Business Lessons Learned as a coaching business owner

This April I celebrated eleven years as a business owner. At this stage in my work I think would find it really hard to ever go back and work for someone else. I enjoy the flexibility and creativity that it requires.  Each year I reflect on some of my key lessons learned as a business owner, and share them in my newsletter. In case you missed these last month, I thought it would be interesting to share again:

Lessons Learned from Eleven Years of Business Ownership
Originally published in the Group and Team Coaching Ins and Outs newsletter.

As I move into my eleventh year of business ownership I have come to recognize this time of year as a reflective one looking at what has worked and what hasn't in my own journey. Each year I like to share these reflections either at my blog or this newsletter. This year is no different. Rather than dedicating a lesson a year, I am going to practice my lesson #1 - Keep it Simple - and go with just five.

#1 - Keep it simple. There can be many moving parts in any business, and keeping things simple, systematized, and streamlined for yourself will allow you to extricate yourself from what can become endless hours of admin so that you can coach. The addition of which systems or support would free up some of your time? 

#2 -  Lead with your passions and strengths - as coaches we spend a bulk of our time supporting clients - individuals, groups and teams - to idetnify and lead from their passions and strengths. We see for many of our clients how owning, and fully stepping into their own strengths can be difficult. Why expect anything different from ourselves? While it may not be a direct path to tomorrow's activities and revenue flows, consider how you can be bringing more of your own passions and strengths to the table in the work that you do. What passions and strengths do you lead from, or want to lead from?

#3 - Embrace and reframe failure to "it just didn't work" - Business ownership is not for the faint at heart. Things work, and others don't. The business context today changes so rapidly that whether we are leaders or business owners (or both) we need to be comfortable and keep moving when things done work out.  Innovation requires ongoing iteration where we learn from our experience, tweak and try again. What recently hasn't worked well for you? What is the learning behind this?

#4 - Love the Ones You Are With - For many years CSNY's song "Love the One You Are With" held a special place in my heart as I spent many holidays separated from family and loved ones. In fact, those people who originally were strangers became my second, and third, family and networks of friends. As coaches it is so important that we enjoy, and even, love the people (teams, groups and individuals) we are working with, holding the space for possibility, and excellence. What do you love about your current clients? Who else would you really LOVE to work with?

#5 - Get out of your comfort zone - As professionals we all have our own comfort zones. Every once and while it's important to continue to stretch these to learn new things,  and explore new perspectives. What's going to stretch your comfort zone this month?"

Regardless of how long you have been in business yourself, what would you say are your top five lessons learned?

Have a great week,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, MES, CPT, PCC
Group Coaching Essentials | Potentials Realized  
Author of Effective Group Coaching (Wiley, 2010) and From One to Many: Best Practices for Team and Group Coaching (Jossey-Bass, 2013)
Upcoming programs include: Mentor Coaching Group for ACC Renewals and ACC/PCC portfolio (Thurs 12 - 1 pm ET) and the Advanced Group Coaching Practicum (10 CCes) - Thursdays 1015 -1130 am ET starting May 28th - July 23
(416)996-8326