Next… The HARD Truth
In my last post I described how the GURU FLU is killing the coaching industry.
In this post let’s talk about the cause and the cure.
To do this, we have to face the truth: The reason THE INFO GURUS get more people to sign up for their NO-COACH Coaching programs than we do for REAL COACHING is only ONE THING…
MARKETING!
YES! I said it… MARKETING!
While we are at it, let’s face another BIG TRUTH HERE:
Marketing is a game being played by every business every day. And in the marketing league REAL Coaches like us have been like the “Bad News Bears”! (please excuse the 70’s reference)
It means we try hard but we rarely win because basically, we stink at marketing.
But I seriously believe that the game has
changed!
I believe that the fundamentals of business and ESPECIALLY MARKETING have undergone a dramatic shift in the past few years from The Information Economy to The Connection Economy.
People are YEARNING for personal connections and DEEP engagement.
NOT Information. Not Hype.
In other words… Engagement RULES!
And since REAL Coaching with the Spirit of Play – what WE do -… IS the skill of DEEP Engagement and Positive Personal Influence… WOW…
Coaching skills are NOW Marketing skills!!
Sounds strange doesn’t it? … But I KNOW it is TRUE.
REAL Coaching bridges the gap between Information and RESULTS
DEEP Engagement is the catalyst for Transformation
So… if you want to win the Marketing game, all you have to do is apply your Coaching Skills of DEEP Engagement to every aspect of your business. OK. I know that is easier said than done! But it is VERY possible if you are creative and courageous.
We MUST Rise up!
To see an example of how we are doing engagement-based marketing at CoachVille…
check out…
The Ultimate Marketing CAMP <<– CLICK HERE
(note: this page has been greatly revised based on feedback from yesterday’s post!)
Tomorrow: The Cure for Guru Flu Part 2
Why Guru’s Don’t Engage.
And how this gives us an advantage!
Ps. Remember to join us for Crazy Coaching Friday
Every Friday at 1PM ET on Google+
Live Group Coaching for the World to Watch!
(like a trapeze act without a net… exhilarating!)
Part of the problem is that many people claim and, worse, are certified as coaches who should never ever be. Consequently, the ‘profession’ is often nothing more than a misrepresented joke. When someone who has never made any money represents as a business coach, when someone who has just gotten divorced represents as a life coach, when someone who is severely overweight/out-of-shape represents as a wellness/health coach, the entire process is perceived as a joke.
Bob,
You are dead on. It is hard to find awesome coaches who embodys and had achieved a state of accomplishment in their chosen emphasis.
Melissa
I beg to differ (only slightly)… As I see it, it may be of great value to a client who is facing trouble in his/her marriage to have a coach who has been through a divorce and who may lead by example and show that life goes on should the client’s marriage fail. Furthermore, I’m overweight but still pitches as a health coach. Why? Because not all clients who are overweight themselves prefer a perfectly trimmed coach, the prospect of which may feel too daunting to them.
Thank you Dave!
For many of us who have been coaching since “the old days,” we applaud your efforts to point out the obvious–there are plenty of coaching frauds out there. There have been for years. We’ve lost countless clients and contracts to consultants turned coaches. In other words, we are mad as hell and we’re not going to take it anymore! But it is also appropriate (as good coaches) to look at the root of the problem itself…
This may not be the most popular opinion but ever since coaching became popular the populous has been trying to “sell” something to coaches–this includes the ICF. The reason there are so many people out there trying to make $ off of coaching is because they can–and those of us who are REAL coaches don’t often have the $ to do anything about it.
The problem really lies with the fact that coaching has fast become the “it” industry. And when you are an “it” industry what do you do?–You require a “certification” to legitimize it. Let’s keep in mind that there are many great “Real” coaches out there who are doing all the right things for all the right reasons and who have even attended the “Right” schools and got the “Right”education; but who choose not to become (say ICF certified) out of Principle. Do you know how many ICF MCC’s I’ve encountered as coaches or facilitators that have done everything BUT coach? It’s not that hard to get certified. (And yes I know that this theory might meet with some discent, but let’s get real here.)
The problem is that “Coaching” is now an INDUSTRY! It has “Arrived” and when you “have arrived” all sorts of crazy things happen.
Not only does everyone want to call themselves a coach whether they have the appropriate schooling or not–I now have a nurse coach with my healthcare plan and even an energy coach with my utilities company (REALLY?!?!)–They also claim to have the “thing” that will magically make life easier and make clients appear–just like the next new diet craze.
The ICF is part of the problem and not the solution. As the self-appointed defacto governing board for coaches, they have “drunk the kool-aid” and now they believe themselves to be the authority for coaching in the US and abroad. Dare I say this is more about Ego and Money than coaching.
In the process, they convince coaches to pay hundreds of dollars for membership and certification (and CEUSs) year after year under the guise of having the “best interests” of coaches and clients at heart. They accredit scores of “would be coach trainings” (for a hefty fee) to train the rest of us on “how to coach” and “certify” even more to be PCC and MMC’s whether or not they truly meet the standards of what we “Real Coaches” see as coaching.
Do you have any idea how many MCC’s I’ve encountered that jump to advice giving as their number one coaching tool or who are terrible coach-facilitators yet they have ICF accredited courses? And this is Coaching?
If you want REAL coaches, go back to REAL education where it’s more about concept than money, where people interact with one another like they do in coachville and at schools like CCUI and then MAYBE the industry will move in the right direction. Until then, count on the fact that frauds will continue to be a part of our ranks and they will also continue to take our business away from us.
The true power of coaching lies in the client’s ability to see the difference between what is real and what is perception. I can only keep doing my best and hoping that everyday when I make a difference in a client’s life, that they see the value in working with me. Based on that experience, I am confident that they will share that experience with others who will then come to me to. Which essentially means that no matter how much formal marketing we do, the BEST marketing still comes from word of mouth.
The clients who know us and who have experienced our coaching, they are the ones who make a difference and we (being the vehicle for those transformations) will be grateful to receive their referrals.
Well written CCoach!
Namaste’
Filomena Day
Wealth & Wellness Coach
I could not agree more. I got into this business only 4 years ago because I realized that my skills, education, and experience put me square into this process. However, and I may be rebelling against no one, part of the reason I refuse to become certified is mainly because of the lack of true oversight. Even though the ICF is the most reliable certification even their process is flawed. I am so pleased that I was a student of Coachville and learned great lessons in coaching. I have realized over the years that some of the guru’s out there open coaching schools because there are so many people willing to pay for subpar training just to get a meaningless certificate.
I am confident that my ability to coach, plus my credentials, can beat any guru any day (not you Dave). Maybe that comes off as arrogant but I can credit not just my experience to that belief but to training with Dave as well. Perhaps not so obvious in this comment, but part of what I’ve learned is some humility in that, everyone I work with will teach me something and no matter how much of an expert I think I might be (or wish I was), I will never know everything. For that reason, I will not present myself as a guru and those of us with the self awareness to recognize this truth wouldn’t either.
I agree that people are yearning for personal connection, deep engagement and something that is real. They also have a lot of pain and unrealized dreams. The marketing gurus promise to alleviate their pain and deliver their dream. So people pay them big bucks. When the pain doesn’t go away and the dream remains a dream, they get cynical and “throw the baby out with the bath water”. No more coaching for them. But they are still looking for someone or something to alleviate their pain and help them achieve their dreams.
Consultants call themselves coaches and sell dreams. Therapists call themselves coaches and promise healing. What do coaches sell / promise – that people want to buy? The last time I checked, people weren’t searching online for personal connection or deep engagement. I do believe they want it as part of the process – but the process still needs to lead to something, some goal or result that they really want to achieve – or they won’t purchase the service.
I’m not saying I know the answer to all this. I haven’t figured it out and am not making a lot of money coaching. In fact, I am currently debating whether I really even want to call myself a coach – because I think the word has been tarnished by the actions described above. Maybe the answer is to be so truthful, so transparent about what really matters to each of us, that those who resonate with that particular truth will seek out connection with us and ultimately want to compensate us for spending time with them – in a personal and deeply engaged way. Maybe. My two cents.
Thanks for starting such an interesting discussion – it really made me think.