Find a Business Coach - Good Advice - But How?

When it comes to the "people helping other people learn" profession, there are many titles used to describe the different roles. There is also a lot of disagreement about what the titles mean and how they differ.

Some of the confusion comes from careless use of words that have slightly different meanings; but much of the confusion stems from the fact that the roles clearly overlap.

Some of the confusion is exacerbated by certain individuals who suffer from an attitude of self-importance; others are on a mission to elevate one role or another.

The home business owner, looking to follow the oft-given advice to "find yourself a mentor" will likely be perplexed by the large number of terms used by those selling their services.

Here is a list of the many people who might help the entrepreneur get ahead:

• teacher, trainer, facilitator, educator, instructor, tutor


• coach, adviser, counselor, mentor, guide


• role model, exemplar, master performer


• supervisor, boss, sponsor, partner, team

As I already stated the truth is that all of the roles listed above overlap somewhat. In other words, while all of the players have a role in helping people learn, there are some distinctions that can be made.

This lens will not likely settle any controversies about these roles, but it will help the home business owner think through the kinds of learning help available.

Beginning in the early 1970s, Margo Murray studied corporations to see how more experienced employees could mentor less experienced employees and thus improve their performance. These studies led to implementing facilitated mentoring programs which Murray wrote about in Beyond the Myths and Magic of Mentoring (1991). She began the book by differentiating three terms:

• A sponsor may provide recommendations for advancement, introductions to influential people within a certain business or industry, provide public praise and support, and offer guidance regarding corporate culture and politics. A sponsor may also serve as a confidant. The relationship is informal and indefinite in duration. A person could have more than one sponsor. Learning from the sponsor is only a small part of the relationship.


• A role model is someone that exhibits success at getting things done, that shows exemplary behavior, and/or has respected knowledge. The relationship is not only informal, but in most cases, the role model is not even aware of the individuals that specifically identify her as a role model. Learning from the role model is indirect as the learner observes the role model in order to emulate her.


• A mentor may "carry out some or even all of the functions of the sponsor and role model in a relationship structured around the skills that the protege wants to develop." (Murray, p. 12) The relationship is guided by a specific agreement. Other functions of the mentor may include: providing information about the company, tutoring specific skills, giving feedback on performance, providing advice during times of crisis for the protege, help with career planning. The mentor, in Murray's case studies, is not typically the same as the individual's boss, but rather some other experienced employee, and the mentor typically as only one protege at a time.

So based on that, I can clarify my relationship with Steve Jobs! While it is unlikely that he will ever be taking me under his protective wing (a sponsor) or signing an agreement to help me improve in certain specific performances (a mentor), he can still be my role model -- though he'll never know it.

Even then, he won't be much of a role model. Not because of his qualities, mind you, but because I have zero proximity to him. Whatever I hope to emulate is seen only through the eyes of the media, not from personal observation. Thus, to claim, "Steve Jobs is my role model," doesn't mean much of anything. On the other hand, I have several colleagues who actually have been great role models for me.

Be sure not to lose sight of Murray's comments about a mentoring relationship. Particularly that it involves a formal agreement (frequently in writing), it includes the identification of specific tasks or skills in which I am seeking mentoring, and it includes a commitment from the mentor to oberve my work and provide feedback. ---- Hold that thought!

I am not exactly without a conflict of interest on these terms! I have taught high school for 15 years, started a private "middle school," and conducted train-the-trainer workshops all over the world for engineers in the semiconductor industry.

Here is how I compare the two roles: Both work with groups or individuals, guiding them through a structured learning activity. A trainer is generally more concerned with an outcome of improved skill performance or "how-to's" (like math facts, soldering, selling); a teacher is generally more concerned with the acquisition of knowledge and understanding within a given field (like history, theory of operation, corporate policy). Obviously these roles overlap, even though one may predominate.

Let's look at how this applies to a home business owner. If you are learning about the theory of internet attraction marketing or the reasons for customer follow up, then you are receiving teaching. But if you are learning how to Twitter attractively or how to set up an autoresponder for follow up, then you are receiving training.

Training and teaching emphasize differing elements of instructional design and delivery. Expect to see more presenting in teaching. Expect to encounter more practice with appropriate feedback in training. Nevertheless, teachers and trainers employ both of these methods depending on the nature of the student's performance objectives.

Let's consider a specific example, involving network marketing. Suppose an upline leader gathers some of her downline distributors for a meeting. During the meeting she explains how to "share the opportunity" - that would be teaching. If she shows a video demonstration of how to share the opportunity, it is still just teaching. But if she gets everyone to practice, role-playing the task of sharing the opportunity, and after giving appropriate feedback, she encourages them to try again while incorporating her feedback - that is training.

Now let's go back to Murray's definitions. Murray's corporate "mentor" will be a bit of a teacher, a trainer, a role model, and a sponsor. And perhaps more. On the other hand, while a teacher or trainer may at times take on the role of mentor for some students, that is not characteristic of the job or role of the teacher or trainer.

Why? A teacher or trainer typically works with a number of people over time. A mentor typically has one protege while at the same time handling other aspects of his own job description. This explains why, in network marketing, an upline leader may at times conduct training, but can only accommodate one or two proteges at a time.

Many people use the term business mentor more or less synonymously with business coach.

The definition of a coach is increasingly being guided by the standards of the International Coaching Federation: The ICF defines coaching as "partnering with clients in a thought-provoking and creative process that inspires them to maximize their personal and professional potential." As you can see, the definition suggests distinctions.

In training and mentoring, both participants in the relationship know the performance (task/skill) objective, even if only the trainer or mentor fully grasps the extent of the expected standards (quality, criteria) for the performance. In coaching, the client has uncertain goals and ineffective plans. The coaching process guides the client in getting clarity for himself. The coach will then help to hold the client accountable in the execution of the client's own goals and plans.

The trainer does more demonstrating and correcting; the coach does more listening and questioning. NOTE: This is certainly true in business and most other areas with the exception of the field of athletics which clings to the idea that coaches address skills improvement.

So yes, it is possible to be well prepared to mentor and know little about coaching. It is possible to have a professional background in both coaching and mentoring.

ICF membership includes not only business coaches, but "life coaches," family coaches, and career coaches. A Master Certified Coach credential with ICF (the uppermost of 3 ICF categories of credentials) pre-supposes that the individual has had at least 2500 hours of coaching experience, at least 35 clients, and a documented 200 hours of coach-specific course-work.

There are many excellent business coaches that do not have ICF credentials or the intensity of training required by the ICF, but as I mentioned, the trend is for people to ask about the credential. As with all professions, a credential is only part of the story, and we have all met teachers, doctors, and lawyers with the degree and the credential who nevertheless did poor work. On the other hand, it is hard to put my full trust in a lawyer who has not gone to law school and has not passed the bar exam!

So, as a home business owner, if I am trying to learn internet marketing using a website with video tutorials (demonstrations) and I want help with any of the following items, I am in need of mentoring.

• I have watched the tutorial on "writing with pull." Now I want some feedback on the text of a squeeze page I have written.


• I need help with a technique for which I cannot find a tutorial in the training system platform.


• I am not sure which tutorial I should study next.

On the other hand, I may need coaching if I want help with items like these:

• I am not sure if I am suited to do traditional person-to-person network marketing or should I pursue internet attraction marketing.


• I'm not sure what my niche should be.


• I'm not sure why half of my customers stopped buying from me and what I should do about it.

Incidentally, the ICF also certifies schools (both online and offline) that offer instruction that qualifies for the ICF individual coaching credential requirement.

Marcia Wieder provides some additional role distinctions in her book Making Your Dreams Come True (1999). In one chapter she encourages business owners to create a "dreamteam" (what we might otherwise call a support team) in order to accelerate their movement toward attaining their dreams (goals). At a minimum, she advises that every dreamteam should have at least one mentor, one coach, and one partner. Here is how she differentiates these terms:

• A mentor has experience and expertise in the same chosen field as the protege; it should be "someone who has been where you want to go, is still learning and growing, and is happy to share those experiences with you."


• A coach may not have experience in the same field as the protege, but "is someone who listens for what's possible, helps you breakthrough when you're stuck, and holds you accountable for doing what you said you were going to do."


• A partner is someone who "gives, receives, and shares equally with you." (Wieder, pp 158-160) In terms of Bob Burg and Ivan Misner it is one of many people with whom you network. Wieder simply takes it a step further and suggests inviting specific people with whom to partner.

A new home business entrepreneur rarely knows everything; more typically she is faced with daunting gaps in knowledge, skills, and experience required for implementing internet marketing strategies and other tasks. She may be expert in one area (or one hat, as Michael Gerber describes in The E-Myth Revisited) yet lacking competence in other areas.

Consequently, an entrepreneur is faced with learning or failing. Where should she turn? In summary,

Look for trainers and mentors to facilitate learning in specific skills and tasks, perhaps involving internet marketing. The learning can take place through e-learning (videos and other online activities), over the phone, one-on-one and face-to-face, or in a virtual or physical classroom.

Look for coaches to facilitate learning about yourself - learning about the bigger picture of decision-making, confidence, goal setting, and action planning. The learning can take place one-on-one, either face-to-face or over the phone.

Look for sponsors, partners, and team members (people in your network) to help you get what learning cannot provide - the inside edge.

Look for skilled listeners. That's one thing that a good trainer, mentor, and coach all have in common. Michael Oliver's Natural Selling Approach is an excellent resource for home business newbies and leaders - his books and seminars help those who wish to develop their listening skills

Look for business coaches that are familiar with your type of business operation. A small business coach familiar with the challenges of a business owner with 20 employees is different than the challenges of a home business owner. Consider the special considerations of getting MLM network marketing coaching, for example.

When reading the advice to "find yourself a mentor," it would be a mistake to think that it is always a long term relationship. It can be, and there are many famous examples of this. However, more typically it is of short duration; a relationship of 3 to 12 months. You may find the need for new mentors and coaches as your needs change and evolve.

Life Coaches can provide help to those evaluating their life, setting new goals, and sorting out what can be overwhelming demands and desires. Perhaps starting a business fits into that mix.

But many coaches specialize, calling themselves business coaches and many others focus even more specifically. Consider some friends of mine who I have met as I have developed my own coaching business:

• Niche Coach - Cindy Schulson helps entrepreneurs find their perfect niche so that they can attract more business. Her business is called "Attract Your Niche."


• Family Budget Coach - John Balbach helps people put their living in financial balance. No matter what business you have started, it needs to rest on financial stability.


• Positive Mindset Coach - Jan Robberts helps people develop and maintain a positive outlook. The relationship to business should be obvious.


• Meditation Coach - Tom Renfro helps individuals with "mindset" a bit differently, providing support in the development of personal meditation strategies.


• Business Plan Coach - Mike Wilson helps individuals who want to develop a business plan.


• Collaboration Coach - Richard Goutal (That's me) helps internet marketers who want to benefit from growth through working with others.

If you have difficulty locating any of these people through Google or Facebook, contact me and I will send you their contact information.

All of the above are just examples. There are many other types of coaching specialties. And I know many very effective (generalist) life coaches as well that can help you with your entrepreneurial issues.