Before you think about hiring a coach, ask yourself, “What kind of client am I?”
Solid post from Carlene Steenekamp:
Truth: When potential clients reach out to me, I can often tell right away if they will be successful or not. The ones who start of their inquiry with all the things they cannot do or cannot eat or cannot live without = Fail. The ones who “interview” me with questions on how I plan to motivate them = Fail. The ones who tell me about how they have failed at all of the 18 other programs they have tried, but cannot articulate what will be different about this attempt = Fail.
I am very upfront with ALL potential clients. I tell them all in advance that their attitude will dictate their success. I tell them I do not get paid to “motivate” them, I get paid to provide the roadmap to get them to their goals and I provide the accountability. They have to supply the motivation. If someone is looking for me to babysit them and hound them and chastise them for not checking in, I let them know that I am not the coach for them. No one else can supply you with motivation. You are either sick and tired and want to change, and are willing to do what is necessary, or you aren’t. There truly is no gray area. Sure, I can cheerlead and it may make you hang in there an extra week or two, but ultimately, the outcome will be exactly the same. I cannot want it enough FOR you. It’s YOUR body, your health, your future, your goal. And if you don’t want it bad enough, then there is absolutely nothing I can do as your coach to change that.
If your attitude sucks and you come into it with a history of allowing yourself off the hook with excuses, I am going to tell you that. And when you come at me with your excuses, I am going to call it as crap. But I am not going to beg you. I am not going to chase you down. I am not going to guilt you. I am going to tell you to stop wasting your money because I don’t need it bad enough to be a pain in your ass that ultimately, you will start to avoid because babysitting and accountability don’t work if you simply do not want it badly enough.
The ones who come to me with no excuses, no demands, no pretenses, the ones that come to me with great attitudes and resolve that they ARE going to do this and be successful. The ones who meet check-in deadlines with FAR MORE going on in their lives than the ones who always miss with constant excuses…. The ones who know I am not there to force them to do anything and understand that I am the one to give them the plan but they are solely responsible for following it…. 100% of the time, those people are successful.
I have still always given every client the benefit of the doubt and not jaded myself to the possibility of success. But time and time again, it proves itself true. I am to the point that I am going to start declining a lot more prospective clients because I don’t want to waste their money or their time and because there are plenty of people who aren’t full of excuses that want it badly enough to be successful and I want the spots to be open for them.
So before you think about hiring a coach, ask yourself, which kind of client am I? Which category do you see yourself in?