Welcome back to week 5 of the 52 week series for coaches around building your Coaching Business, with the Coaching Business Builder process. Be sure to check out the first 4 weeks here at the blog.

Questions this week: What's going to get you and keep you in the flow of Momentum (i.e. your daily steps and consistent action?).
What are the smaller parcels and milestones of your bigger goals?

In Focus – WHY
As an entrepreneur it’s likely that your To-Do list will keep growing, day by day, with big tasks merged with little tasks. For many, it can feel overwhelming.

One strategy to combat the overwhelm is the Chunk big tasks down into smaller bite sized pieces. So in other words, break it down to Quarterly, Monthly, Weekly and Daily pieces.

Some common activities you might find at each of these layers are:
Quarterly tasks – reviewing vision, checking statistics, program planning and updates. Use the Quarterly Planning Section in PlanDoTrack or Coaching Business Builder for a structured review process and planning.

Monthly tasks – Setting your top 5 goals, Thinking about key relationships to foster, Project Planning. Lessons Learned, Setting a Monthly To Do List. Setting Your Theme for the Month - maybe rolling the dice or selecting 5 of the Conversation Sparker Charms to frame your theme for the month.  Use the Monthly Review pages part of the PlanDoTrack and Coaching Business Builder books)

Weekly tasks – Review of key stats - i.e. analytics for website, revenue. Use the Week in Review page found in the monthly planning section of PlanDoTrack or Coaching Business Builder to do a structured review of the week - lessons learned, key accomplishments etc.

Daily tasks - Responding to immediate issues, building relationships, addressing strategic issues, program delivery, coaching conversations. At least 5-10 minutes of daily planning and reflection. While PlanDoTrack and Coaching Business Builder were not created as a daily planning tool, there is a daily planning page you can use at the back of it.
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Activity
Pull out your running To Do list check out this blog post at PlanDoTrack for more on the running to do list) and break it down to smaller task bundles. It might make sense to break it down chronologically,  or it may be better to break it down in buckets.

Have a great week,
​Jennifer

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In Focus – WHY
Goals are just goals which many assert are simply “dreams” unless we make them really tactical and practical. Last week we explored what goals could be. This week let’s look at your milestones.

A milestone is a significant point or event in a project, process, or development that marks a notable achievement, progress, or completion of a specific phase.

Milestones are often used to track and measure the advancement of a project or goal, providing clear points of reference for evaluating success and planning future actions. They serve as key markers along the timeline, helping teams and individuals stay focused, organized, and motivated by breaking down larger objectives into smaller, manageable components.

Milestones can represent various accomplishments, such as the completion of a critical task, the attainment of a certain level of performance, or the achievement of a specific deadline.

Overall, milestones are essential tools in project management and goal-setting, providing a framework for assessing progress and ensuring that objectives are met in a systematic and measurable manner.
 
Activity
Taking a look again at your top 3-5 goals (for the quarter, or the  year). What are the MILESTONES for each one. Write these down and schedule them out. 
Who are you going to be accountable to? When will you share this with them?

Resources
Use the One Page Plan to capture your milestones. You will find a copy of this at the back of PlanDoTrack, Coaching Business Builder and/or in Reconnecting Workspaces (as one of the Team Tools at the end of chapter)
 

As a coach I spend a lot of time with groups, teams and individuals exploring topics aligned with exploring who they are and what they need to do to be more effective. in group coaching Goals are important to explore as everyone will be on their own pathway. As a business owner, goals are critical for success as they provide us, and those who support our work with clarity around where we are going.

For those that work with teams, or are part of teams, team effectiveness is an important area to explore. Team effectiveness is part art and part science. The science behind it shows that there are at least sis key elements, which I call factors, which help teams thrive. The research from the last few decades from multiple researchers (Katzenbach and Smith, Hackman and Wagerman and others) continue to point to core elements which help teams thrive.

These include what I have termed the Six Factors of High Performing Teams™ :
#1 – Clear mission and vision (head back to Week 1 of this series!
#2 – Clear goals
#3 – Understanding what success is going to look like
#4 - Clear Roles
#5 - Shared Practices
#6 - Shared Team Commitment

This week’s Coaching Business Builder post explores #2 and 3.

I explore the Six Factors in my second TEDx talk, Coaching Teams Through Chaos, delivered in Toronto in December of 2022. You can view it here - or at this link - https://youtu.be/oQlu7zQeZ5E?si=OhlRlASBCeY3qAK8

Activity
Pull out your annual plan for the year. When was the last time you looked at this? Take note of your top 3-5 priorities. How are you sharing these with others? Re write the goals making sure they are:
S – Specific
M – Measurable
A – Achievable
R – Realistic
T – Timebound
 E – EXCITING?

Back to motivation and last week’s theme of your zone of genius and your pull factors, what do you love to do and need to do in order to thrive?

Also consider what is an ENABLER for this – What will help ensure success for this?

Also consider what is a DERAILER – What might get in the way of this success?

Goals are an important anchor for teams to ensure that alignment is happening. What conversations are important for you to have?
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Enjoy!

Our January 23rd 2024 Community call was on Creating an Effective Proposal. The recording will be posted when available.

As shared in the call, there are several steps you will want to explore in pulling together an effective proposal for a group, or team coaching piece of work.

You can download the one pager here to support you in these six steps of a proposal.

We go further in depth in proposals and your offer in the Coaching Biz Growth Lab program which meets throughout 2024 bi-weekly on Fridays at 1135 - 1220 pm ET. Join us!

And be sure to watch today's call below

Week # 2-  What’s your pull factor?

Question: Our vision is a pull towards where we want to go. Whether we are focusing on growth or opportunity it can be valuable to think about the pull vs the push. Where can you create momentum and its own energy instead of a pulling of all things?


In Focus – WHY
It’s important to have a pull factor in business, especially if things are “topsy-turvey” or are ever changing. Thinking about what’s going to pull you forward often involves:

• Connecting with your WHY? Why do you exist as a business? Why do you do what you do?
• Connecting into your FLOW
• Tapping into, and spending your time in what Gay Hendricks calls “Your Zone of Genius”
• What’s important for you to consider as a WHY for this work?

Activity – Identify what are your elements moving you forward /  pulling you forward vs resisting you.

Resources to explore

1. Part of our pull factor may involve leveraging our strengths, and doing more of those things that are in our natural inclination.
2. If you have not yet taken the Group and Team Superpower Quiz, check it out at https://bit.ly/gtcoachingsuperpowers. Which of the 5 styles are you? To learn more about the 5 Superpowers, check out this video at our Effective Group Coach YouTube Channel
   
3. Motivational factors – What motivates you as a business owner? Are you doing things to make a mark? Learn? Innovate? Serve others. Consider what motivates you to do your work and you may glean some insights around additional pull factors for you to keep doing work, and showing up, on a daily basis.
   

Have a great week
Jennifer

In Focus – What?
When business ebbs and flows, it’s important to continue to have a compelling WHY and Vision for ourselves and our business. 
This can help us lean into WHY we exist as a business. Is it to serve a certain # of people, or is it to make a specific impact in your work?
In addition to your vision, what would you say your mission is for 2024?

Questions – So What?
A well-defined vision provides direction, purpose, and alignment for an organization, contributing to several aspects of success, including employee engagement, strategic decision-making, and long-term sustainability.
One notable source supporting this idea is the Harvard Business Review (HBR). In various articles and case studies, HBR has explored the significance of a clear vision in guiding organizational strategy and fostering a shared sense of purpose among employees. For specific statistics or recent studies, you may want to explore the Harvard Business Review's database or other business research databases for the latest insights and empirical evidence on the correlation between a clear vision and business success.

Activity –
DRAW out your Future using the following questions. Write in current tense – such as:
It’s January 2025, and I am celebrating my achievements for the last year. For example, we were able to serve 100 students in our certification program and we were also able to work with 48 teams over the course of 2024 through strengths based work, our Hybrid Work Styles and also team coaching initiatives

Answer questions like:
Where are you now? (Write this out on the left hand side) Where do you want to be at the end of (the year/3 years/5 years) (wite this out on the right side of the page.
What’s going to help you move from where you are now to where you want to be?
Who are you serving?
What value are your clients/customers receiving?
What’s the big problem you are solving for others?
What are the values your work is anchored in?
What do you want to achieve?
Who do you want to be?
What mark do you want to make?
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Resources
Check out the 2024 Vision Session I recorded a couple of months ago or Refer to the Vision Questions at the Start of Section 3 of either PlanDoTRack or Coaching Business Builder.

Happy New Year! Now that the Group Coaching Ins and Outs blog is getting a refresh, and having more visitors, I thought that it would be valuable to do a weekly mid-week blog post for those coaches who are growing their coaching businesses. Whether or not you have a copy of Coaching Business Builder, or are with us at the Coaching Biz Growth Lab, creating a sustainable business is critical for success and it takes time and effort - Daily Steps and Consistent Action to create Momentum.

Each Wednesday this year I'll be bringing you a mid-week Coaching Business tip, influenced by what we are doing in the Lab and also what I wrote about in CBB. This year I also hope to release a book I've been working on for a few years for Digital and Service Based Entrepreneurs like Coaches. I'm going to gauge your response to help determine what book release order we see in 2024. My hope is there may be 2 or 3 in the Reconnecting Workspaces series which comes across the finish line of publication this year.

So now onto Week 1 of 52 weeks with Creating a Clear Vision:

 oIn Focus – What?
When business ebbs and flows, it’s important to continue to have a compelling WHY and Vision for ourselves and our business.

This can help us lean into WHY we exist as a business. Is it to serve a certain # of people, or is it to make a specific impact in your work?

In addition to your vision, what would you say your mission is for 2024?
 
Questions – So What?
A well-defined vision provides direction, purpose, and alignment for an organization, contributing to several aspects of success, including employee engagement, strategic decision-making, and long-term sustainability.

One notable source supporting this idea is the Harvard Business Review (HBR). In various articles and case studies, HBR has explored the significance of a clear vision in guiding organizational strategy and fostering a shared sense of purpose among employees. For specific statistics or recent studies, you may want to explore the Harvard Business Review's database or other business research databases for the latest insights and empirical evidence on the correlation between a clear vision and business success.

Activity –
DRAW out your Future using the following questions. Write in current tense – such as:

It’s January 2025, and I am celebrating my achievements for the last year. For example, we were able to serve 100 students in our certification program and we were also able to work with 48 teams over the course of 2024 through strengths based work, our Hybrid Work Styles and also team coaching initiatives

Reflect on questions like:

• Where are you now? (Write this out on the left hand side) Where do you want to be at the end of (the year/3 years/5 years) (wite this out on the right side of the page.
• What’s going to help you move from where you are now to where you want to be?
• Who are you serving?
• What value are your clients/customers receiving?
• What’s the big problem you are solving for others?
• What are the values your work is anchored in?
• What do you want to achieve?
• Who do you want to be?
• What mark do you want to make?

Resources
For more on this topic, check out the 2024 Vision Session I recorded a couple of months ago or Refer to the Vision Questions at the Start of Section 3 of either PlanDoTRack or Coaching Business Builder.

Share with us in comments your most exciting vision element for this year? What are you going to do to keep it visible throughout the year?

Enjoy the conversation and reflection!
Jennifer

One of the regular series I've been evolving as part of the Coaching Shorts series is the "Card of the Week" or "Dice of the Week" series I share usually at the start of the week.

Given that it's a holiday week, I thought I would roll the dice today to see what came up -- you can check out today's Coaching Shorts Video below to see the five, each of which has relevance for me this week during my last few days in the Caribbean before heading back to Canada-home.

You will find the video here: https://youtube.comyoutube.com/shorts/VR_M5z50AvI?feature=share/shorts/VR_M5z50AvI?feature=share

Or click on the image to play!

The icons are taken from the 90 Day Guide for Success, a guide for onboarding or reboarding in the evolving workspace It's become a popular go-to guide for coaches and leaders who want to equip their teams. You'll find the book over at Amazon.

This week's icons are very a propos for me and I hope they are for you too. They include:
*Intercultural Mindset (Day 73 of the 90 Day Guide for Success) - the globe
* Renewal and Well Being (Day 81 of the 90 Day Guide for Success) - the tap
* When are you at your best/Circadian Rhythm (Day 63 of the 90 Day Guide for Success) - The clock
* TRACK (Day 87) - the frame
* Memorability (Day 71) - the tie on finger

How do these relate to your world this week?

Interested in the Reconnecting Workspaces Dice? They will soon be available for pre-order. Email me for now with Interested in Pre-order and we'll keep you posted - [email protected].

Have a great week,
Jennifer

Since we opened our doors in 2004 we have been providing supports for entrepreneurs including coaches in growing their businesses. In the early years of the business, Potentials Realized founder, Jennifer Britton taught and lectured at the post-secondary level business and entrepreneurial skills. 

With current economic pressures it’s surprizing that some of the more traditional career paths are being disrupted, and entrepreneurial endeavors are being seen as a secure option.

One of the starting points business owners will want to consider at all stages of their business are:

• People – Your Team – Who is there to support you in doing the work so you can focus on working ON the Business -  from Vas (Virtual Assistants) to 
• Your client – Who can advocate for the resulst t hey have received from your work together
• Your Products – what are the products or services you offer? How might these shift with the current economy?

In disrupted times, having a support network and a time on your schedule so that you can focus on your business, your goals and vision is just as important as working IN your business. 

Core areas to look at for 2024:
AI – what can you do to leverage the power of AI? From support in research to helping with copy, or graphics, AI can be a valuable resource in your work
Systems – systems provide consistency in a disrupted environment
Marketing – Continuing to get the word about what you offer and how is key

What do you see as important focus areas for yourself around marketing in 2024?
We’ll be taking a deep dive into it during the December 18th 2024 Coaching Business Booster. Are you ready to roll up your sleeves and take a dive into planning, marketing and design?
Enjoy!

And where are w going with Group and Team Coaching – Check out the 20th annual holiday party

On December 12th we celebrated our 20th annual year-end holiday party, exploring some of the recent best practices with group coahing and also exploring where group and team coaching may be going next. 
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Take a look at the 3 hours of the party here.
Our agenda was the following if you want to zoom into specific areas.

• 12 noon– Welcome and OVERVIEW from Jennifer
• 1210 – State of Union – and sharing of new choice article
• 1230 – Group Coaching Doorway - VALUES EVANA 
• 1pm- Resourcing You – STRENGTHS – Supervision and ACTIVATE Your Superpowers (Rita and Jenn)
• 125 pm ET – Team Coaching Doorway
• 2 pm  - Coaching In Action – Eenrgizer
• 2:15 Coaching Toolbox – What do you have around Learning, Experiential Approaches and Neuroscience?
• 2:30 pm ET – Coaching Business Booster/PDT
• 245 pm ET – DRAW for Barbados Coaching Business Booster – December 18th
• 250 – Shares and Takeaways
• 3pm ET – Wrap up

What’s your favorite part of the party? What topics do you think are important to focus on?

Embarking on the journey of building a coaching business may seem like a daunting task, but with the right approach, it becomes remarkably achievable. In the Coaching BizGrowth Lab, we emphasize a day-by-day strategy, breaking down the process into manageable steps that make building your coaching business not only effective but surprisingly easy. Let's delve into the empowering reasons why adopting a one-day-at-a-time mindset is the key to success in the coaching world.

Day 1: Establishing Your Presence:
Start your coaching business journey by focusing on establishing your online presence. This involves creating a professional website, setting up social media profiles, and ensuring that potential clients can easily find you. By concentrating on this foundational step, you lay the groundwork for future success and begin building your brand from day one.

Day 2: Crafting Your Unique Value Proposition:
In the Coaching BizGrowth Lab, we recognize the importance of clearly articulating your unique value proposition. Spend a day honing in on what sets your coaching services apart. By pinpointing your strengths and differentiators, you not only attract the right audience but also gain clarity on the specific impact you want to make in the coaching landscape.

Day 3: Launching Your Social Media Presence:
Take a focused approach to social media on day three. Create engaging content that reflects your coaching philosophy and resonates with your target audience. Utilize platforms like LinkedIn, Twitter, or Instagram to share bite-sized coaching insights. By consistently showing up on social media, you begin to establish your authority and attract a community interested in your coaching offerings.
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Day 4: Clarifying Your Ideal Client:
Spend a day identifying and clarifying your ideal client. In the Coaching BizGrowth Lab, we understand the power of narrowing your focus to those individuals or teams who resonate most with your coaching style.