 Introduction
Some
coaches keep their current job and build their practice in their spare time. As
their coaching income increases to a certain level and becomes stable, they either
work part-time at their job or leave.
Others
may take coach training for personal development and keep their current job. These
individuals have no intention of starting a coaching practice. They may use the
coaching skills to make them more effective at work or in their personal relationships.
Real World
Example
Dovid Grossman:
Part-Time Coach - Full-Time Coaching Philosophy
dovid@dovidgrossman.com
| www.dovidgrossman.com Written
by Lynne Franklin www.yourwordsmith.com  I'm
betting you've been there, too. A job with some rewards but not enough. Questions
about how you're using your best self and talents. Then comes the day you discover
coaching - and you can honestly divide your life into "before" and "after" that
moment.
 For
me, it was 12 years in the classroom, focusing on experiential learning. While
this was wonderful stuff, I wasn't making enough to support my family of six girls
and three boys. When I took a sales job to pay the bills, it held no passion for
me - so I wasn't successful. Then came my downward spiral: finding comfort in
food, gaining weight, and suffering feelings of incompetence and poor self-esteem.
When
I really needed it most, coaching entered my life. It was like coming home to
my natural self. I was never a "normal" teacher - was always challenging my students
to drop the nonsense that was getting in their way and reach their maximum potential.
I had been coaching them without even knowing it! In absolute amazement I wondered,
"Can I actually get paid for this?" So
I hired my own coaches - yes, plural - to get me on track and learn from being
coached. Then I took an intensive telecourse from an excellent international coaching
school. I joined Coachville and started taking classes with Thomas Leonard and
others. I became a part of Coachville's R&D team and got involved with creating
cutting-edge programs for our industry. My
wife took the burden of the family finances for nine months while I devoted myself
to starting my coaching practice. But - as some of you also may have discovered
- my business did not grow as fast as I had hoped. So while I returned to an old
job, it was with a new sense of self. My
near-term goal is to be proficient in the industry that gives me a paycheck, and
be an excellent coach. To feed my passion and improve my skills, I have quite
a regimen: attend at least two coaching conferences each year, take one coaching
course a semester, do speaking engagements or attend coaching workshops at least
two days a month, and try to coach at least five clients outside of my workplace.
I also reserve two hours a night to really be with my family. My
long-term goal is to make a living as a coach. I support this by staying active
in networking groups and offering free trial coaching sessions. On the days I'm
impatient about not yet reaching this goal, I remind myself that everything happens
for a Divine purpose and for my direct personal benefit. Each challenge is a gift
to be embraced with vibrancy. You
don't have to be employed full-time as a coach to be a coach. Coach anybody, anywhere,
anytime: be it friends and family or complete strangers - on an airplane or waiting
for a taxi - for two-minute powerful flashes of coaching or 75-minute directed
sessions. Start sharing what you know now - don't wait because you're not perfect
yet.
Padraig O'Sullivan
coach@lifeinnovations.com.au
| www.lifeinnovations.com.au
I
currently work as a HR consultant in a large national organisation in Sydney Australia,
where I have been for over three years. Over 18 months ago I decided I wanted
to develop coaching skills and develop into a full time coach. Working with my
own coach I decided to do that slowly rather than jump into it straight away.  I
completed my training and got my first clients through word of mouth. Slowly my
business started to grow. About six months later I had my own career discussions
with my boss and we talked at length about my plans to move into coaching fulltime.
I was due a large raise at the time but we decided together that I would stay
on the same salary but work a day less per week to concentrate on my coaching
business. Essentially they had given me a pay rise but in reality I worked less
to build more.
Over
the ensuing months my coaching time spilled out from that one day to two days
and then the weekend to the point that I reduced my hours again as a HR consultant
to three days per week and finally I have resigned this month to go coaching on
a fulltime basis. The
other form of income stream that is related to that story is that half of my clients
in my first year came from the working environment and were all word of mouth.
I gave a 'mates rate' to colleagues but felt the learning was worth it.
Suggestions Related to Keeping Your Current Job
You
may be tempted to quit your job and start a coaching practice immediately. You'll
have less stress and pressure if you keep your job and start your practice on
the side.
Related resources
RealAudio discussion about the Future of How
Individuals Transition Into Becoming Coaches at www.futureofcoaching.com
The above services are from CoachVille.com.
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