If there’s one thing I’ve learned on my entrepreneurial journey, it’s that you don’t just hire a business coach one time. In fact, you’ll find yourself hiring a business coach time and time again as you reach new levels in your business.
What got you here won’t get you there.
The reality is there’s probably no way I’d be able to hire a business coach I worked with many years ago. That was great to start and helped me with the blocks I had back then. But now, I’m working on something different in my business and need to hire a business coach that helps with that specific thing.
In fact, I did just hire a business coach again. Sort of. I signed up for a small group coaching program one of my mentors is leading. I actually already worked with her earlier this year and now we’re taking the things I already started implementing to a new level.
Here’s how to tell whether or not it’s time to hire a business coach…again.
You’re beyond stuck.
If you’re feeling really stuck in trying to get to the next level in your business, it may be time to hire a business coach again.
In my case, I know that one of my challenge areas is the little details. I have several offerings – from private business coaching to courses and a membership site – but mapping out a way in which they all work together in one sales generating funnel is difficult for me.
I’m a super creator. I can whip up a digital course in no time. The part where I struggle is implementing the systems to sell them in a way that makes the most sense and doesn’t burn me out. In other words, I have difficulty connecting the dots on my own. Heck, I may not even see the dots.
By hiring a business coach who specializes in these things, I can get it all built out with their guidance. Additionally, since we’re working in a pretty intimate environment, they can be aware of my challenge areas and guide me through dealing with it.
You don’t have the time to learn on your own.
While I’m working on taking my business to the next level, the truth is my current business model keeps me busy enough as it is.
This means while I theoretically could figure this out on my own, a) what I’m trying to do is a challenging area for me (as I already mentioned), b) it will take way longer to do it on my own and I simply don’t have the time. There’s also only so much I can learn from books.
In order to save myself months and possibly a year of time and stress, I decided to hire a coach to just help me do it in a matter of a few weeks. By the end of the program, I’ll have exactly what it is I need and it wouldn’t have taken me nearly as long to accomplish it.
And it’s not even a matter of not having time because of my business. I have a family just like everyone else. There are also other things I’ve got going on in my life that I want to dedicate time to. If I didn’t hire a coach and tried to do it all on my own, it would take time away from all of these things.
You need accountability.
Even if you’re a master of productivity and getting stuff done, sometimes you need someone to hold you accountable.
It’s like my relationship with yoga. If I do it on my own at home, I’ll get lazy and not really go deep in my practice. I may do it often because I’m disciplined, but I won’t get much benefit out of it. However, if I’m at my local yoga studio where the teachers already know me, they’ll know how far I can go and help me get there.
Additionally, sometimes you may be afraid to push yourself beyond your comfort zone. This is also true for me in yoga. I may be scared to try a headstand at home, but if my teacher is there they can assist and push me out of my comfort zone.
The same is true in business. Sometimes you need to hire a coach to hold you accountable and push yourself beyond what you might do on your own. They can also see your blind spots whereas you can’t.
You can find a way to pay for it.
Sometimes the biggest obstacle standing in the way of whether or not someone hires a business coach is money.
I don’t want to advocate anyone going into debt or choosing to pay a coach over their mortgage (although what you do with your money is also none of my business), but I do want to say that you should hire a coach when you can find a way to pay for it.
Finding a way to pay for it may mean any of the following:
- Cutting spending in some areas (I’ve done this several times in order to be able to hire a coach.)
- If you’re at a stage in your business where it’s easier to make money with just a little extra elbow grease, then make more money.
- Using your savings.
- Using a credit card I know several business owners who’ve used a credit card they either got a sweet promo deal on or they mapped out a way to pay it off in a set amount of time. It’s not my favorite way to pay to hire a coach, but it is an option if you’re comfortable with it.
The truth is unless you’re in dire straights you can probably find a way to pay to hire a coach. It may just involve some creativity.
You also have to realize that if you put in the work, you should be able to make a return on your investment anyway. In other words, you’ll end up earning more money as a result of having hired a business coach again.
Final Thoughts
There will be several times in your business when you need to hire experts like a business coach to help you with something. If you fit any of the above scenarios, it may be time.
