Lessons From Ten Years Of Coaching

This month marks the 10-year anniversary of my coaching business! Here are 10 of my biggest lessons learned (mostly) the hard way:

Start Before You Feel Ready. I'd been coached by great coaches, taken workshops and seminars, and completed an intense year-long coach training program, yet I still didn't feel 100% ready (hello, inner critic!). Now I know that feeling is normal.

Cultivate A Community. Being a solopreneur felt isolating. Creating a community of others who were up to something similar was profoundly supportive. 

Find An Honest Mentor. There were plenty of people selling courses and programs promising big results, fast. But it was nearly impossible to find anyone who would speak honestly and openly about the challenge of growing a coaching business. Finding them was priceless. 

Get Expert Help. Nobody is good at everything. I finally hired the people to support me in the areas I needed most.
 
Protect Your Mindset. It's hard to take action if your circle is full of Debbie Downers and those who don't take you seriously. 

Don't Let Perfect Get In The Way Of Good. My perfectionism did nothing but stop me from moving forward. I learned that good enough now is better than excellent never. 

Get Real With The Numbers. I should have spent more time running the numbers to determine what it would take to achieve financial sustainability and a game plan for what I would do in the meantime.

Give Yourself Time. It took three years before I started to feel some real momentum. I now understand that it takes time to build a reputation-based, referral-driven business. I wish I knew this was normal.

Go Easy On Yourself. When you're a beginner, you're not going to be very good. It feels awful (hello again, inner critic!), especially after leaving a career you were skilled at to start something new. I learned to (mostly) be gentle with myself as I gained experience.

Embrace Change. Staying flexible finally became a way of being. Experimenting, learning from my mistakes, and tweaking as I go along is the norm. Now I understand that the world and my work will continue to evolve. Instead of fighting it, accepting it feels liberating.

I'd love to hear from you. What are the biggest lessons you've learned the hard way in your work?