WHO NEEDS
IT?
WHO
NEEDS IT? Perhaps we all do
When my boys were in high school, we used to organise coaching for them
if they seemed to be struggling in any of their subjects. One day, I asked
my son if any other students in his class were getting coaching. He said
there were. “It’s really interesting, Dad,” he told
me. Kiwi kids get coaching when they are getting 50s and 60s. But the
Asian kids get coaching when they are getting 80s and they want to get
90s.”
I suspect most business owners or managers wouldn’t think of using
a coach unless their business was struggling. Recently a company that
provides coaching approached a senior manager in business banking to see
if the bank had any clients who might be interested in having a business
coach. “Well we do,” said the banker, “but those who
should have a coach couldn’t afford it because their businesses
aren’t doing that well.” It just never occurred to him that
successful businesspeople might want a coach so they could become even
more successful.
Yet in sports, it’s the opposite. No serious athlete would expect
to get to the top level without having a coach. Even amateurs with more
desire than ability spend money on coaches to make the most of the meagre
talent they have. Come to think of it, artists, musicians, writers, actors
and performers all use coaches because they see learning as being a life-long
process.
One of the lessons I learned early in my adult life is that natural
ability is not enough. When I did my doctorate, I studied under one of
the top psychologists in the world. This very distinguished academic had
written books in every major area of psychology and had lectured in nearly
every English-speaking country in the world.
I wasn’t surprised to discover that he was very bright.
But what I was surprised to learn was that he never stopped working
- not even when he was on holidays. This distinguished scholar was in
his 70s when I knew him so you would imagine that most of his work was
directed towards telling others what he knew.
It wasn’t.
My professor spent most of his time reading and attending conferences
to increase his knowledge and further his understanding. He would enter
into a discussion with anyone (even a lowly Ph.D. student) not to teach,
but to learn. This great man knew that no matter how good you were, it
wasn’t as good as you could be. He agreed with Edison: “Success
is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration.”
But unguided, aimless work is hardly likely to be productive - unless,
of course, you get lucky. But why leave your business success to chance?
Why not use a coach to help you get the most out of your efforts to improve?
A coach can teach you new skills. A coach can be a sounding board, allowing
you to talk through your ideas. Like a mirror, a coach can help you to
reflect on what you are doing. A coach will be the one person who will
give you honest feedback - without which you could look as foolish as
the Emperor in his ‘new clothes.’
A coach could make all the difference.
So where do you stand? Do you see coaching as a cost, something you
would only spend your money on if you absolutely had to - say if your
business was headed for the wall?
Or do you see a coach as an investment, someone who can help you to
develop the talents you have, make the very best of your potential?
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