If you’re considering working with a coach, it’s crucial you recognize the diverse array of coaching specializations available to you. While a life coach can empower you to align your life with your core priorities and foster overall fulfillment, for example, a career coach can provide you with dedicated support as you advance your career. Meanwhile, an executive coach can help you hone leadership skills and surmount challenges as you lead your team to success.
But before you hire any coach, it’s essential to ask yourself several key questions. This introspective process not only helps you determine if coaching aligns with your specific needs but also provides you with clarity in terms of your objectives and how you will extract the maximum value from this partnership.
If you’re on the fence about hiring a coach, ask yourself these nine questions.
1. “Would it be helpful to have a soundboard to process my thoughts, receive insight, and get organized?”
Coaching is a dialogue. You share your challenges and goals, while your coach offers you tailored guidance to help you process your thoughts, gain clarity, and work towards your objectives.
To maximize your coaching journey, it’s essential to value this dialogue and external perspective. If you don’t see the merit in someone else’s insights, coaching might not be a good fit for you.
2. “Am I ready to invest time and energy into my goals and make them a priority?”
The coaching journey requires effort. Attending your career coaching sessions alone doesn’t guarantee you a raise or promotion. Real progress comes from the work you put in outside of your sessions as you put the strategies and plans you’ve collaboratively developed with your coach into action.
As Lauren Bonheim, Director of Coaching at Arootah, explained, “Very often people hire a coach and think that that alone will mean they achieve their goals, but it’s actually the work done outside of coaching that determines that.”
3. “What type of coach do I need?”
There’s a diverse range of coaching specialties available, from life coaches to executive, career, and health coaches. Within each category, you can also find coaches with specific expertise that aligns with your needs.
For instance, you might benefit from a career coach who understands your industry’s unique challenges. Similarly, if you value flexibility, a remote life coach might be the right choice for you.
To find your ideal coach, consider the type of coaching you need and the specific expertise you’d like them to have. This understanding will help you narrow down your options and find the perfect fit.
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By providing your email address, you agree to receive email communication from Arootah4. “What coaching style resonates with me?”
Just as coaches come with various areas of expertise, they also bring diverse coaching styles to the table.
You may prefer a coach who offers direct, specific guidance, or you may prefer a coach who becomes a collaborative partner on the journey to success. Alternatively, you might thrive by working with a coach who encourages you to pursue self-discovery, gently guiding you toward your own insights.
Whether you prefer a structured, goal-oriented approach or a more flexible, free-flowing one, it’s essential to identify your coaching style preference, and inquire about this when hiring a coach.
5. “What are my goals for coaching and what specific outcomes do I hope to achieve?”
Approach your coaching experience with a clear objective in mind. Having a well-defined goal not only helps you to select a coach suited to your needs but also facilitates effective communication with your chosen coach from the outset, ensuring that you waste no time in meeting your goals.
6. “Is this the right time to hire a coach?”
Coaching requires a time commitment, both inside and outside of coaching sessions. Do you currently have the time you need to properly dedicate yourself to the process? Likewise, do you have the emotional and mental capacity for such a personal journey?
If you don’t think that this process is something you can currently accommodate in your schedule or life (even if you know it would be helpful) consider waiting to hire a coach until a later, more suitable date.
7. “What would success look like for me when working with a coach?”
Just like you need to clarify your goals before working with a coach, you also need to clarify what success will look like for you. Then, using this definition, you can monitor your coaching experience and progress (or lack thereof).
8. “Am I truly willing to adapt and grow?”
The essence of coaching is to propel you towards new heights of success. This journey is far from easy and it will require you to venture into the realm of discomfort.
To reach your goals, you’ll need to embrace adaptation, growth, and transformation. That may involve exploring uncharted territories, questioning your beliefs, and unlearning negative habits.
It’s crucial to introspect and assess whether you’re actually prepared for this profound change. If not, coaching might not be the right path for your current journey.
9. “Am I willing to take action, even when uncomfortable, to achieve my goals?”
Why hire a coach if you’re not prepared to take action and transform your life? The real magic often unfolds beyond the coaching sessions, in the steps you take in your everyday life. Embrace change and commit to taking tangible actions that get you closer to your goals.
The Bottom Line
Before you decide to work with a coach, it’s essential you ask yourself these nine questions. By doing so, you’re better prepared to harness the full potential of coaching and steer your life in the direction you desire.
Ready to get started on your own coaching journey? Sign up for a free, introductory call to learn more about how Arootah’s coaches can support you.
