The Structure Problem
Structure is an issue that most self-employed
service providers struggle with. ADD coaches, in
particular, often suffer from self-imposed pressure
to always "be there" for the client. ADDers
frequently need accountability and follow-ups, and
many coaches fall into the trap of thinking that in
order to be a good coach, they have to be available
all the time.
This is simply not true. The first rule of being
a 'good' coach is to be a 'good' person!
In order to be a 'good' coach, you must feel good
about yourself and your life. You must be a happy,
fulfilled person who has a surplus of positive
energy. You cannot serve your clients well if you
are overwhelmed and over-scheduled. You have to have
a life outside of work. And in order to do this, you
must have boundaries in the business.
Business boundaries come in the form of
schedules. The business is OPEN certain days of the
week, and CLOSED other days of the week. On those
OPEN days, the business has certain operating hours.
No matter how great a coach you are, no matter
how many people you are helping, and no matter how
much good you are doing in the world, you cannot
forget that your ADD coaching practice is a
business, and businesses need boundaries.
If you forget this fact, you will struggle both
emotionally and financially.
What To Do
First, decide what your working days are. What
days of the week will your business be OPEN? What
holidays will you have off? How much vacation time
will you allow yourself?
Then, decide what your working hours will be.
Establish your operating hours for each working day.
Next, figure out which days you will actually be
coaching in your work week. Don't forget that you
need time every week for administrative, marketing,
and planning tasks.
Finally, stick to it! If a (potential) client
calls on Sunday, and Sunday is not a working day for
you, wait until the next business day to return the
call. Clients won't respect your boundaries if you
don't respect them.
A Living Example
Many self-employed service providers fear that
limiting their availability means that they will
lose clients. I have found the opposite to be true.
Here's my favorite example: A former client of
mine is a massage therapist. When we began working
together, he was working 7 days a week, taking
clients any time of day or night. If a client called
and wanted a massage at 6:00 AM, he'd do it. If
another client wanted a massage at 10:00 PM that
same day, he'd do it! He was so scared of losing a
client that he burnt himself out being on call all
day, every day. To make matters worse, he could
barely make ends meet. He simply wasn't getting the
number of clients he needed to sustain himself and
the business.
We both knew that he needed to decrease his
working days and his operating hours, but it was
hard for him to get over his fear of losing clients.
Eventually, he did. He cut back to 6 days a week,
started attending exercise classes in the mornings,
and decreased his evening hours.
To his surprise (but not to mine), business
picked up. Most clients were happy to book an
appointment within his new operating hours, and he
let go of clients that weren't. His stress level
decreased, and he found himself giving better
massages, which led to more referrals.
This former client checked in with me about a
week ago, and he was happy to report that business
is booming! He has been booked and making great
money.
While this client is not a coach, I have seen
this scenario happen over and over again with
myself, my colleagues, and my clients who are
coaches.
When you let the boundaries blur between yourself
and your business, you will struggle with stress,
overwhelm, and anxiety. When you take care of
yourself, your business will take care of you.
