What criteria would you use to decide if a coach/advisor was a good fit for you? Quick Hits

It is hard to find a good coach or advisor. I’m in the industry and I have seen and hired some really awful ones.

I know what I do to allow my clients to feel comfortable with me and know that I’m the real deal.

But I wondered how other people vetted professional help.Before we could really have this conversation, Dr Mohan Ananda pointed out that we had to define the difference between a coach and an advisor.

He says that an advisor is someone you hire to help you with a short-term, right now, give me advice type of problem.

Conversely, a coach is someone who you work with for long-term growth type goals. Someone who can help you develop into a better leader or even a better person.

(Do you agree with that breakdown?)

Rick Alcantara was able to provide us with a starting list of questions he uses:

  • Do they have some real-world experience in what you are interested in pursuing?
  • How many clients do they work with?
  • Will they have time to meet with you if you need help?
  • Are they looking out for your best interest or just trying to sell you into their seminar, books or workshops?
  • Does their approach and temperament match mine?
  • Are they a thought leader?

Lisa McDonald added the important point that you can’t hire someone if they don’t understand what you want, can’t communicate with you and aren’t emotionally intelligent.

I didn’t bring it up during the conversation but I do want to add here to be careful about a coach who sounds like they know EXACTLY what you need and how to “fix” you.

First – you aren’t broken.

And second – they could just be pushing your buttons to take your money.

As a CEO friend of mine puts it, “Most of the coaching industry is crap.”

If you are a coach, how do you stand out as not being crap?

If you want/need to hire a coach/advisor, how do you make sure you get a good one?

Connect with the panelists:

Rick Alcantara:   / rickalcantara  

Lisa McDonald:   / lisa-k-mcdonald-executive-career-coach  

Dr. Mohan Ananda:   / mohanananda  

Dr Robyn Odegaard:   / robynodegaard  

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#QuickHits are designed to exercise your brain by letting you listen in on an unscripted conversation to get other people’s thoughts on pertinent subjects. If you would like to join a conversation or have a topic you would like to hear discussed, please message me. https://www.DrRobynOdegaard.com