Are you thinking about hiring a business coach? If so, how can it help your company thrive? The goal of business coaching is to help the business owner understand their role in creating a successful business and to enhance this role in measurable and sustainable ways.

The coaching process takes on various forms, such as problem solving, leadership development, succession planning, and creating high-performance teams, but from the start, there’s always a clear focus on the objectives of the client and the company. For a business coach to be truly effective, he or she must establish an atmosphere of trust and respect, safety, challenge, and accountability to motivate the client to take action.

But what does it take to have the makings of a good business coach? What sets a good business coach apart from the rest? After all, not all coaches are created equal. At AdviCoach, it’s our business to coach and look for stellar business coaches, and these 6 traits are what make a great business coach:

1. A Good Coach Takes Action

A good coach should believe enough in their clients to take risks on their behalf. This means introducing clients to other professionals who can help them, making email introductions to other business owners their clients would be interested in, acting as a referral resource, directing them to books and educational courses that can enrich their businesses, and helping their clients network. The best coaches actually follow through with steps that help their clients and this makes them stand apart from coaches who only offer advice. 

2. A Good Coach Presents Challenges

Good business coaches give their clients challenges and this means pushing the client out of their comfort zone. A good coach will set out one challenge after the other to help the client manage themselves better and hone their skills so they’ll be more effective running their company. Coaches should always expect more of their clients. Otherwise, they may not realize what they’re capable of. 

3. A Good Coach Has the Experience You Want

You don’t want to hire a coach who has never coached a business owner before. If you want to take your business to the next level, the best coach for you is someone who coaches entrepreneurs just like you every day. Certainly, a fellow business owner can give you valuable advice, but they may be too far removed from your business to share the tactical insight that you need. 

4. A Good Coach Practices Generosity

Good coaches are always willing to share their wisdom and knowledge with their clients. They don’t hold back. They do it because it’s good for their clients and because they want to see their clients succeed. The good coaches aren’t in it for the personal glory. Instead, it’s their way of “paying it forward.” They get their kicks by seeing their clients’ businesses flourish and prosper. 

5. A Good Coach is Honest

You don’t want to look for a coach who gives you a gold star for trying – that’s not what business coaching is about. A coach should be tactful, but truthful with their advice, even if it stings a bit. You’ll get more out of a straight-shooting business coach than someone who’s always offering you praise for your effort. Not only that but you need specific, rather than general feedback.

A good coach will be honest with you, otherwise they’d be doing you a disservice. You’ll only be presented with bigger challenges as your business grows, so you’ll need honest feedback to prevent foreseeable problems before they turn into big headaches. 

6. Discretion

For a successful coaching relationship, you have to have discretion and trust. For the utmost level of discretion, our advice is to seek a business coach from outside your company. The best coaching advice isn’t partial to your specific industry, so don’t limit yourself to an industry expert.

Contrary to popular belief, many business owners have a preference for external business coaches because they feel they have a non-biased third party to share open communication with. This frees clients from worrying about sharing their deepest concerns with someone who’s closely involved in their industry.

In conclusion, the benefits of business coaching are significant. If you’re looking for a coach to take your business to the next level of success, remember that your coach selection should be based on wisdom, and there’s no substitute for experience. We invite you to contact AdviCoach to start pushing yourself, and your company to new heights.