How to Hire a Coach
If you want to make a change, you must first start taking in the right information. I was farrrrrr from uneducated in the photo on the left, but I was mis-educated.
I was reading every health and fitness magazine under the sun and I still couldn’t figure it out until I hired a coach.
A real coach.
Not someone who signed up for some network marketing product and claims to be a coach without relevant experience.
I am usually a live and let live kind of person but the number of hours I spend de-programming clients because they’ve been fed the wrong information is staggering. Please do yourself a favor and understand the difference between information that makes a difference and information that sells.
If I had continued on my self-educated, go-it-alone path on the left, at some point I would have chalked it up to “I guess it’s just my genetics”.
Enter the, “it must be my age” argument… Don’t let them tell you everything gets worse with age. I’m 15 years older in the photo on the right versus the photo on the left, and it isn’t because I decided to get fit one day (although that happens too).
In the photo on the left I was working out 5-6 days a week. I was eating a vegetarian diet because I read that it could help me lose weight. Please don’t start on the morality of my food choices. That’s so not the point of this post.
The point of this blog post is to let you know there is a better way and unless you hire someone to show you a better way, there is a really good chance you could continue on the same path I was on.
So what to look for in a coach?
Experience
There is no substitution for experience. Not even loads of certifications and education. Yes, a formal education process is important, but it doesn’t make up for experience.
I equate this to going on a cruise… you’ve spent the past 2 months preparing and packing just the right things, but then you show up to the cruise ship late.
You’ve missed the boat.
The education and training is the packing for the cruise. The experience is like your ability to show up on time. Nothing can replace experience.
Understanding
Something I always look for in a coach is their understanding of my situation as a whole. There are a million different ways to reach a goal, but if the coach doesn’t understand the implications of what they are asking their clients to do, that is a huge red flag for me.
A fitness example would include a client saying they are bound and determined to have a 6-pack by summer. The coach or trainer (not the same thing – read blog post here) should assess the client’s current physique, training history, and lifestyle considerations.
Most miss the lifestyle considerations.
6-Packs don’t come without nutritional manipulation and this can lead to brain fog. Brain fog for the sake of a 6-pack doesn’t really compute well if you are already struggling to juggle a career and a family.
Cost
In a culture where we’ve been programmed to look for the bargains, discounts, deals, and FREE, it may be counter-intuitive to seek out a coach that actually charges what they are worth.
Here is how you benefit from the getting what you pay for model.
Countless studies have been conducted on how financial commitment is directly proportional to emotional commitment. This goes both ways… both with your level of commitment to the program and the coach’s level of commitment to your success.
Read previous blog post, The Real Cost of Free here.
One last note… no matter how helpful someone is on their social media, it is no substitute for honest-to-goodness, get-you-to-your-goal coaching.
