Lessons from Coaching

I recently saw a post that stated the following:

“I’ve spent $120,000 on business coaching. Here are the eight lessons I’ve spent $120k for (free for you).”

I can’t and don’t want to put a number to what I have spent on coaching and continual learning over the last 15+ years because, at this point, it probably exceeds $1 million. However, I enjoyed the thought exercise of summarizing my top lessons learned from the coaching I have received over this time period.

Consistency Matters

The reason people pay for coaching in advance is they are more committed to follow through. How disciplined are we to do these things on our own? Whether you do weekly, monthly or quarterly coaching, consistency is paramount. You don’t experience the compound effect in anything without consistency. For me, consistency also applies to my health, finances, relationships and spirituality.

Who Not How

I have heard this phrase for more than 10 years and absolutely LOVE the concept. If you want to dig in to the idea, Dan Sullivan and Dr. Benjamin Hardy wrote a book that is in my top 10.

10x Is Easier than 2x

If I’m being honest, I don’t want to 10x everything in my life; I just don’t care enough. But the concept of slowing down and thinking 10x instead of 2x provides a clearer route to effortlessness.

Make it Repeatable

I wasn’t naturally inclined to think about making everything repeatable, whether creating a system, template or automation for IT. But changing my mindset to look for repeatability has been extremely valuable.

Look for Impact

Whether good or bad, you must understand the impact of every decision and opportunity.

Learn from the Experience

Once you understand the impact, you must learn from the experience. You must develop a process and discipline for reflecting on your experiences. Why was this a bad hire? A great investment? An amazing family vacation? Taking time to review what went right and what went wrong is an amazing habit.

Habits Give Confidence

Good habits create and enhance confidence. I’m sure we all have at least one habit that actually destroys our confidence. The objective is to continue to refine such that ALL habits ignite confidence.

Systems and Programs

Everyone has their THING. The best system or software is the one you will use and use often. I like to try different things and love asking friends and peers what they use for X, Y or Z. But what I have found over the years is that it doesn’t matter. Use the one you will actually use.

I type all my blog posts in Evernote before posting them here. I started using Evernote in December 2011. I have tried dozens of other tools, but the thousands and thousands of notes, entries and pages are evidence that this is what works for me.

Be willing to try different software, systems or programs, but stick with whatever works with you.

Gap and the Gain

My thoughts and feelings about this concept are similar to those of Who Not How. I originally learned this idea from Dan Sullivan’s coaching, but it was his book with Dr. Benjamin Hardy that really brought it to life for me. I have read the book probably six times, and my wife has read it twice. What a gift it is to quickly recognize my thought patterns as being in the gap. I’m continually building routines to quickly get out of the gap, so I can live as much as my life in the gain as possible.

I hope you enjoyed learning from my years of coaching. For those of you with a coach, what have been your biggest lessons? Let me know at tanner@menlocre.com or connect with me on LinkedIn.