FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

ABOUT COACHING

FAQs

Q. Can't I just go to a friend or family member instead of spending money on a coach?

A. Sometimes all we need is someone who will listen deeply, acknowledge our dilemma without judgement, advice, or taint our experience with their own echo experience. A friend or family member can be that someone.

When you hire a coach, you are investing in someone whose perception is not coloured by your history or a personal relationship. A coach can help you with challenges that may seem too great or too trivial to those closest to you. 

A coach can be objective, non-judgemental, and believe in you even when you doubt yourself. 

Q. If a coach is not going to give me advice or tell me what to do, what exactly am I paying for?

A. You already have within you everything you need to change your life. A coach can help you find the key to the door that opens you up to possibilities you never before considered. You are not paying only for the time they spend with you in conversation. You are paying for an expertise that was built over the coach's lifetime that is now going towards helping you to help yourself.

Coaching is an investment towards creating a transformation in your life.

Q. How will I know if you are the right coach for me?

A. The best way to find out is to have an exploratory conversation with me. During this call we will talk briefly about what you are seeking to change in your life, how committed you are to making the change and whether I'm the right person to help you. It's an opportunity for you to get a feel for my way of thinking and working, and whether you want to work with me. The client-coach relationship must be based on mutual respect and trust if it is to deliver the intended benefits to you, the client. We will only proceed to a client-coach relationship once you are ready and willing to commit and make an investment in yourself.

Q. How do I determine the value of coaching to me?

A. Coaching is an "invisible service." It is highly personalised and its benefits are unique to the person being coached. What kind of life are you seeking to create for yourself that you are currently unable to? What would it mean to you to create that life sooner rather than later? What value would you place on that achievement?

Answers to these questions will help you determine if it is worth investing in coaching at this point in your life. The benefit you gain from coaching will be in direct proportion to the effort you put into your own transformation.

Q. How is a coach different from a therapist, a mentor, or a consultant?

A. They're all experts who can help you find solutions to your challenges. However, they differ in how they help. A therapist and a coach are perhaps the most similar in their approach but have a different focus. Both are experts at listening and asking questions that will help you find your own answers.

The key difference is that a therapist will help you heal from past experiences that are holding you back, bringing you into the present. A coach will help you become more present and create your desired future.

Consultants are experts in a specific field who will work closely with you to find solutions and help you implement them. 

A mentor is also typically an expert in a particular industry or area of knowledge who can guide you based on their own experience. 

A coach's expertise lies in asking open questions that invite you to reflect on things you may not previously have considered. A great coach will listen deeply with empathy and non-judgement and give you the space to find your own answers.

A coach who is also a mentor (like I am) will bring in their combined expertise. 

Q. How do I know if I'm ready for a coach?

A. Coaching should not be viewed as remedial. You don't hire a coach only because you think there is something wrong with you. Coaching is for someone who wants to get from where they are today to where they'd like to be, faster. 

The most successful athletes, sportspeople, and leaders hire coaches because they know that what makes them good today might not be good enough tomorrow. They may also be striving to go from good to great, and better than the competition.

If you want to stay relevant, if you want to identify the blindspots and bottlenecks that are holding you back, and if you want help to make faster progress, then you are ready for coaching.

What if you could make possibility, not pain, your catalyst for change? If you are willing to commit towards investing in your most valuable asset (you), then begin by having an exploratory conversation to see if you are ready for coaching.

Q. How will I know if you are the right coach for me?

A. The best way to find out is to have an exploratory conversation with me. During this call we will talk briefly about what you are seeking to change in your life, how committed you are to making the change and whether I'm the right person to help you. It's an opportunity for you to get a feel for my way of thinking and working, and whether you want to work with me. The client-coach relationship must be based on mutual respect and trust if it is to deliver the intended benefits to you, the client. We will only proceed to a client-coach relationship once you are ready and willing to commit and make an investment in yourself.

Q. How do I know what's the right amount to spend on coaching?

A. Most people don't have a budget for coaching, at least not to begin with. Once you experience the transformational impact a great coach can have on your life, you will see it as an investment in yourself rather than a cost or a luxury. 

I suggest you begin by thinking about what you're hoping to achieve in terms of the tangible and intangible outcomes. Perhaps this is a pay raise, a promotion, or a new job. Or it could simply be feeling happier and more fulfilled. What value would you put on these outcomes? How much would you be willing to invest to achieve this value in your life?