DEVELOPING AN ENTREPRENEURIAL MINDSET

by Ignacio Perez

Business leaders are doomed without the proper mindset.

Walk down any street and everything you see (except nature) started out as an idea in someone’s head. The only reason those ideas became reality was the unshakeable belief they were possible to execute.

What about you? Do you believe your business can succeed?

Are you paralysed by fear and overwhelm?

You can have the best tools and strategies to grow your business, but without a solid mindset to execute on them, they will be of little use.

I have witnessed this, having given the same tools to hundreds of coaches to grow their businesses, and seeing how different the results were.

We learnt great lessons in mindset and attitude from our most successful coaches.

Here are five painful mindset lessons we teach every client to ensure they are in the right frame of mind to grow their coaching business relentlessly!

1. IF YOU CAN DREAM IT, YOU CAN DO IT

Very few coaches get it right the first time. It takes resilience and tenacity to move beyond failures and true perseverance to remain positive when clients don’t come through the door.

When you add to this the prying eyes of those around you, who comment and judge your every move, the pressure can be too much to handle.

Many coaches quit at this stage mistakenly believing they lack the motivation.

The truth is they didn’t start with a strong enough purpose. Purpose is a statement of difference.

Why do I exist as a coach?

Why should I focus my energies on developing this business?

Studies show humans perform better in the context of a higher purpose, it is the source of unlimited energy and passion.

Once you find a purpose and vision that excites you, it will become infectious to everyone around you and the right people will start gravitating towards you.

When you know your why, the how follows.

2. Focus

Most coaches mistakenly believe the most important asset to a successful business is cash in the bank. While this is partly true, a scarcer resource is your time.

In the early stages of your coaching business and without proper guidance, it is easy to come up with thousands of ideas to grow your business. Most sound great regardless of their complexity or whether or not they pull you in competing directions. Ideas are worth nothing if not properly implemented and for that you need time and focus.

Implement an OKR system to help you keep focused on the objectives that matter.

3. FAIL FAST AND PRAISE YOURSELF FOR IT

It’s your attitude not your IQ that drives your commercial success as a coach. Carol Dweck has spent her entire life studying performance and has concluded there are two mindsets you can adopt in the face of setbacks: fixed and growth.

To surmount all the obstacles that lie ahead of you on your journey to success as a coach, you will have to develop a growth mindset. To do so, start creating the habit of talking action. Action transforms worries and concerns into positive, focused energy.

With a fixed mindset, you believe failure is permanent. Life is binary and there is no use in persevering. Of course, this mindset causes overwhelm, hopelessness and risk avoidance, all of which prevents your success as a coach.

On the other hand, with a growth mindset the same failure is seen as a stepping stone and an opportunity for learning and development.

4. Be Authentic

Authenticity sets you apart.

A recent consumer survey reported as little as 18% of consumers believe business leaders are truthful.

Authenticity is often confused with weakness: it is not.

Being authentic means letting go of your egoic desires and showcasing your true-self free from any artificial filters.

Be aware of the inner voice that wants recognition for you, at any cost, especially that of reality.

Be humble, open-mindedly aware and always reveal your struggles openly.

Doing so will accrue great benefits as you grow your business including the development of sustainable relationships, increased clients by referral and a loyal customer base.

5. Choose Your Battles

There is no boss anymore to turn to in case of dire need, and you’re both captain and crew aboard a very lonely boat. It doesn’t need to be like this.

At the end of the day you must decide whether you are running a business as a coach or the business is running you. Without a strong purpose, it is easy to blur the lines and forget why you became a coach in the first place.

Jack of all trades, master of none. When you start out as a coach, there are hundreds of skills you need to develop outside of your core coaching expertise.

If being CEO is only a means to an end, ask for help. And if you are going to seek help, make sure it is from qualified sources who have ‘been there and done that’.

Ignacio Perez

Ignacio Perez

Ignacio Perez is a co-founder of Coach Accelerator, the first accelerator program in the world to specialising in developing coaching businesses for coaches.

His clients include Mr Olympia Champions, Team GB Paralympians and MS survivors, all of which make 6 and 7 figure incomes from their passions as coaches.

He is a Forbes contributor and has agreed to share the secrets that take his coaching clients from doing “okay” in their business, to filling their practices with high ticket clients with the readers of Coaching Life.

Upcoming Series Articles

June 2019 - Find Your Golden Niche The practical side of choosing a niche, what constitutes a good pick and how to know you have hit jackpot with minimum resources when you are starting out.

September 2019 - Your Coaching Offer I'll share a process to create a program or coaching offer that is worth upwards of $2k per client.

December 2019 - The Coaching Funnel I'll talk about what kinds of funnels work online for coaches and the nuisances you have to look after depending on your coaching niche.

March 2020 - Generating Traffic I'll walk through the most common and easiest places to start bringing your ideal clients through your material online and onto a call with you.

June 2020 - Scaling Beyond Finances I'll share how to grow operations from the initial successes so that coaches don't need to trade income for time and freedom.