There’s a huge difference between being a coach and a consultant and it’s critical that you understand it, if you’re learning how to become a business coach. Think back to some of the greatest sports figures in history: Babe Ruth, Michael Jordan, Muhammad Ali, Jackee Joyner Kersee, Wayne Gretzky. Do you know what all these individuals had in common? They each competed in different sports and excelled at them in different ways, but in one way they were all the same. None of them got where they were on their own. Each of them had an amazing, top notch coach.
Great coaching is what can take an athlete from being the star of his hometown team to being an Olympic medalist and player on the world stage. The same is true for businesses. Raw talent and drive can get an entrepreneur pretty far, but it takes a business coach to bring their enterprise to the next level. That’s why you are so important!
To make this happen though, you have got to act like a coach, not a consultant. Think about the differences:
- A consultant is an employee. A coach is a leader and a manager of the business growth strategy.
- A consultant is replaceable. A coach is fills a gap that no one else can.
- A consultant works in limited ways for the company. A coach shares and expands the vision for the company, helping achieve long term goals.
- A consultant gives advice and then leaves. A coach is in the journey for the long haul and sticks around to make sure needed change happens.
- A consultant does work for the manager to improve his/her business. A coach teaches the manager the skills he/she needs to improve the business.
As I explain in my ebook, Secrets of a Business Coaching Rock Star, “Consultants work for entrepreneurs, subordinating themselves to the will of the business owner. They are NOT equals–they’re employees by another name. . . A coach is an equal–even more than an equal–a valued teacher, mentor, motivator, and educator.”
Being a great business coach can be one of the most rewarding career options, but only if you remember that you are a coach, not a consultant. Michael Jordan couldn’t have become the basketball hero he was without Phil Jackson. And Phil Jackson never would have jumped in to play the game for Michael Jordan. The two of them work together to take their team to the top. You can do the same for your business coaching clients.
Request your FREE Cash and Clients Strategy Session with one of our certified coaches and discover the fastest path to $15,000-$30,000 per month as a business coach!
