Help! I think I Picked the Wrong Coach: 3 Ways Entrepreneurs Can Tell

• By Lynda-Ross VIP on Mar 1, 2013
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Building a successful business is challenging, especially for entrepreneurs navigating the constantly changing world of online marketing. With so many strategies, technologies, and competing approaches to consider, it's understandable that business owners seek guidance from experienced coaches and mentors.

But finding someone who has achieved success is not the same as finding someone who can help you achieve success in a way that works for you.

Why a Successful Business Coach May Not Be Right for You

"The problem is that people want immediate results and as soon as they hit any form of roadblock they change course or give up. They do not have the helping hand that guides them to success and profits."

There are many moving parts involved in successful online marketing, from landing pages and email automation to customer relationships, content creation, and changing social media platforms. With so many tools and strategies to master, it's understandable that entrepreneurs seek guidance from people who have already built successful businesses.

But taking advice from a successful internet marketer and emulating their style without an understanding of your own skills and talents can lead to frustration, burnout, and failure.

If you are currently working with a successful coach or mentor but are not experiencing the kind of success you envisioned, the problem might not be on your end. You may simply have picked the wrong person for you.

Three Signs You've Chosen the Wrong Business Coach

Here are three major signs that your coaching or mentoring relationship may not be the right fit:

1. You enjoy what your coach says and feel enthusiastic after a coaching call or mastermind session, but trying to implement what you have learned leaves you feeling tired and worn out.
2. You try harder but are left with unanswered questions and a vague sense that you are almost getting it, but not quite.
3. When you ask for clarification or help, the response you receive can be boiled down to "keep on trying and you will eventually get it."

These experiences don't necessarily mean your coach lacks expertise. They may indicate that the approach being taught doesn't align with your natural strengths or the way you work best.

Why Your Coach's Strengths May Not Match Yours

Successful entrepreneurs often build their businesses around a core of the natural skills they possess. When they mentor others, those are the skills they tend to emphasize. Their advice and coaching frequently focus on helping you do what they have done.

It sounds good, of course, but the problem is that their natural skills are often not the same as yours. As a consequence, what is easy for them is not easy for you.

We all have a large but finite set of skills and abilities that are natural to us. These skills and abilities are generally easier to grow and develop than those that don't come naturally to us—what are known as acquired skills.

We are naturally attracted to people who fill gaps for us—those who accomplish easily what we'd like to be able to do. The problem is that this focus on "what is missing" can lead us to concentrate on acquired skills. Working hard to develop these missing pieces takes time and energy away from developing the areas where we naturally excel.

Understanding your Perceptual Style can help you recognize the natural strengths you bring to your business and identify approaches that better support those strengths.

Find a Business Coach Who Recognizes Your Natural Strengths

Find a coach or mentor who recognizes your natural potential and can open the doors to skills and abilities that come naturally to you but are underutilized in your business. As for the gaps, it may make more sense to hire someone who does what you don't than to try to emulate a mentor whose strengths are very different from your own.

Success is built on doing more of what you love, not less.

This approach requires that you have a working knowledge of your own natural skills and abilities, but the time spent discovering this knowledge is well worth the results and the frustration avoided.

The right coach doesn't simply teach you to repeat someone else's formula for success. They help you recognize your natural strengths and build a business that allows those strengths to flourish.

Have you ever worked with a coach or mentor whose advice sounded great but didn't work for you? Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Ready to discover your natural strengths? Explore The Power of Your Perception to learn more about how understanding your Perceptual Style can support your personal and professional success.

© Vega Behavioral Consulting, Ltd., All Rights Reserved

About Lynda-Ross Vega

Lynda-Ross Vega is a partner at Vega Behavioral Consulting, Ltd. She specializes in helping corporate leaders, entrepreneurs, and individuals with interpersonal communications, team dynamics, personal development, and navigating change. Lynda-Ross is co-creator of Perceptual Style Theory, a behavioral framework and assessment system that helps people recognize their natural strengths and apply them to their personal and professional lives.

Additional information about Lynda-Ross Vega