{"id":8634,"date":"2014-08-20T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2014-08-20T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wework.com\/creator\/?p=8634"},"modified":"2020-03-30T19:00:15","modified_gmt":"2020-03-30T23:00:15","slug":"why-business-coach-may-good","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wework.com\/ideas\/professional-development\/why-business-coach-may-good","title":{"rendered":"Why a business coach may be good for you"},"content":{"rendered":"

You\u2019re a founder who\u2019s juggling a million priorities and tasks \u2014 from product to people to vision. There\u2019s so much going on and so much to do that you feel simultaneously adrift and stuck<\/a>, not sure what to do or where to turn next \u2014 even as you continue to work incredibly hard to get your startup on higher ground.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s time for you to get a business coach.<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving a coach who can develop insights for you, to help you think through things is so, so helpful,\u201d says Brian Wang, co-founder and CEO of Fitocracy<\/a> \u2014which began as a gamified fitness tracking app with an important social support element and now includes a platform offering coaching services. \u201cIt\u2019s the next big element of health and fitness \u2014 and I would say productivity \u2014 to have coaching,\u201d predicts Brian.<\/p>\n

Even with Fitocracy\u2019s move toward training services, Brian was initially skeptical about the value of a CEO coach for himself. But he soon found his business coach invaluable to the process of self-improvement as an entrepreneur and leader.<\/p>\n

A Business Coach Isn\u2019t For Me<\/b><\/h3>\n

When you consider the most successful people in many industries, such as athletics and entertainment, they have coaches. What\u2019s lesser known is that many top leaders and entrepreneurs, including Steve Jobs and Jeff Bezos<\/a>, had CEO coaches.<\/p>\n

Yet people generally don\u2019t consider coaching an option because they see it like a luxury service \u2014 or even dismiss it as something downright silly for suckers. Entrepreneurs can feel that a business coach is something they\u2019ll never need and that\u2019s dissonant with their very identity. Just think: the stereotypical persona of an entrepreneur<\/a> is that he or she is bold and brash, disrupting the establishment, making waves, and blazing their own path. This person has no need for a coach.<\/p>\n

In Fitocracy\u2019s push to make coaching a more mainstream, accessible option, Brian has learned that this skepticism is the major barrier in anyone\u2019s quest for improvement. \u201cThat\u2019s probably the biggest challenge for most people,\u201d he observes. \u201cThey look at it and they think, \u2018I don\u2019t need that. That\u2019s for people who are really<\/i> struggling, and I really have a good handle on this sort of stuff.\u2019\u201d \u2014 despite the fact that they\u2019re not seeing results.<\/p>\n

For Brian, the turning point came when he fell into a conversation with another founder, talking about the common challenges of creating and sustaining a startup, specifically as \u201can early-stage company when you\u2019re still trying to figure everything out and make things happen.\u201d When she mentioned that she was working with a CEO coach, he considered how Fitocracy was going through \u201ca particularly stressful period\u201d and decided to give it a try.<\/p>\n

What he got was a rewarding \u201copportunity to talk to someone who is outside of work, outside of my personal life, someone who could really lend an objective third party view<\/a> and work with me with the explicit goal of making me better.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Humble Paradox of Business Coaching<\/b><\/h3>\n

The paradox of business coaching, especially for entrepreneurs and other driven, ambitious, talented people<\/a>, is that the very attributes of self-confidence and chutzpah required to take the risk of starting your own venture prevents you from admitting that you could use a little help.<\/p>\n

Brian has seen how this plays out at Fitocracy when coaches encounter skeptics. These are the people who aren\u2019t willing to give up their preconceived notions or believe that receiving guidance and coaching is beneath them.<\/p>\n

\u201cWorking with a coach requires a certain level of humility,\u201d explains Brian. \u201cNot everyone\u2019s ready to do it \u2014 especially if you\u2019re someone who believes that you know all the answers and you don\u2019t need external help. Then you\u2019re never going to work with a coach, because you haven\u2019t gotten to the point where you\u2019re humble enough to think, \u2018maybe I can use some help.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

The result is self-fulfilling. If you don\u2019t believe in coaching, you also won\u2019t allow it to help you get better.<\/p>\n

Brian continues, \u201cIf you\u2019re having your assumptions challenged and getting asked to think about things in a different way \u2014 and you\u2019re really resistant to that \u2014 coaching is not going to be helpful for you. But if you\u2019re willing to take a different look and you come into it with the attitude of, \u2018I\u2019m here to improve<\/a> and I know I don\u2019t know everything,\u2019 then you\u2019re going to get a huge amount of value.\u201d<\/p>\n

Having a business coach may seem like proof that you\u2019re not good enough and that there\u2019s stuff you need to work on. Even though you may be stuck on the next step and how to make meaningful headway, these can be difficult things to admit. But you\u2019re never going to get better if you don\u2019t work at your weaknesses and blind spots.<\/p>\n

By trying to do this all yourself, you limit your possibilities and your potential. You have to be humble enough to admit that you\u2019re not good at everything and perhaps you may need a coach.<\/p>\n

Editor’s note: This story originally appeared on I Done This’s blog<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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