Business coach?

[GreenerCleanersEdmonton]

I started a Green Cleaning company in a city with just under a million people. I'm learning as I go, and doing ok, but I'm worried that I'm directing my time and resources in
the wrong direction. I have absolutely no business training. Should I invest in a business coach, or should I just be reading books? Which ones? If I go with a coach, how
should I find a good one? I don't know any other business owners to ask for help!
Heather

[Wozcreative]

Do both. Take some business classes and read as much as you can. The business class will give you a kick start in teaching you what to look for, what you need to learn etc.

[Patrysha]

Hire me :-) Well if you need help with marketing for profitability...I am just an hour and a half down the highway...

Even if you don't hire me, I can help connect you with quite a few small business owners in the city. There's tons of support out there :-)

[Steve B]

If you take any business classes, look for a class that is for entrepreneurs. I have 6 years of business classes under my belt and with all of them put together - it barely gives me enough knowledge to run a business. You need something that will give you a very broad overview in a very short time.

[Freelancier]

Small Business Meetups near Edmonton, Alberta - Small Business Meetups - Edmonton (http://smallbiz.meetup.com/cities/ca/ab/edmonton/)

I spent nearly a decade running my own business before I realized that I really had no clue about running a business and that was making it harder for me to find the types of clients I wanted to work with. So I spent two years doing an accelerated MBA and that really helped, mostly with being able to talk and think about my business using business terminology and ideas instead of technical terminology.

But the thing you probably want right now is to talk with other business owners in your area to bounce ideas off of and to "get the creative juices flowing" when it comes to your own business. So Meetup is a good starting point. What you might want is more of a mentoring group than anything, just a bunch of fellow business owners trying to help each other.

[huggytree]

all the books ive read are so generic that they are almost no value....and they have been books about my line of work.....I think books are worthless

I took a business class....it also was worthless


everything is so generic that its almost of no use

starting out takes trial and error....make good gut decisions and you'll survive....make poor ones and youll be gone....trust your gut

it takes years to get everything down pat.......

hopefully your making enough $$ to keep going at your current pace of growth/knowledge

looking for a mentor is the best thing...find someone who does what you do and ask them for advice...I found one and it probably got me 1 year ahead of the learning curve

[Gabe]

I think business coaches are a bit overrated since you can find all of the information for free or online, but it also depends on your learning style. If you learn significantly better with a business coach, then it might be worth considering.

Most business books suck. I recommend looking into the newer business books written by guys in the tech industry, those are the guys changing the world these days. There's no silver bullet, but read enough different ideas and you'll be able to put together your own business leadership style. If all you've read are boring business books, then try looking at Rework Rework: Change The Way You Work Forever: Jason Fried, David Heinemeier Hansson: 9780091929787: Amazon.com: Books (http://www.amazon.com/Rework-Change-Way-Work-Forever/dp/0091929784/) After reading that one, Amazon will give you some similar recommendations, but that's a great place to start. It's written by guys in tech, but it's a new way to look at things.

[billbenson]

If you take any business classes, look for a class that is for entrepreneurs. I have 6 years of business classes under my belt and with all of them put together - it barely gives me enough knowledge to run a business. You need something that will give you a very broad overview in a very short time.

Online or at a local junior college, accounting, statistics, algebra, economics will never hurt you.But they are subsets of running a business. A good sales class would be great but I've never seen one and I've been to at least 20 different courses during my corporate career. I got lucky and had a couple of really good sales managers over the years who I learned a lot from.

[Paul]

In the U.S. you could contact SCORE at Free Small Business Advice | How-to Resources | Tools | Templates | SCORE (http://www.score.org). They are very helpful for small startups. I'm not sure if you have a similar organization in Canada.

[Harold Mansfield]

You know we always tell people that the information they need is available online, but I can understand how frustrating that can be if you don't know what you need to know.
Over the years I've gotten good at finding what I need to know, and how to wade through the BS, but it wasn't like that at first.

I think SCORE is a good suggestion. There's likey a local chapter near you, it's experienced business mentors, and even though they may not offer specific solutions, they can at least point you in the right direction of where to go from here.

Your local chamber of commerce may also be of help, and there are also a ton of resources on the SBA website.

There are a lot of resources in each community that go unused because people either don't know about them, or don't expect the Government to be of any help. But honestly, local, county, state, and federal resources for small business owners are plentiful to at least get you over the hump with legalities, and basic training.

[billbenson]

if you don't know what you need to know.

I think that is one of the reasons we recommend working in an industry to learn it before going on your own. There are so many things you need to know, some are very trivial, some are complex. And some are obvious. You can get out of a book or this forum that you need to get an EIN number and get a DBA. But you also need to put processes in place for managing quotes and orders. This will vary from industry to industry and also can be done in many different ways. But that's not something you are going to find in a book as it relates to your business.

[Patrysha]

Actually there would be no SCORE office. The OP is in Edmonton, so US based services aren't going to be of much help. There are chapters of the Business Development Bank that are similar in purpose to SCORE.

The Local Chamber of Commerce tends to be more aimed at larger businesses more than start-ups in that city. The help they provide is minimal at best. There are however a lot of small business groups around for support and information.

[Patrysha]

But that's not something you are going to find in a book as it relates to your business.

I disagree. I have many books on my shelf that are specific start up and operations guides to different industries/occupations (daycare, photography, retail, restaurant, make-up artist) that do have workflow suggestions, standard paperwork templates and much more. I don't think you can get all the information that you need to operate from one book, but I do think more specific information exists than is commonly acknowledged.

[billbenson]

For the examples you gave I agree with you. But how many businesses that succeed are that generic. I've heard that most restaurants fail. Daycare is not generally a lucrative business. Do the books cover how to convert it into a business that makes $1M a year? Photography can be lucrative, but do the books tell you how to turn it into a very profitable business. Sell your products, make a name for yourself etc.

I think one of the unfortunate things about small businesses is they think small. That may be what some people want, but you can think on a larger scale as well. Your examples are all small scale. How about a book on selling excavators for the mining industry?

I understand and agree with your point, but there are so many businesses that don't fit the molds of the businesses you mention.

[Patrysha]

Of course there are thousands of businesses that don't fit the mold. Does anyone who really wants to be successful in big huge terms really believe that they will find all the information they need to succeed in a single book? That all they have to do is follow a proven blueprint and *poof* success? Is it likely that someone with no previous knowledge and no industry contacts going to succeed in selling excavators for the mining industry simply by finding answers in a book even if it did exist?

You have to walk before you can run. The OP is a small scale start up, similar in scale to the business types I mentioned. Start up and early operations info is easy to find for that particular type of venture. Most of the books do cover the aspects of differentiation, promotion and so on.

Do they cover everything one could possibly need to know to sustain and grow a business? Nope. Do they cover enough of the basics that you can feel confident that you're starting on a strong enough foundation to allow for growth? I think so.

One of the biggest local business success stories where I live started with a converted bread truck, it grew from that into a multi-million dollar fire safety business. Starting small doesn't necessarily indicate a desire to stay small...you have to start where you are and move towards what you want.

[billbenson]

When I moved back to the US in 2000 and couldn't find a job, I got the worst job I have ever had. The company did about $1M in sales a month with three sales people, three clerks, and maybe 10 wherehouse / shipping people. He had one of the slickest operations I have seen. I write an order, the clerical staff checks it for errors, shipping checked it again. Clerical would check it for tracking the next day. There were very few errors.

If an error did happen he would scream at the employees that came in contact with that order marine drill instructor style. I even saw him punch a hole through a sheet rock wall while he was screaming at someone. Not my kind of environment so I was either fired or left depending on your point of view.

However, I learned an incredible amount there about online sales, and creating processes that drastically reduced errors, allowed him to operate on a very small staff etc. I was probably there 6 months or so, because I had nowhere else to go. I had dental insurance but he wouldn't let me leave to go to the dentist...

His processes would apply to a one man business to much larger businesses (except for the screaming). Of course his way was not the only way to set things up, but it was incredibly efficient. I don't see getting that kind of an education from a book. That's not to say that books don't have good information. I'm saying they have a subset of what you really need. And if you are just starting out, you don't know what you need to learn to be successful.

As I am writing this it occurs to me that someone such as yourself or a 'good' coach would be invaluable in steering the newbe to the books that need to be read and the areas that should be studied.

[The Coach]

Hello ... What have you done finally?

[justinnichols]

Hi GreenerCleanersEdmonton,

Read, read, read, and never stop. Even if your business is producing billions in top-line, read. You can get a free business coach from the SBA or SCORE. Many SCORE folks are former execs who are well-connected and can help you.

Free Small Business Advice | How-to Resources | Tools | Templates | SCORE (http://www.score.org/)
The U.S. Small Business Administration | SBA.gov (http://www.sba.gov/)

You need to divert at least 50% of your time on sales. When choosing a mentor, make sure that they are coaching in an area where they have experience. They don't have to be the best technically either. Coach John Wooden wasn't Michael Jordan was he?

[natasha]

Hey everyone, finding a business coach is the best way. Otherwise you just waste your energy on something that could be wrong. After doing business coaching with one company, I am working better, have more time, AND met other successful business owners. That's just me, of course.

[Mr_J]

Hi, that is a great question. If what you are doing is working and you are seeing profit, then you must be doing something right. That just means you really don't need a business coach at this time. Sure a business coach knows the in's and out's, but you aren't headed in the wrong direction. Just keep gaining altitude and don't worry so much, only worry when things start getting in your way and you start losing altitude. Oh, and don't forget to pay your taxes :)

[rjoyce3582]

I think that business books can be a good start but like someone stated they can be generic and repeat the same info after awhile. I have also found that a lot of resources like chamber of commerce, SBA, and score have very similar generic information in my opinion. Although sometimes a good speaker or workshop is very helpful.

I have thought about a business coach but with so many coaches I am not sure how to find a quality one. Any suggestions.

[natasha]

Hi Joyce! There are three different questions you need to ask before getting a coach that I have found out. I wrote something about this earlier, but here it is for you.

1. Do they actually have a successful business? If so, they walk the talk.
2. Are they giving you tools or just simply advice?
3. Do they have success stories and a following? If so, that means they have loyal clients who experienced value.

[Paul R]

I have thought about a business coach but with so many coaches I am not sure how to find a quality one. Any suggestions.

A couple of thoughts from a Business Coach (NOT looking for your business - no offence, just saying neutral!):

Having a coach is not a guarantee of success, no matter how good the coach is. You need to play your part too. I've had people come to me who thought I was going to come in, wave a magic wand, and the world would be bathed in gold within weeks. They didn't become clients because I knew they were not committed to success. Before you go looking for a coach ask yourself why you want a coach, what you want to achieve from coaching and what are you willing to put into the relationship. The more clarity you have the more likely you will find a coach who can help you.

If you decide you do want a coach then just go and talk to them. If they hold seminars or local talking events (many coaches do and very often they're free) then go and see them in action. Join networking groups as coaches are usually active there, get to know them and see if they are a match for you and your personality. Don't be afraid to tell them that you're searching for a coach and want to speak to others; if they push high pressure sales talk on you then walk away.

One to one coaching is usually the best way to improve quickly but it is also the most expensive. Most coaches will usually run regular or occasional workshops that you can sign up for, or maybe they have group coaching sessions which will be cheaper. This gives you the option of seeing how they work and seeing how you get on together.

Be ready to think of coaching as a long term investment of your time, energy and money (another reason why you should take time in choosing who to work with). Coaching isn't always just about increasing profit in the first few months, it's also about making you a better business owner and making your business stronger and these things take time.

Hope that helps.

Paul

[Fulcrum]

One example of a business coach is <link removed>. He runs events all over the world as well.

I'm very skeptical about these "high value" coaches that are on syndicated radio. I've listened to this guy a few times (on radio) and have been very unimpressed. He says a lot of words, but there is no depth, no examples of actual companies that he has owned/partnered in and his main selling points are his "7 figure coach, his 8 figure coach and his 9 figure coach". He doesn't have enough detail about his practices that make me want to pick up the phone and call.

A quick Google search on him has me thinking that he is trying to hide something. I will say that he has done a good job in his online marketing as bad reviews/possible lawsuits appear to be buried, but I still have to ask why he needed to use those exact URLs.

Just so I am covering my backside, I am not here to accuse, rightly or wrongly, this particular coach. These are just my own thoughts garnered from listening to his radio program.

Edit - I am leaving out the name of the aforementioned coach on purpose.

[natasha]

I just personally have been to a lot of the events and I found it to be great content, but that's just my personal opinion.

[vangogh]

I just personally have been to a lot of the events

And here I thought it was because you were working for said business coach as a copywriter. You do realize it only takes one or two searches to find the connection.

[Economic Methods]

Great Advice here really, however, as a managerial and strategic consultant I would say read a few books, take a class. Entreprenuer.com has great resources, once you have done all that you still need some help then look for a consultant, coach or whatever you want to call it. Because at that point you are better equipped to be helped.

I spend just a much time solving problems for my clients as I do educating them.

[Isabelle]

I am a business coach. If you are looking mostly for knowledge, I suggest you look for a mentor rather. Someone in your specific field who has been through very similar challenges. Mentors share their experience and give you advice.

A business coach is not supposed to focus on bringing you information but rather on helping you with what it is to be a business owner, on how to make decisions, become clear on what you want, get better organised, deal with stress, responsibilities, overwhelm etc.. A coach helps you think better and more clearly but doesn't give you the answers. You are the one who finds them by being asked the right questions. With coaching you get to make very concrete decisions and take action by being clear on what is best for you on your next step. Makes sense? Good luck!