Asking for help is not a sign of weakness, it’s a sign of strength!
I made it back from Portland just in time to enjoy Independence Day in the Texas Panhandle! Now that we are back in the swing of things, I wanted to take some time to recap my coach training experience. One of the things I appreciate about my job is the opportunity to grow as a professional and attend trainings and conferences that teach me new things about the industry but also about myself. While learning how to be an effective coach, part of the training included being a coachee to fully understand the experience from both sides. Coaching is a personal transaction, whether you’re coaching an entrepreneur to grow a business, a leader who wants to develop their skills or a young professional who wants to grow in their career and accomplish goals. It always involves at least two people, trust, authenticity and the ability to be honest with each other. A supportive relationship with someone who listens, asks thoughtful questions and helps you fill the gap from where you are to where you want to be. Sounds great, right! So why do people shy away from asking for support in reaching their goals?
While in Portland, my group made a visit to Powell’s Books – The World’s Largest Independent Bookstore.If you are in the area and are a book person like me, I highly suggest a visit! I ran across a funny section of notepads that included passive aggressive notes, process self-therapy, get crap done lists and more. One in particular stood out to me and I laughed at the irony of where I was! The notepad was called “Make a Decision” – so relevant to exactly why I was in Portland, being trained to effectively help people get where they want to go! I thought to myself if people can get there from a piece of paper, what’s the value in a coaching relationship? A piece of paper can’t understand the person behind a decision or a dilemma. It can’t listen for the underlying truth or hear the hesitation in what’s holding a person back from the next level of growth. It doesn’t support, advise or challenge you to become a better version of yourself or help you identify opportunities for your business.
All of those reasons are why the Enterprise Center exists – we help PEOPLE build great companies.Our coaching services are about being a support system for entrepreneurs in a world of constant change and rapid decision making. It’s about being there to encourage entrepreneurs to fail and fail fast, so they can identify solutions and ways to make the business better! It’s about providing a trusting environment for the entrepreneur to share what’s really going on and overcoming the challenges because they are looking at it clearly. It’s about having resources to help you work ON the business and not IN the business all the time. Coaching helps you see your growth strategy, competitive advantage and holds you accountable to accomplish the goals you set out for you and your business. Asking for help is not a sign of weakness, it’s a sign of strength.
All in all, it was a great experience and I came back refreshed and ready to continue serving entrepreneurs in the Texas Panhandle! I hope this gives you a glimpse into how coaching can be utilized in your business to create efficiencies and growth. Entrepreneur or otherwise, coaching can help you achieve personal and professional goals. This week I encourage you to take on opportunities that teach you something new and challenge you to grow, professionally and personally! I’d love to hear how it goes!
Had a great group in Portland! Stacy from New York, myself, Pam our trainer from Oregon, Tanya from Arizona, Ray from North Carolina and Michelle from Oregon!
