20 years of business.
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  I also have people that, you know, are just mentors of mine, people that I call on, but,
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  you know, you need to make sure that you're ready to hire a coach that you can clear off
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  your schedule to make time to commit to listen to that coach and and take action.
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  And you also, you know, need to make sure that you are coachable and that you set your
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  objectives and track towards those goals so that you can be able to maximize your
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  investment in coaching.
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  So Again, just do not run out here and hire somebody who's been in business for 2 minutes,
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  and now they're coaching you.
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  Do not do that.
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  Do not hire a solopreneur to coach a business that you're scaling up.
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  You know, make sure that the person that you're hiring has been where you're trying to go.
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  It's been there, done that.
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  Got the t shirt.
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  That is really, really, really, really important.
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  So if I could give you what I call my action point of the week.
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  Do not take advice or coaching from someone who hasn't been where you're trying to go make sure
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  they have demonstrated expertise and that they are an actual expert in what they're teaching
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  you.
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  If you do that, you cannot go wrong and hiring a business coach can be an amazing thing for
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  you to take you to the next level.
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  Just watch out for those new business barbies because they are all over the internet,
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  reporting that they can change your life for a small, and, really, a so small fee.
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  So make sure that you're working with a coach who who really can take you to the next level.
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  I am willing to ever I am the small biz lady, and you are listening to the small biz chat
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  podcast.
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  Thank you for listening to the small biz chat podcast with Melinda Emerson.
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  For more resources and small business success strategies visit succeed as your own boss.com.
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  Subscribe to this podcast wherever you listen to podcasts and join us next Wednesday.