The great myth about leadership is that people think it’s easy. They think their bosses have it made, make more money, control their schedule, control the lives of employees…
Please allow me to share a secret. With the sole exception of controlling your own schedule, being the leader of your business is one hundred times more difficult unless you have several million in the bank and are able to run your business as a hobby.
There are at least ten reasons why this is so but I’ll only highlight one. As an employee, your salary is guaranteed. As the leader of your business, you are the person responsible for generating the revenue. Once the bills are paid, you may or may not have enough money left to pay employees or better yet, yourself.
I’ve lived this situation myself and I did so for many years. It’s no fun. It can cost money, friendships, marriages, and self-esteem. The worst part is that leaders become so locked into the day to day aspects of keeping the business running at any cost, they can lose all perspective.
I finally reached my endpoint with my last company and decided to try something new that was much more aligned with my strengths. I was not overly worried about getting the training and education I would need to become a certified speaker, trainer, and coach. What concerned me more was making sure I would not repeat my past mistakes as the leader of my business. I was determined to avoid that trap. Working with a coach seemed like the answer. It was!
Over several months, the impact of coaching for me has been amazing. It has literally changed my entire thought process for my new business and is now a primary reason I’ve become a certified leadership and mentoring coach myself.
As I have reviewed and analyzed the benefits of business and leadership coaching for me and my company, there are five that stand out.
- Through coaching, I realized that I need people to help me build and run my business effectively. The idea that every entrepreneur must be able to do every single job and perform all these roles effectively is not only a myth, but it’s also a way to almost guarantee failure. It is imperative that I am able to perform the tasks I do well that will generate revenue for the business. As the leader, I am responsible for making sure that all key functions of the business are being handled correctly. At the same time, I need to assign and delegate those tasks to people more qualified than I am to perform them well.
- My coach helped me rethink my overall goals for the business. She asked me pointed questions that were designed to help me expand my vision, explore different possibilities, and worked with me to readjust the planning process once decisions were made.
- The coach held me accountable. Goals and objectives were set for each week’s session. It helped me organize, prioritize, and even remove the distractions that inevitably occur as my launch plan took shape.
- My coach was always honest and objective even as she knew some of her thoughts and suggestions might make me uncomfortable. A good coach will help guide you toward the best answer.
- Coaching is coaching. Not consulting, mentoring or therapy. It is designed to find solutions for the client. The best coaches do this by helping the client find the solution from within themselves.
The beauty of coaching is that anyone can benefit from it. Leadership coaching is especially critical for professionals who are looking to grow their business. I wish I had worked with a coach years ago. Had I made that smart simple investment, I’d have been much more successful than I was as the leader of my previous business. It’s never too late.
If you are a leader looking to grow your business, let’s spend 15 minutes together and figure out if business coaching might help you. Drop me a line. I look forward to hearing from you!
#Leadership #Success #Coaching www.jtdcoaching.com