What makes a great coach?
You’re in the right place. Today, you’ll learn:
- What qualities great coaches share
- The difference between a good and a great coach
- How YOU can become a great coach how to go from good to great and offer even more value to your clients.
These are the skills I teach my students who then go on to get these types of results…
Ready to get started? Let’s dive in!
Quick overview:
- A coach is a person who support and guides individuals or groups to achieve their goals.
- Coaching has plenty of benefits; clients often report that they improve areas like performance, relationships, and communication.
- A great coach is someone who has mastered key coaching skills, like being able to hold clients accountable and offering leadership.
What is a coach?
A coach is a trained professional who supports and guides people on their journey to achieve their goals.
In fact, studies have found that after working with coaches, the average client sees an 80% increase in confidence. Furthermore, 70% see improved patterns in their work, relationships, and communication.
You’ve most likely heard of popular coaching niches, such as life coaches, career coaches, relationship coaches, and business coaches.
However, there’s a coach for everyone, including those looking for help with their…
…Just to name a few.
Each type of coach has their own niche, or specialty, that speaks to a certain type of client. You need a niche to build a successful coaching business – your niche is what attracts your ideal type of client.
There’s a niche for everything – confidence coaching, weight loss coaching, money mindset coaching, you name it.
In fact, here’s a list of 100 highly profitable niches.
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Now, there are two types of coaches.
I’m referring to those who work directly with individuals, such as a health or relationship coach, and those who work in the workplace, such as leadership or career coaches. (However, these “corporate” coaches can also work directly with individuals.)
Both help their clients get results.
For example, clients who take part in executive and career coaching (in an office) see a 6x average return on investment on the cost of coaching.
People who work with a weight loss coach (one-on-one) lose three times as much weight compared to other methods.
Take my student Carol, an executive coach who helps organizations develop leaders and cultivate results-driven cultures.
Another example?
Adrienne is a registered nutritionist who helps people lose weight and keep it off.
Next, let’s look at what coaches do.
What does a coach do?
You might be wondering how a coach actually helps their clients reach their goals.
Well, they use their own methodologies. A few things coaches might support their clients with are:
- Personal growth
- Improve self-awareness
- Improve mindset
- Identify challenges
- Overcome obstacles
Traditionally, coaches use a very hands-off approach that involves using probing questions to guide clients to reach their own conclusions rather than outlining a solution or just providing them with a full answer.
I’ve been in the coaching business for a decade, and here’s what I’ve learned: That what we imagine coaching to be has changed.
These days, the best coaches act more like “coach-sultants” – or a mix between a coach and a consultant.
What do I mean by that?
Coaches have the experience and ability necessary to help guide someone to the result they want.
Why not help them achieve their goals faster by giving them a few of the answers the way a consultant would, instead of having them spend weeks, months, or years trying to find the solution on their own?
For instance, if you’re an executive coach, you could say, “I’ve been at this type of professional crossroads, too. If you’re not sure which job to take, I recommend that you…”
Sure, the traditional method of coaching – probing questions but providing no answers – works. But acting as a “coach-sultant” will streamline the coaching process and help the clients to get the results they’ve wanted for years far more quickly.
And that, as a coach, is the value you provide: An ability to help clients see results.
Want to learn more about coach-sulting? Watch my quick video here:
Now you know how top coaches work.
But do they also mentor? Let’s take a look.
8 characteristics of a good coach and mentor
How can you become a better coach?
A good coach and mentor is someone who can provide value to their clients because they have experience in their niche.
But it’s also someone who knows how to help their clients actually succeed.
Some coaching skills that define effective coaching are being…
- A good leader
- Goal focused
- Curious
- Patient
- Motivational
- Able to build trust
- Compassionate
- Self-aware
- Being good at time management
- Effective at providing feedback
- Able to develop communication skills
…And so on!
Though there are other qualities that I believe are important as well, let’s start with the most important. It’s what I call the ABCs of coaching: Actionable advice, belief, and candor.
Give actionable advice
When I say actionable advice, I mean creating a roadmap that clients can truly use. It gives them a clear picture of not only how they’ll get to their end goal, but how they can get even better results when they get there.
I recommend creating a step-by-step plan for the first three months of working with a new client. Each month should focus on an attainable goal that will flow naturally into the next month’s goal.
For instance, a life coach working with a client who wants to find a better work-life balance might suggest the following actionable advice:
Month 1: Help the client identify a few healthy boundaries to keep thoughts about work from infringing on time spent outside of the office.
Month 2: Find ways to communicate those boundaries to others in order to maintain them.
Month 3: Add an extra strategy that helps the client find an even stronger sense of balance.
Creating an actionable plan in this way is great for new and seasoned coaches alike.
Believe in your clients
In the ABCs of coaching, the “B” stands for belief.
Think about something that you’ve worked hard to achieve in the past few years. Chances are, you had at least one person who believed in you – and how much better did that make your journey?
As a coach, your job is to be that person for your clients. Even when you can’t guarantee results, it’s up to you to instill a sense of belief – that they can reach their goals – in them.
After all, clients hire coaches because they have the experience to help them build their confidence.
Being truthful
Finally, the C: Candor.
A good coach doesn’t just tell their client what they want to hear. They tell them what they need to hear, even when it’s hard.
Why? Because that truth is what’s going to help your clients reorientate themselves and focus on getting the results they’re working toward.
Let’s say you’re a weight loss coach whose client can’t seem to lose the first five pounds.
Instead of saying something like, “You’re trying your best – be patient,” you have to give them some tough love.
That might look something like this:
“You hired me because you want to lose weight and get healthy for your children. We worked together to create an actionable plan, and the first step of that is to work on choosing healthy food at the store. Right now, you’re choosing the same food you’ve always chosen – and you’re choosing not to feel like you’re worthy of getting healthy.”
(Note: This can work in any industry!)
It’s not easy to say, but being truthful enough to have the hard conversations is a core part of a good coach’s job.
Now that we’ve covered the ABCs of coaching, let’s talk about some of the other qualities that a good coach has.
Leading
A good coach has the ability to create a plan tailored to each client’s unique situation right from the start. Without a good plan, they won’t find results.
Providing a clear vision
Clients have an idea of what’s possible, but I find that in most cases, they underestimate themselves.
That’s why I always challenge them to try for more – just like my own coach did for me when they suggested I am for a $1 million launch instead of a $300,000 launch in the first year of business. Without that extra push, I never would have achieved my $800,000 launch.
For example, take a look at how Carol, who I mentioned earlier, was able to push out of her comfort zone and allowed herself to aim for big dreams:
Guiding
Part of that actionable advice I mentioned earlier involves laying out a plan. But you can’t just give a client a few steps and call it done!
If you want your client to find success, you have to clearly show them how to get there. Take the time to plan out the exact steps you need them to take during your time together in order to reach their goals.
Problem-solving
Even if you provide the most detailed steps, clients might still run into obstacles that they can’t work around. When that happens, all you can do is find a solution.
This is when you need to think back on not only your own experience in your niche but your coaching experience.
What worked for you? What worked for other clients? How can it be used in this instance?
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Holding clients accountable
Finally, you have to hold your clients accountable, even in the face of adversity. If they ever feel discouraged or like they’re not seeing as much progress as they feel they should, remind them of what they’re working toward – and the work it takes to get there.
Then – and only then – can you help your clients reach their goals and get the best results.
Coaching versus mentoring
At this point, you might be wondering what the difference between coaching and mentoring is – or if there’s a difference at all.
There is a difference: While it’s true that a coach also acts as a mentor, a mentor is not a coach.
Let me explain.
An effective coach does mentor their client, but also works to support and guide them through their journey to reaching specific goals. They work with their clients every step of the way to encourage them, help them problem-solve, and keep them accountable throughout the journey.
Another key difference: They get paid for their time and expertise, which makes them available to almost anyone who might be interested in their services.
On the other hand, a mentor (who isn’t a coach) offers free support. That means that there’s no guarantee when it comes to availability, how helpful they’ll be, or what kind of results a mentee can see.
More importantly, even if someone is available to be a mentor, it doesn’t mean they will be.
Building up the kind of relationship needed to cross that bridge can take years and once you’ve built it, there’s no guarantee how long it will last – some last 3-6 months, others last years.
On the other hand, the coaching relationship is reliable and consistent.
With that, you know what a coach is. So, what makes a great coach? That’s what we’ll look at next.
Examples of great coaches
What are some of the top examples of great coaching?
Here are four outstanding coaches who help people achieve their full potential, using the skills we’ve discussed.
Richard Williams
Richard Williams is the father of Serena and Venus Williams, some of the best tennis players of all time. He started coaching them at the age of four and a half and eventually withdrew them from a tennis academy to coach them himself. Thanks to his coaching, they started winning grand slam tournaments.
There are a number of reasons he was such a successful coach. For example, he emphasized hard work, mental toughness, and meticulously planned his daughters’ careers.
Bill Campbell
Bill Campbell, also known as the “Trillion Dollar Coach,” was a business coach beloved by Silicon Valley executives, including Eric Schmidt of Google and Steve Jobs.
He helped some of the biggest companies in the world grow with tools like empathy, an unwavering belief in people, and complete candor.
Bob Bowman
Bob Bowman coached Michael Phelps, a 23-time Olympic swimming champion, to win almost all the races of his career. Bob Bowman is an exceptional coach because he relentlessly obsesses over details and helped Phelps prepare for almost every situation by visualizing them.
During one of his Olympic races, Phelps’ goggles filled with water – something that would normally have been a huge disadvantage. But because Phelps had been through this situation in training, he was able to win the race and set a world record.
Oprah Winfrey
Oprah Winfrey isn’t a coach in the traditional sense of the word. However, she helps inspire and motivate millions of people thanks to her emotional intelligence and communication skills. She is the first African-American woman to become a billionaire and is one of the world’s most influential people.
Get the Ultimate Guide
for building a
6-Figure Coaching Business so you can achieve more freedom!
How can YOU become a great coach?
There you have it – the qualities of good coaches as well as what makes a great coach.
Remember, you won’t become a successful coach instantly. It’s something you’ll work on and, over time, see happen as you provide value to your clients.
However, to start coaching, you need to build a business and get clients.
That’s where a lot of coaches stop in their tracks…and for a reason!
After all, figuring it out all on your own is overwhelming. That’s why I put together a step-by-step roadmap that will help you start your own coaching business right away. Get it now!
Learn more:
How to Choose Your Own Coaching Philosophy
