When you hear the word “coach” your mind probably goes back to your high school varsity team or little league experience or to the likes of famous coaches such as NFL legends Don Shula, Tom Landry or college basketball Coach Tony Bennett. I still remember by high school volleyball coach and reminisced fondly when reading the recent newspaper article that he had retired from coaching. We tend to have these fond memories and think so highly of the men and women on the sidelines because they have the amazing ability to inspire discipline and greatness in the athletes who they coach, both on and off the field. If you’re like me, our coaches did not just teach us how to handle a ball or a racket, but how to handle life with dignity, integrity and a goal-driven attitude. The same is true for professional coaches. When you have a good one, you have a great thing!
However, many people and companies still don’t readily see the value in hiring a coach. They make the mistake of assuming that coaches typically help with “soft skills” that there is not an ROI on the money spent. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Coaching done right has enormous benefits to both the bottom-line and to the sustainability of the company or organization. Let’s take a look at a few major benefits of professional coaching:
1. Better productivity and efficiency: A person or employee with a coach gets the benefit of having someone with a trained eye to watch and observe them from the outside looking in to identify what I call “blind spots” – areas or habits that we cannot see which are causing problems in performance or at least create inefficiencies in our work. The person being coached will greatly benefit from that coach on the sidelines who consistently watches the person’s plays and helps them to auto-correct, thereby enhancing skills that lead them to professional success. This not only feels amazing to the coachee/employee, but actually causes them to work more efficiently.
2. Retention: So, when you have a happy and productive employee (even if you work for yourself) you have a valuable asset. The person will be able to reach goals and perform better because they are no longer going in circles unable to ascertain why they cannot overcome certain specific problems like poor inter-personal relationships with clients, customers or colleagues, consistent failure to get promoted or win contracts. Once these obstacles are overcome, the individual feels confident to stay on in their organization and to even push higher and produce more for the company or organization. They may even become a cheerleader inspiring other colleagues.
3. Reaching S.M.A.R.T. Goals: Coaches help an individual to identify and reach their goals that are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-bound. Whether you work for yourself or another, there are few things more satisfying that reaching these goals and enjoying the fruit of doing so!
4. Profitability: With a professional coach, you can create a top performer in yourself or someone else that brings home the bacon! When the individual works more efficiently and stays on at the organization meeting and exceeding goals, profit is sure to follow! It becomes a win-win situation that increases the bottom line in business. It’s so much better to spend money on improvement through a coach than to waste money on lost profits, endless remedial efforts or worse, lawsuits that could have been avoided with some professional proactive measures up front.
Trust me, I’ve seen it first-hand with the doctors, business executives, military personnel and employees that I have coached over the years. I really enjoy this aspect of my job and would be honored to help any of you too as your personal professional coach or as a coach to members of your team. You’ll be glad you made the investment!
Cynthia Murray is the CEO of Cynthia Murray Enterprises LLC and has more than 20 years experience leading in local government, corporate America and with her own international non-profit organization of which she is founder and Executive Director. She is a published author and sought-after keynote speaker. Cynthia teaches, trains and speaks globally and is expert in leadership development and team-building.
