The term ‘coach’ though originated from the word ‘carriage’, was funnily enough used as a slang by University students for teachers who carried them through their tests and assignments.
A business coach, in the briefest of terms, is someone who in the same way, can help you take your business from where it is to where you’d like to be. Often, to change the status of your company from an entrepreneurial failure to a start-up success, you need to seek outside help. A business coach will guide and assist you in your goals and vision for your company and will help you in its growth. They need to know exactly what the business owner’s personal goals for his company are and these should be in sync with the overall goals furnished by the coach for the company at large.
After the business coach clarifies this, he or she works closely with the owner on a weekly or monthly basis to strategize and form goals, often leading the owner away from goals that are too ambitious or unachievable in a short period of time. The main reason a company needs a business coach is that it is often only so much you can do on your own. Starting a business is relatively easy when compared to keeping it alive and running in the long run. Many young business owners are often left lost and with no clear idea of the way forward. They do not know what their daily duties ought to be, what they wish to accomplish in the long run, what the goals and vision of the company are etc. In such situations, talking to a business coach will help you find clarity. They will aid you in establishing your roles and responsibilities, delegating work, prioritizing goals and motivating you to keep going, on a daily basis. Business coaches are also helpful to businesses that have been up and running for quite a while, as well. Often such business owners lose track of where they are going with the company. They might recycle content, prioritise work that is not important and refuse to take creative risks. In such situations talking to a business coach will help put them back on track. The coach will objectively analyse their daily tasks and will list what is important to the company’s development and what aren’t. They will help in strategizing and setting new goals. In short, they righten the path taken by the company and prevents it from going astray. It is, however, important to understand that a business coach fulfils the same role as an empire on a cricket field or a football coach on a football field. They do not take part in the game but are only there to guide, point out flaws and motivate. In the same way, a business coach will also not get your work done for you. Unlike a consultant, they are only around to help you sort out your goals for the company and keep you focused on the end result. They motivate you and point out blunders and blind spots and help you correct them.