Readers question:
“I’ve been watching Badger or Bust and I realise I need to hire someone like that to help my business, but how do I find the right person?”
John replies:
Well the obvious place to start is Ruth Badger’s own consulting company the Ruth Badger Consultancy, contact them and see if you can hire the Badger herself.
If Badger’s company can’t help then I suggest asking other entrepreneurs you know if they know and can suggest a business coach. I strongly recommend only taking on a business coach with a proven track record of running their own successful businesses or a set of glowing testimonials from past clients – and make sure you talk to their past clients to get a feel for how they got on with the business coach, because the relationship is crucial.
You could also begin looking for a suitable business mentor, either as an alternative or ideally in addition to a business coach. To find a mentor I suggest identifying a business in a similar market to yours that is successful then approach the entrepreneur behind it and explain who you are and ask for their help. Obviously they’re unlikely to help if they’re a direct competitor, but other than that many successful entrepreneurs love helping out other businesses and startups (that’s why so many become business angels).
A final alternative is to contact me with a clear explanation of the problems you are having and I’ll address the issues in a future Ask John post. Please don’t include confidential information or, if you have to, make sure it is clearly marked as confidential otherwise it may get published as part of your question.
Asking John:
Do you have a business question you would like me to answer? If so you can Ask John or you can enquire about using me as a business coach.
This blog is about business opportunities and ideas that I spot, think of or hear about and think are useful and interesting. It is intended to provide ideas and inspriation for you to help you find the right business idea for you to then grow it into a successful business.
There are a few government funded organisations that can provide business advice.
I coach businesses across the world on behalf of Chet Holmes and Jay Abraham and they sell a very useful DVD programme that explains how to grow your business substantially.
Jim
Jim,
The trouble is that, in my experience at least, the government funded organisations lack any real experience of starting and growing a business.
Jim, do you have a review copy of the DVD I could have, or a unbiased review I could publish?
Interesting. Very interesting.
Am I the only one who finds Ruth Badger scary?
I enjoy watching the TV series but I hope people don’t think that all business coaches work in this way.
The second point picks up on the Business Support agencies.
The feedback that I get is mainly from people who haven’t been convinced by their services or have failed to establish a good relationship with the advisor.
I accept that I may be getting a biased view – why talk to me if you can get good advice for free?
I must congratulate you John on having a great blog and you’ve given me a few ideas for developing The Business Coaching Blog further.
I’m sure the persona on the show is somewhat manufactured to create a more entertaining show.