How to choose the right business coach for you, as a self-employed trainer or animal behaviourist
If you’ve ever thought about working with a business coach to move your dog training or animal behaviour business forward, you’ve probably worried about the idea of investing in something that you regret…. I hear you (and I’ve been there!).
I’ll be honest, I used to think that business coaching was a lot of hot air - people being paid to say not very much at all except to answer every question you ask with ‘Well, what do you think the answer is?’. I mean, I don’t bloody well know… that’s why I’m asking you! I once had a session with a coach like this and it felt like a complete waste of time and money. It changed nothing.
Equally, I’ve had a one-off session with a coach who was the opposite of this. They tried to push me into snap decisions that felt completely out of alignment with my values and the industry, having spent less than 1 minute finding out about me and my business. I could barely get a word in and came away feeling frustrated. Unsurprisingly, I implemented none of it.
Because of these experiences (and hearing many others like them), I was initially reluctant to offer business coaching services, despite more and more people asking for my help. But then I realised that it’s precisely because of these issues that I needed to offer an alternative!
Now, before we go any further, I just want to reassure you that this isn’t going to be an article about why I’m a great business coach/ mentor and how everyone else is rubbish… that would be supremely arrogant, wouldn’t it?! Not only would it be arrogant, it would also be untrue: I’m not the right fit for everyone.
The purpose of this article is to guide you through three key considerations that will help you choose the right person to support you with your training or behaviour business.
#1 - What do you want to achieve?
If you know what you want to achieve or what your priorities are, you will be in a better position to decide if someone will be a good fit for you. Whilst there are coaches who will work with anyone, the reality is that most business coaches are best at helping people to achieve particular goals… just like how you might be great at supporting people whose dogs bark at other dogs but don’t feel that you’re working in your ‘zone of genius’ when it comes to separation issues (or whatever).
There are no right or wrong business goals. Sometimes they’re dependent on the stage of business you’re in. Sometimes they might reflect you on a more personal level. You just need to decide what yours are…. or at least what your next step is.
Let’s look at three examples of people who might want support from a business coach:
Ambitious and entrepreneurial dog trainer who wants to earn £100K+ a year by taking on a large team and managing a huge training facility, offering a wide variety of classes, day-care and grooming services
Experienced and educated trainer or behaviourist who is already self-employed. Wants to increase their earnings and/ or improve their work-life balance, whilst avoiding the complications/ overheads of employing lots of people and owning venues
Totally new and inexperienced trainer or behaviourist who wants to launch their own business as a side hustle to a paid job. Looking for guidance on everything they need to start up their business (psst… if this describes you, you might want to look at my online course First Steps to Success)
Each one of these people could work with the same business coach. But I’d argue that they actually need quite different things. So it makes sense that they’d probably be better supported by a coach who is particularly good at (and focuses on) helping people to take the specific next step that they’re looking for… or at least someone with specific programmes designed to tackle the things that each person is looking for.
So, once you’re clear on the direction you’d like to take, have a look at how that aligns with the business coaches you’re considering. Ask yourself:
Do they have certain criteria that indicate whether someone would be a good fit for them or will they work with anyone? Do you fit the criteria?
Do they have a specific programme that has been designed to help people meet the particular goal that you have, with a clear process or pathway?
Have they achieved this goal themselves and/ or helped others to achieve it? And was it in the same industry that you’re in?
These questions should be helpful prompts to steer you in the right direction towards someone who will be well placed to help you to achieve your goals. But, of course, there’s more to choosing the right business coach than just whether or not they could actually help you!
#2 - How do you like to work?
The next consideration is about how you like to work. There are many factors to explore here.
Firstly, the way in which the service is delivered may be important to you. Most business coaches work (very successfully) online, so location is not an issue but if you’re someone who absolutely feels the need to meet people in person, you’ll need to reduce your search to those within travelling distance.
Secondly, it can also be helpful to find out if they offer coaching in its purest form (involving the belief that everyone actually already holds the answers to their own problems and the coach’s role is to help them uncover these answers) or if they provide mentoring (where they take the role of a guide who advises and helps to steer you towards goal, often using their own experience to support you)…. or a combination of the two.
You may feel that you’d be better suited to one approach or the other. For example, some people find ‘pure coaching’ really annoying if they’re looking for more practical and actionable guidance. On the other hand, others really enjoy this process and may feel restricted by a more ‘mentoring’ type approach.
[If you’re wondering, I do a combination of both coaching and mentoring and tailor it to the preferences and needs of the person I’m working with, because (a) that’s what I, personally, find most helpful and (b) it’s where my skills lie from my teaching and school leadership background.]
Thirdly, you may also want to consider whether you’d prefer group coaching or 1:1 support. Group coaching tends to be a bit less expensive but it can make some people more reluctant to engage and it may be tricky to get the support you’re looking for… especially if everyone is working on different goals and priorities.
Finally, you should also consider what level of support you want…
Perhaps you’d benefit from the reassurance of knowing that you can ask any niggling questions in between your coaching sessions so that you don’t get ‘stuck’?
Maybe you’d like access to resources/ courses/ workbooks which you can be busy working through in between your scheduled sessions, so that you’re not ‘waiting’ to make progress?
Or would you like the added comfort of having your coach to support you with the practical implementation of some of your ideas by giving feedback on your work (such as the copy for your website or the design of a flyer that you’ve created)?
If you’re someone who really likes to understand the ‘why’ beneath what’s being suggested, you should look for a coach that takes this approach, instead of just giving you a ‘formula’ or tick list of generic tasks.
[If the four points above all sound good to you, you’ll probably like the way I work!]
Or maybe you don’t want any of that and just want one session a month to plan together and then be left to it?
Again, there’s no right or wrong but knowing what’s likely to work for you can be helpful in choosing the right business coach or programme to best suit your needs.
#3 - How do you feel about them?
Now, this one might feel like it’s not that important but it really is… as you’ll soon realise if you work with a someone who isn’t suited to you!
There are a couple of key issues here.
Firstly, to get the best out of business coaching, you need to have trust in (and feel comfortable with) the person that you choose. Unless you can be open and honest with them about your business struggles and dreams (without fear of judgement, embarrassment or gossip), then it’s going to be a painful process… and not likely to result in the progress that you want. Some people take comfort in knowing that the person they’re working with has been through similar struggles themselves, whereas others might feel more confident working with someone who gives the impression that they’re infallible (which, of course, in reality, nobody is!). Horses for courses….
Another reality of business coaching which makes the relationship between you so important is that it can feel quite challenging at times. Part of the job of a business coach is to help you to see things differently (and do things differently). Just like in our work with companion animals and their people, various tweaks, changes and mindsets shifts often need to be made in order to facilitate progress. If you feel comfortable with the person you’re working with and trust that they’re invested in your success, it makes this far easier!
Secondly, I’d recommend that you choose someone who truly aligns with your values and personal preferences. Otherwise, you will likely find yourself continually resisting and pushing back against their suggestions (or just keeping quiet whilst thinking ‘no way am I going to do that!’) because they just haven’t been able to see things through your eyes. Perhaps, in theory, a great business coach would simply be able to adapt everything to the values and personality of the person in front of them. However, in reality, it’s going to be hard for an ultra-extroverted, profit-at-all costs, risk-taking business coach to truly relate to an introverted, ethics-driven, business-cautious dog trainer or animal behaviour consultant. Yes, those are extreme examples but you get the general idea!
Whilst you don’t just want to work with a coach who is a clone of yourself (because you’d miss out on the different perspectives that will help you move forward), it works best if the two parties aren’t continually fighting against each other because they’re coming at everything from totally different angles.
There’s a world of difference between someone providing constructive challenge and encouraging you to see or do things differently and someone who just keeps pushing you into things that feel totally out of alignment for you. The first will help you to move forward, the second will make you want to shrink away.
Ultimately, your business coach doesn’t need to become your new best friend but it would be good if you kind-of-liked-them, at least… someone who irritates the hell out of you or makes you cringe every time you hear or read anything that they put out there is just not going to be your best option!
So, there you have it…. I hope that these prompts will help you to choose the right business coach to support your next steps with your animal training or behaviour business!
And if you’re wondering whether or not I’d be a good fit for you, take a look at my 1:1 coaching/mentoring programme, where you’ll see exactly who it is (and isn’t!) likely to be right for.
If it sounds like an option that you’d like to explore then let’s have a chat… book a free, no obligation call.
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