@deairby I am using a coach (quite a happy accidental happening actually) who ironically is essentailly a competitor to what I am dong (or will be if I get off this forum and finish my website!).

She flipped my business model and completely changed my outlook on goals, objectives and how to get things dones.

Yes, there are lots of resources here, but to cobble them all together and make sense takes too much time. I have learned I need to delegate and outsource things to others so I can focus on the most important things.

As a trained control freak, that is hard, and I have multiple reminders for myself throughtout the day. It’s hard paying someone to do something I can do fairly well but not necessarily quickly, but I have to get disciplined.

Between resources from here and webinars, and other web content, I could “study” all day and night. Now even if I sign up, i go only if it meets critical level criteria. THe rest i will view in recording or not at all—hoping an assessment winds up here.

@deairby   I am not one to toot my horn. But my life goal is to Bring Order out of Chaos whereever it exists in a business.  I have been doing this for a number of years with small, growing businesses. There is often much chaos in a business, some the owner is aware of and some they are not. My talent is to see and solve these problems. I originally started this in the records and information management areas of business and for the past 12 years in working with entrepreneurs. Each new opportunity triggers my entrepreneurial spirit and challenges me to succeed. Each new opportunity is like starting a new business again.  That is why I totally love the consulting work I do.

@deairby There are definite benefits to working with a business or personal coach. I did so several years back and still use the decision making framework my coach provided me with back then. It’s really useful in getting focus on what’s important in life and in business. It made me change my entire approach to business. 

In addition I work with several business coaches as clients, they all have their areas of specialization. I’d be happy to make a recommendation if you can let me know what in particular you are looking for. Feel free to PM me if you’d prefer. 

dea, we used one last year and it was  very interesting…it  was  a 2  week   situation with lots and lots of hours    on  both sides…..   he got us  buzzing,  made us  focus  on things  , it was so interesting  to see his   view of us, and it  got  us  talking   and   really looking  at  everything…. so it  was  good…he  absorbed a lot about our  business and   put it into his perspective…….. but naturally   he had  no  deep understanding of our   industry  , or  the  supply and  demand of our  business acrually  is, or   our  actual  numbers and  overhead…. he  couldnt  know  so many thing s  that  really matter…. he  couldnt   really judge our market…..but w e  still  benefitted…

..imho….its nice  but   whether  you actually have a viable idea   is   not  going to  be solved  by a coach…. and i  imagine  every  coach  would have a different  solution….. also  whats a coach?…one i  know  who is  making/trying  to make   big  splashes  coaching women   in the retail world has no  good retail  experience…she   had  to  close her store  for lack of  business and lives   with her  mother…. but  shes a  great w riter….

just  sayin….dont  expect too much…and  take a  deep  look at the  quality of  your  main idea and how it  fits into the   actual market…and  look around your  field, whos really   doing it?  thats  the  best way to learn imho…

a coach  might be  good for  inspiration if you need that….but  you  can  work  so hard on the   wrong ideas……..  i do know if i  went  for many things that   sound  kind of   good      in my  business  they    would  fail fail fail for us…….i think about  the  actual  content of our offerings  all the time…thats the key  i think…

my  coach i s  the   customers…if  they dont  like it  they dont  buy it…..the market  communicates with   money…. ..

thanks, Rich. @rich-brooks