What the business needs
Clear priorities, sound decisions, honest assessment of what is working and what isn't, and action grounded in the time, people and money actually available.
Small business coaching
Build a business that works for you, not one that takes over your life.
You care about your business. You have invested your time, money, energy and probably a significant part of yourself in making it work.
But when every decision rests with you, it can become difficult to separate what the business needs from what you need.
Small business coaching gives you space to step outside the day-to-day demands, think clearly about the decisions in front of you and lead in a way that supports both the business you are building and the life you want to have.
When the business becomes personal
It is difficult to be objective about something you have built yourself.
A decision about employees, money, pricing, growth, a partnership or the future of the business may look practical from the outside.
From the inside, it can carry responsibility, loyalty, fear, relationships, reputation and years of your life.
You may know something needs to change but worry about the consequences. You may keep doing something because it has always been done that way. Or you may be so busy responding to what the business needs today that you rarely have time to ask whether the way you are working still makes sense.
Sometimes the most valuable thing you can do for your business is give yourself enough room to see it clearly.
Two things need your attention
What you need
Clarity, perspective, confidence in your judgment, boundaries you can maintain and a way of leading that leaves room for your health, relationships and life beyond the business.
These needs do not have to compete.
A healthier way of working can make you a clearer leader. Stronger boundaries can improve decision-making. Taking care of yourself can help you respond rather than continually operate from exhaustion or urgency.
The aim isn't to choose between yourself and your business. It is to find ways for both to work better.
What can change
Lead with greater clarity and carry less of the business in your head.
Coaching can help you:
See how coaching helpsMake decisions you can stand behind.
Consider the facts, risks, trade-offs and personal consequences without getting trapped in endless second-guessing.
Know what actually needs your attention.
Separate what is urgent from what is important and become clearer about where your time and energy make the greatest difference.
Lead more directly.
Have clearer conversations, communicate expectations and address problems instead of allowing them to linger.
Question the way things have always been done.
Recognize assumptions, habits and ways of working that may once have served the business but no longer do.
Set better boundaries with the business.
Decide what requires you, what can be delegated and where work needs to stop taking over the rest of your life.
Follow through on difficult changes.
Move from knowing something needs to change to making the decision and taking realistic action.
Think beyond the immediate problem.
Consider what you want the business and your role in it to look like in the future.
A decision canvas
When a decision carries weight, look at more than the obvious answer.
What matters?
The priorities, people, values and responsibilities at stake.
What do you know, and what are you assuming?
The facts available, the information missing and the predictions that may need to be tested.
What options are available?
The possible courses of action, the trade-offs involved and alternatives you may have dismissed too quickly.
What happens next?
The decision or next action you are prepared to communicate, take and follow through on.
You and your business can thrive together.
What you can build
A stronger business and a healthier way of leading it.
Clear priorities
Know what deserves your attention and where you want the business to go.
Decisive leadership
Make thoughtful decisions, communicate them clearly and be able to stand behind them.
Clear communication
Address difficult issues, communicate expectations and say what needs to be said.
Boundaries
Know what requires you, what can be delegated and where the business needs to stop taking over the rest of your life.
Follow-through
Turn decisions into action instead of repeatedly returning to the same unresolved problems.
A sustainable business and life
Allow your role, priorities and way of working to evolve so the business can succeed without consuming you.
Small business coaching supports decision-making, leadership, business-owner well-being, goals and action. It does not provide legal, financial, accounting, human-resources or other regulated professional advice.
Understand the scope of coachingQuestions about small business coaching
A little clarity before you decide.
Is this consulting?
No. Small business coaching is different from consulting.
I will not prescribe a business strategy or tell you how to run your company. I will help you examine what is happening, question assumptions, consider your options and make decisions you can stand behind.
There may be times when my own business experience could be useful. If so, I will ask whether you would like me to share that perspective rather than assuming you want my advice.
Do you understand what it is like to own a business?
Yes.
I spent nearly 30 years co-owning and leading a business. I understand the responsibility of employees, finances, customers, partnerships and family relationships, as well as the uncertainty that can come with making decisions when the consequences belong to you.
I also understand that a business can become deeply connected to your identity, and how difficult it can be to recognize when the way you have always worked is no longer the way you want to live.
What if my problem is personal as well as business?
That's not unusual.
Business ownership can affect your relationships, identity, finances, health and plans for the future. You don't have to separate the business problem from the personal reality surrounding it.
We can look at the whole situation while remaining clear about when specialized professional advice is needed.
Can we work on just one decision?
Absolutely.
Bring the decision. We can examine what is at stake, what you know, what you may be assuming and what options are available.
One conversation may be enough to help you determine what comes next. If you would benefit from continued support as you act on the decision, you can decide that afterward.