Your Business Life Logo

Business Coaching for Success

How often do you have proper business meetings in your office? I don’t mean the informal chat in the kitchen while making the coffee, or the general chit chat about stuff going on, I mean proper organised, planned meetings which people are expected to turn up to, are expected to contribute to, and are expected to take clear actions away from.

In the early days when I am starting out with new clients, I will always find out if they are conducting useful meetings, and will generally ascertain that they are not. They will often tell me that they have one to one’s with various staff members, when they will discuss certain aspects of the business, and possibly even come up with brilliant new ideas. Unfortunately, however, these seldom result in significant steps forward, because the ideas are not written down, no-one commits to doing anything about it, and it simply ends up as time wasted.

Therefore isn’t it time you considered this aspect of your business and started to conduct regular productive meetings. If you have an organisational structure it should be simple to decide who is requires at which meeting, and also who will be reporting on what aspect. The meetings should be chaired confidently and strongly, so they do not wander off the point and take far longer than they should do. Each team member should report on their relevant area of responsibility (with relevant supporting documents circulated before the meeting) and then key points and issues should be discussed and minuted.

The outcome of each meeting should be a clear minuted document, with actions by whom and by when, so that steps forward are always taken between each meeting, and issues are dealt with. By doing it this way and making sure that people put meeting dates in their diary which they must turn up to, you will find that they become a productive positive aspect of your business, rather than a time consuming waste of effort.

We are all learning all the time (I hope) either by reading books, going to seminars, or through talking to other business owners with their own experiences and knowledge. It would be a big mistake to assume we know it all, as there will always be something new and innovative to take on board, be it in our home life or business life.

As a business coach I have to keep at the forefront of what is going on in the business world, and whilst I would never claim to be an expert in every area, I am a generalist, and I have a great system which will benefit nearly every business owner, be they start up, medium or long term, and I have plenty of contacts who I can refer people to, if my clients need specialist advice.

The thing is I have been doing this long enough to have earned the right to stand up in front of people and tell them how they can change their lives, by following the processes which I have tried and tested in numerous businesses throughout East Anglia.

So if you have always dreamed of having a business which can work without you, then you should come along to my Business Boost workshop on Monday 11th November to start that process. But you should only come if you genuinely want to make significant and positive changes in your life. If you come with that positive attitude, I can guarantee that you will get numerous ideas, and a clear process so you can start to change the 101 things you know you need to do, but just can’t see how to begin.

Surely there can’t be a better time to do it? The economy is on the up, and the New Year is just around the corner, so come and learn how to make your business a “Business” not a job.

Why do most people avoid things which they know need to be dealt with, and know that they will sooner or later come to a head, but nevertheless still put them off? And of course the answer is fear – fear of the outcome of the meeting, call, or action taken, turning out in a really bad way. However in reality, it is very seldom that things actually result in the doomsday scenario you paint for yourself.

Of course the longer you put things off, the more the dread builds up in your mind, and the worry nags at you constantly day and night. In fact at night, the outcomes you start to imagine can spiral out of control. Also by putting things off you are likely to exacerbate the problem anyway, and the chances are that the outcome will indeed by worse than it need to have been.

If you think of a particularly difficult scenario you have been in, either in your work or your home life, and the stress it may have caused you, when you have finally confronted them, things have nearly always turned out better than you anticipated. Furthermore, the weight it takes off your mind immediately makes the world a better place, and you can start to move on with your life.

As I often say to my clients, it is far better knowing what the situation is, be it to do with money, staff or any other niggling business issues, because then you can do something about it. However bad things are, there are always actions which can be taken, and even if they don’t solve the problem completely, at worst they will alleviate things and move them forward, so you can live to fight another day.

So think of your biggest concern in your life today, and take some positive action to deal with it.

Coaching is a great career. I love what I do, and I know I am lucky to be doing it. I get a huge amount of pleasure from seeing my clients doing well, freeing up time, and making lots of money, and I get paid for it. However, it is always important to keep reminding myself why I do it, i.e. that it is not for my satisfaction or feeling of accomplishment, it is so that my clients can make their lives better, for themselves, their families and their employees. So it can never be my goals or dreams that I impose on them, it must always be to achieve what they want out of life.

I was reminded of this just recently when my daughter was playing hockey. Her coach is extremely keen, and wants them all to improve and do well, but it seems to have taken on a new meaning for him in the past few weeks, forgetting why he is there. Despite his heart being in the right place, suddenly it is all about winning for him. It is his team, and he has started to concentrate on the players he seems to think are best, and is side-lining the less good ones. Now of course everyone likes to win, but he is in danger of causing disharmony in the team, and he needs to re-address his values.

Of course this can’t be likened exactly to a business situation, except that it is just as important to concentrate on the weaker areas of the business, to improve them, as it is to revel in the glory of taking the easy wins. In business it is so much easier to focus on the things you enjoy doing because you are good at them, rather than work hard on the bits you don’t like because you don’t fully understand them or know how to do them well and efficiently. But for true and meaningful change, every area of the business needs to work well, because then you will have a happy team all working towards the same ends. It may be a lot harder work both for the business owner and the coach, but the rewards will be far greater in the long run.

Business Life Ltd

Molens Cottage
Bures Road
White Colne
Colchester
Essex
CO6 2QF

Telephone: 01787 229908
Email: info@yourbusinesslife.co.uk

Company Registered in England and Wales No. 4618907
VAT no. 798 1624 81.

© 2024 Business Life Limited. All rights reserved. DVH Design