Never Hire a Business Coach Unless You Have These 4 Things
As coaching has grown as an industry, many business coaches are popping up, claiming they can make you a ton of money with their one “secret” approach.
Spoiler alert: almost everyone who works with these coaches ends up paying thousands of dollars upfront and doesn’t get much from the experience.
As I’ve talked to my clients and colleagues, I’ve heard too many terrible stories about people’s experiences with business coaches. This is why I always recommend that before hiring a business coach like us, you do a ton of research to ensure they can offer what you’re looking for.
4 Things You Should Require Before Hiring a Business Coach
If you’re considering hiring a business coach for your business, make sure you always get a clear answer on these four things before you work with them. Require it from every coach (even The Boutique COO business coaches) you’re considering to weed out those just selling you smoke & mirrors.
1. Get their coaching credentials.
The absolute 1st thing I’d look for from a potential coach is their credentials.
Coaching certifications can be achieved via online course platforms like Udemy, so they aren’t worth much. I wouldn’t recommend heavily indexing on those; instead, look at the real-world experience and true degrees.
For example, look for someone with experience starting and growing a business similar to yours or find someone who has industry credentials like a Masters in Business Administration (MBA).
Lots of business coaches simply worked in corporate roles before starting their coaching practice, which means they don’t have entrepreneurial experience themselves.
Important: I’d be especially wary of anyone who is popular on social media but has no true experience in entrepreneurship themselves.
2. Understand their experience executing what they’re coaching you on.
This is critical.
Think about why you want to hire a business coach, and be sure to ask potential coaches if they’ve done this themselves.
For example, if you want to hire a coach to help you grow your team, ask all of the potential coaches you’re talking to if they’ve personally hired a team and what their success looks like.
Even an excellent credentialed coach may not fit the goals you have in your business. If you’re going to pay money to a coach, it’s critical that the person you’re trusting in has true experience in what you want to achieve.
3. Speak to at least 2 references.
This is a non-negotiable!
Ask any potential coach for at least 2 references who you can speak to directly, not just testimonials on their site or social media.
That way you can ask their references about their experience, if they felt the coaching was worth the investment, and any other specifics you want to know about the coach.
4. Get statistics on their results.
Lastly, ask for results!
How much have their clients’ businesses grown? How many of their clients have hit their goals versus those who haven’t?
Again, make sure this is being provided to you not just via their flashy social media posts but as a comprehensive set of statistics.
Interested in learning more about effective business coaching?
If you want to learn more about what effective business coaching can look like, grab a free strategy call with me here!
Our business coaches provide perspective & guidance on challenges you might face as your business grows. We use our experience building 7 figure businesses to help you reach your business goals.
