Do You Want a Bully as a Coach?
Some business coaches seem to love to kick butt and be hard-nosed bullies. They feel that people need to be pressured and bullied into performing; that aspiring entrepreneurs need to be prodded out of their limiting ‘money mindsets’ that is apparently deterring them from achieving their financial goals.
It makes me wonder–are we in the dark ages? Would you want to have a bully for a boss? Would you like to be married to one? Then why have a bully as a coach?
You’re not in grade school anymore and if you’re not self-motivated enough to do the work, then maybe you shouldn’t be in business for yourself!
[bctt tweet=”Using the stick approach to deal with adult business clients is WRONG and not sustainable.” ]
Think of that time you decided to get a personal trainer and they really kicked your butt. How long did you actually keep up with your routines after you stopped training with them? Bullying doesn’t work in the long run, does it?
Why do some coaches think that business coaching is any different? I’d wager that those bully coaches’ clients have a <20% success rate while I can brag about my 90+% outstanding client success rate which you can read on my LinkedIn profile.
I’m a proud first generation Canadian of German-Ukrainian heritage. If anyone should have a limiting money mindset, I should. I don’t and never did. I’ve made the equivalent of six figures since my mid-20s and continued to do so in the next three countries where I lived and worked, re-establishing myself from scratch each time and doing so in a different language and English dialect too.
To me, talking about mindset is like when a prospect says that they don’t have any money or budget–it’s a convenient and nice way to say, “I don’t see the value in what you’re proposing”. If you haven’t had any sales training, you’d not know that this is an objection and you need to know how to deal with it properly. LIke show your value to the client. Find their pain point, put a $$$ on it and show how you solve it for them
In my mind, when some coaches claim that you have a limiting money mindset, what they are really saying is that they cannot help you, so they’re scrambling to put the blame on YOU. But they’re the ones who are stuck, not you! Blame has no business in a coaching relationship. It’s so non-productive.
A coach is only as good as their past experience, never mind what certifications they might have hanging on their walls. It’s a crime that some coaches claim to help entrepreneurs when they never have started many businesses or have been in business for a short period of time.
I’ve started and grown two successful businesses in the past 2o years, as well as coached and consulted with hundreds of other businesses. I have a lot of experience, and it shows. My clients truly benefit from my varied background.
The way I work with my clients is that I get them to show me their goals, aka “the carrots”, that they want to achieve and I help them get there. No sticks involved nor any yelling or pressure.
You are an adult. You’re responsible and you will do what you say you will do because you want to succeed. I don’t need to pressure you to perform – do I? If I do, then I’m not the coach for you. Nor maybe should you be in business for yourself. Being an entrepreneur IS hard work and non-stop hustle until you get established.
If you want to be treated with decency and respect, and learn a lot, then maybe I am the coach for you. Not only that, but I don’t lock you into a year-long contract that you don’t need or want. We finish when you say you’re done. I don’t need to work with you for a long time as I help you get up and running or unstuck FAST. That’s the benefit of decades of varied experience that is what you really need. Not a lecture on limiting beliefs.
What do you think? I would love to hear about your coaching experiences – please comment below.
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If you want to identify your unique challenges and find out how to get over them, book your free no-obligation 30-minute Business Challenge call at 416-951-3842 or Patti@SmallBizSalesCoach.ca