I recently started to read “The Business Book of Coaching” by Ajit Niwalka and Neeta Bhushan, and I had some key takeaways I wanted to write about. The first ones are on the Assumptions that many coaches come across, and how there is less to no truth in them than we realize. I think that many of these apply to more than coaching, but in other professions as well. Let’s start with the idea that you have to be famous first, before you can be successful.
Assumption: I need to be famous first
Here is how it applies for me.
At this point, I am not ‘famous’ or a ‘celebrity’, and I am successful in some aspects of my life, but not others. Overall, I am happy with where I am at, and the trail I am on to grow.
- Am I a household name like Tony Robbins? No.
- Do I need to be to impact the world? No.
- Will I be someday? Who knows.
In the circles I serve, and show up for, I do have a presence. It doesn’t come from notoriety, it comes from how I show up each time I am there. I show up by listening and being present, providing insight if I have it, being vulnerable about my process, and being present to the context that I am.
If more people knew of me, would that help? Yes.
I choose to grow my business by conversations, not campaigns. This is the ‘long road’, for sure. When has anything that was on the ‘short road’ ever had more value than the long one? To seek counsel from those that have been to where I have been before, and have been successful is one way to get there. Then I can apply those tools, that feedback, that advice, or that experience into my own life, and turn it into wisdom, allows me to share it with others. I refer to this as “Doing the work”, which is necessary for me to bring the value that will best serve my clients.
There is similar to the story of Ghandi around sugar. There are times I catch myself saying something, and I have to add after, “And this advise is for me, too.” This is one place where I choose to Be Impeccable With My Word, and own where I am in the process. Since we are all on our own path, at our own speed, how about we share our wisdom, not simply our knowledge?
How can you change 100 lives for the better?
Ajit posits that this is the core question that needs to be asked. No matter the profession you are in, can you positively impact 1 person every 3 days? I think it is possible to do so. That can be by an acknowledgment of them as a person, over delivering on a promise, sitting down and listening for once, rather than waiting to talk.
I am working on impacting 100 lives in a year, in a positive way. This is intended to help them push their lives forward, to show up more maturely and intentionally themselves, that is where “success” lies for me. Personally I work on:
- Getting a clearer idea of where a person wants to go, why they want to go there, and ensuring they are outfitted for the journey ahead to get there.
- Taking the next courageous step, with support, into a new phase of life in career or relationship
- Providing fuel for a person that is on the recovery from a major setback in their life
Where can you impact others lives with your skills, gifts and strengths to help them live a better life?
