Erickson Coaching Functional Flow Newsletter: March 2010

"What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals." ~ Goethe

Hello fellow coaches,

I don't know about you but I have been inspired by the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. It doesn't hurt that I live in the city that hosted them; Canada had a story book finish with Canada winning hockey gold and scoring Olympic record of 14 gold medals. To top it all off I was at the closing ceremonies. It also brings back many great memories of my competitive years as a figure skater. But it goes deeper then that. The Olympics uncover some key factors that are important for all of us who are committed to making a difference and building a successful business.

Firstly, on a social level, the Olympics highlight the power of "we". Nelson Mandela once said "politics divide, sports unite". Sports encourage leadership, the development of social skills, learning how to manage a stressful situation and most importantly, teaching that personal sacrifices in service of the group, often brings greater rewards than simple self interest. As an entrepreneur, it is important we do not do the entrepreneur journey alone, there is an experience of we that is available to all of us, and it is up to us to create it.

I have heard from many who have watched the athletes step up to their long desired dream of competing in the Olympics, that it has brought tears to their eyes. We are reminded of what is possible in our own life. The Olympics remind us of the rewards of courage, self discipline and belief in oneself.

Throughout the many years of coaching other business owners and coaches I have found that these qualities are absolutely critical to embrace to take our passion of coaching and make it into a profitable business. They are worth exploring further.

Courage: I once heard courage is feeling the fear and doing it anyways - how true! Courage is needed when you have a sense of what you hope to achieve but there is no guarantee - in other words there is a level of risk involved. This is necessary when building a business. Acting in spite of the risk often brings up less than comfortable feelings, feelings such as fear, self doubt, uncertainty, and discomfort. I was very inspired from a Passion into Profit participant when I requested at the end of training call "this week is about stretching out of your comfort zone and taking bold steps to build your business" he responded "Teresia, since I have decided to be a coach I have been out of my comfort zone" - this is a good thing!

What drives one to act in spite of the uncomfortable feelings? Simply put-values. When you have a strong belief about the right thing to do, or what is important to you, you're often compelled to act. At the end of the day the question is: are you letting your fear guide you or your desire to act on what is most important to you?

Living a life where you are consistently stretching out of your comfort zone and accessing your inner courage, not only builds self confidence but it is critical to build a successful coaching business.

Self-discipline:
Most people don't associate discipline with happiness, but did you know the most joy you'll ever know comes from areas where you are self-disciplined? People who have significant and successful businesses can often point back to a time that required much effort and self-discipline. They often say it was worth every ounce of effort. Becoming self-disciplined is never easy in the beginning, but once you overcome a barrier and make a decision to become disciplined, it gets easier. I often tell my clients self-discipline is doing the things you don't necessarily want to do, but you know by doing them, they will help you get the results you want. I support my clients in designing their life around doing what they love and what they are good at - when we do this the amount of self-discipline is minimal AND to really live a life we love there will always be areas where we need to embrace the act of self-discipline. Simple put self-discipline is about the ability to reject immediate satisfaction, in order to gain something better, but requires effort and time. Decide today where in your business you would benefit greatly if you were to become more self-disciplined. Where do you want more or better results? Start today by saying "no" to immediate satisfaction and start implementing that extra effort to create more of what you really want in your life.

Belief in oneself:
We have all heard it at one time in our lives "you have to believe in yourself." Believing in oneself is one of the first steps to success. If you don't have confidence in yourself, it will be difficult to succeed in anything. Every day all of us face challenges in our business, some small, small big, it is how we respond to it them that makes the difference. Whatever your vision is for your coaching business, hold onto it, and take one step at a time. When you feel the fear and act anyway (courage), and make self-discipline a part of your life, this builds the muscle of belief in yourself.

My question to you: Are you taking steps daily where you are accessing your inner courage? Do your business goals requires self-discipline and faith in oneself daily? A successful business requires the attitude and commitment of an athlete. Is this your year to go for gold?

Supporting the success of the coaching profession,
Teresia LaRocque, ICF Master Certified Coach

www.passionintoprofitforcoaches.com
Transform your bottom line * Leverage your business * Love your life