Gain Competive Edge by Working with a Business Coach

As business around the world has become increasingly competitive the demand for innovation, quicker service turnaround and compressed pricing models, has created an environment where business owners must be creative, develop new solutions and manage stressful transitions. They must remain focused on moving their business forward without eroding into their profits, keeping their customers happy and their employees motivated. This great demand for immediate results is a classic precursor to seeking a small business coach.

A small business coach is an independent and objective partner who provides one-on-one interaction, guidance and motivation to a business owner or executive who is looking for feedback and guidance on how to reach a desired goal. A coach is similar to having a partner who holds you accountable, keep you on track, and keep you progressing forward. Coaching is effective for business owners who know what they want to get done, are open to feedback and change but aren't sure the path to take to get there. A small business coach will work with their clients to help them find the answers and offer them the support and motivation to take the necessary steps. Some additional benefits of working with a strong business coach are as follows:

Objective Point of View: One of the biggest benefits of working with a business coach is that they are independent and not linked to the organization; they are linked to only you and where you want to go. Sometimes those that are closest to you cannot provide a truly objective assessment of your situation and won't be able to guide the business owner effectively. According to an ICF survey, 28% of those surveyed commented that an independent point of view was the most valuable result.

Idea Sharing, Creativity and Brainstorming: Information is one of the most powerful assets a person can posses and having the ability to leverage a coach's knowledge and experience is exponentially better. Having the ability to brainstorm and be creative with a coach who is focused on helping you solve a problem is one of the biggest benefits you will experience from a business coaching. 28% of those surveyed commented that brainstorming was the most valuable result.

Sustained Improvement: Working with a business coach focuses around a goal or a series of goals that will provide a foundation for continuous improvement. A coach helps you leverage your strengths and to become more effective at process and communication improvements and holds you accountable for the results. According to an ICF survey, 15% of those surveyed commented that being accountable to the coach was the most valuable result.

Motivation: A successful coach will be able to ignite the passion inside and to help you create the positive change necessary to move forward towards your goals. It is a motivational process that brings you through a series of discussions to help find that passion and focus. According to an ICF survey, 15% of those surveyed commented that an encouragement and motivation was the most valuable result.

Business coaching is one of the most effective ways of achieving growth, change and development in both people and organizations. It involves a process and a sounding board for decision making and helps give you more clarity and focus in your day to day operations. Lastly, it will improve your interpersonal skills and your ability to handle tension between business, family and personal needs. When a business owner feels like they are on an island by themselves, a business coach will motivate them to build the raft to get them to safety.

Relationships are like house plants

Have you ever forgotten to water a favorite house plant for a few days and noticed it begin to wither?

Plants need attention, warmth and pruning.

Relationships are like house plants!

They need attention, pruning and sometimes replanting.

WHERE ARE YOUR RELATIONSHIPS AT?

Relationships can be very complicated.

Holding negative feelings toward others will

unconsciously drain our energy, and if left

unattended, can even affect our health.

Conversely, important relationships in our life can

slowly wither away without regular doses of time

and attention.

Sometimes it can be difficult to determine which

relationships need attention and which need

replanting!

TAKE A LOOK WITH THE RELATIONSHIP CIRCLE

What relationships of yours are due for some time

and attention?

Which relationships need to be pruned back a

little?

Are some of your relationships due for replanting?

The Relationship Circle Tool brings clarity to your

relationships and helps you to clearly see what

action is required.

You can give yourself a relationship check up with

your own Relationship Circle. Receive your own relationship check by emailing Stephanie Arwine at stephaniearwine@journeytosuccesscoaching.com

Let me know how you get on!

TELL A FRIEND!

coach's corner

Follow-up Forever: The real key to Effective Marketing

What is the REAL purpose of follow-up? Not everybody is ready to purchase your products or services right now. But that doesn't mean they won't eventually. Follow-up keeps your name in front of your contacts until they are ready to buy. When should my first follow-up message go out? Immediately. If you obtained a lead from your website, make sure they instantly receive an email from you. If you purchase your leads, get in touch with them right away. If you spoke to a prospect in person or on the phone, send them a follow-up message. Don't give them time to forget about you. Start building that relationship right now. How frequently should I follow up with my contacts? When first marketing to a lead or customer, it's all right to send them several sequential emails. Remember, the average person needs to hear your message seven times before they buy. Follow up regularly during the first year of contact. After that you can include them in a less frequent campaign. How long should I continue to follow up? Follow up should continue indefinitely. If you have a system in place, this should be a simple task. It never hurts to stay in touch. After all, you can never guess when a prospect will be ready to buy. If you take the time to consistently follow up with ALL your prospects and customers, you will be adding hundreds, even thousands of dollars to your bottom line. If you would like more information on how you can use a system to follow up, please feel free to contact me. We can set up an appointment to show you strategies on how to make this process easy for you. Brought to you by Stephanie Arwine, Journey to Success Coaching www.journeytosuccesscoaching.com 817-230-4618 stephaniearwine@journeytosuccesscoaching.com “I work with high achieving goal setters who know what they want, and I help them get there.

"Be who you say you are.. and say what you feel .. because those that matter, don't mind ... and those that mind, don't matter!"

Yes, or NO

I recently saw a movie titled, "Yes Man". You may have seen it. Jim Carey played a banker whose job was to say no to bank loans. He also said no to life. Although he had friends who were encouraging and always trying to include him on social events, he chose to stay at home. He was miserable in his personal life and miserable on the job. He always said no.

The premise was that this sad man ran across an old friend who showed him that by always saying no, he was missing out on all the fun that life had to offer. His old friend led him to a group that said yes to everything and every opportunity that presented itself. He could not say no. If asked a "yes or no" question, he had to say yes. He bought into the process, mostly out of fear of rejection. And that is where the adventures began.

At first, I thought the movie rather simplistic. This movie was made for humor and it delivered. But at the end, it made me start thinking about my own life and the lives that I touch.

How many times have I said no to life. No to change. No to my friends. No to opportunities. No to social opportunities. No to success. No to a larger annual income. No, No, No. And why is it that we as human beings say no?

Research tells us that we all behave according to Maslow's hierarchy of need. Our first and basic needs are our physiological needs (breathing, food, water, sex, sleep, etc.) Then we need to feel safe (security of body, employment, resources, morality, family, health and property).

Then there are the needs of Love or Belonging, Esteem, and Self-Actualization.

Most of us spend our entire life in the realms of the physical and of safety. It is only after our primal needs are met that we feel secure enough to even begin to be aware of the last three of our basic needs. And at times, even then, we are afraid to say yes to self-actualization. We are afraid of failure, we are afraid of change. We don't want to leave our comfort zone. We don't want to open ourselves up to find our true selves, our true purpose. What if we fail ourselves? That is what we fear most. NO, NO, NO.

I am working on saying yes. Yes to life, yes to opportunities, yes to giving and yes to knowing myself on a deeper, spiritual level. Are you ready to say yes to life and yes to a deeper understanding of "why you are here?" Do you feel that working with someone could help you faster than working alone?

Working with a coach can help move you beyond the basic needs and move deeper onto working on your need for positive self esteem and self-actualization. Whether you are a business owner or an individual asking yourself, "Why am I here", I can help. Before you can begin to reach your goals in your business, first you must be balanced in your life.

JUST SAY YES.