Your daily dose of awesome. Watch for tomorrow’s email for even more fun stuff.
Life:
Yesterday, I shared that I oftentimes listen to Broadway tunes on Amazon Music (you can use that too if you’re a Prime member) to pick up my mood. Well, I also use music to frame my day and get my butt into gratitude mode.
This song is what plays on my phone alarm in the morning. It’s my anthem and it starts my day off with a reminder that the day is a GIFT.
What do you wake up to when you have to set an alarm? I hope it’s something positive and wonderful to start the day!
If it’s just some beeping or clanging that annoys the heck out of you, change it to something that reminds you that …
“I’m Alive… and Well.
And Today you know that’s good enough for me.
Breathing in and outs a blessing can’t you see.
Today’s the first day of the rest of my life.
I’m Alive and Well.”
😉 Or whatever floats YOUR boat.
Business:
Let’s talk today about coaching. I always try to have a business coach although there are sometimes gaps where I’m patiently waiting for the right person to appear.
But, I always figure, if Michael Jordan had a coach during his prime, then it would be pretty egotistical of me to think that I didn’t need one, right? 🙂
How do you choose a coach? That’s the hard part. To me, integrity is the primary criteria. If I admire someone’s integrity, then I can consider them a possibility.
Here’s a post that I wrote last year when I just chose my new business coach. I hope you enjoy it!
I just started with a new coach and I’m happy! happy! happy!
Note that I said “new coach” as I feel that the coaching/client relationship is a fluid and evolving thing. In my opinion, to stick with the same business coach or mentor forever will limit you.
The problem that I’d been having was finding a coach for ME. Once you get to a certain level of income/success in your business, it can be very difficult to find a coach who you trust and who is someone that you can be honest and direct with – as well as who has knowledge in areas where you want to get stronger.
Could I have found a coach to help me become a better speaker? In a heartbeat. I’ve definitely got room for improvement at that.
Could I have found a coach to help me write and publish my book? Absolutely. In fact I had one.
But, someone to teach me to be a better marketer? Well, I’m kinda awesome at that – so it’s a little more difficult.
One normal alternative, and what I’d been doing was to create private masterminds with peers which worked well.
But, I really wanted something different. And, I’ve tried to coach friends and be coached by friends — it just doesn’t work as well as I’d like. I wanted to work with someone who I admired – but who wasn’t a girlfriend (and someone who I was paying so they had to be honest instead of just being nice).
So, I’d been on the hunt for a coach for me. And, I knew several other friends who were looking as well.
My criteria at this point in time for a coach included:
1. My coach must have built at least two successful profitable businesses, and also have a great relationship with his/her list.
2. My coach could not be working 80 hours a week. I’ve built my business so that I can work when I want to but I have plenty of recurring income streams and systems in place so I make money ongoing. Having a coach who was flying all over the country and working 8-18 hours a day wasn’t going to be a good fit.
3. Similarly, I wanted someone who doesn’t work off a jam packed calendar. I like to have my schedule mostly free except for a few coaching calls and any interviews that I’m doing. Otherwise, I feel trapped by my business.
4. Someone uber-productive.
5. A businessperson with low overhead. I didn’t want someone who had a staff of 15 employees and an office building. I wanted someone running a tight, lean, profitable business.
6. A person who rocks at positioning. I felt stuck in a decision about rebranding and how to move forward with it. So, I wanted someone who was very clear in his/her positioning and in putting themselves out clearly in the marketplace.
7. A great public speaker/presenter. I am getting more and more speaking opportunities and I know that I can improve in this area.
8. A person who I trusted to not blab to others and who I felt comfortable being honest and open with. (Someone safe and kind.)
9. Someone who was familiar with and who would understand my business models, with AwesomizationNation.com, CoachGlue.com, Beachpreneurs.com as well as my other areas of business.
10. He or she must offer email coaching. Again, I’m not a fan of scheduling calls and I prefer flexibility. Plus, I wanted private coaching, not group. Sometimes more opinions are not necessarily better.
11. Funny helps. I wouldn’t mind having some laughs, too.
12. My coach must also have MASSIVE amounts of integrity in business and in personal life. This is not optional.
13. He or she must also be making the world a better place with the platform that they have built. (Using the opportunity of having an audience to get the word out about ways to impact the world.)
Not too hard, right? Well, when I was stuck in Icelanta during the storm a few years back, Kelly and I brainstormed and one person JUMPED out at me as the right person. And, I was so sure that I was making the right decision that I grabbed the lifetime coaching option. It was the best and easiest money that I’ve spent in a long time.
Click here to find out who I picked!
I do hope you found this to be interesting and informative.
If you’re wondering, I also do business coaching. I mainly work with people who fit in one of these criteria.
1. They have created a product but don’t have an audience / following.
2. They have an audience but no products yet.
3. They have both a product and an audience but little profit.
This is my sweet spot, I’ve found for jumping in and making a huge difference fast – and it’s fun for me.
More info here: http://nicoledean.com/
The World:
Recycling counts. 🙂 Kudos if you’re already doing it. And, a little kick in the bottom for those that aren’t yet to make an effort. <3
Also, if you’re thinking of someone recently reach out to them. Sometimes I find that the person that I’m thinking about NEEDS me. It’s like the universe is sending me a little heart tug to go connect. When I ignore that I always wish I hadn’t.
Big hugs and high fives,
Nicole