PURPOSE BEFORE PROSPERITY AS A COACH - BY CARL HARDWICK
When I ask coaches “what is your biggest challenge as a coach?”, I usually get answers like:
Acquiring clients
Confidence in my program design
Retaining clients
Creating a fun community
There are about 116 more, but we'll leave it here for now.
Although these challenges are real ones for a number of coaches, we are putting the cart before the horse if we dive right into creating solutions for them.
When I ask coaches “what is your purpose as a coach?”, I usually get answers like:
…
…
…
Blank stares. To be fair, this is usually quickly followed up by either a cookie-cutter answer or a version of what we say here at OPEX. Hey, while there is nothing wrong with drawing inspiration from another’s purpose, it is only genuine when it truly is yours.
Purpose = why you do what you do
The hardest thing for most coaches is to identify their purpose. However, it’s an essential one. The first step in having long-term success is to understand why you do what you do.
Without your purpose, understanding success & fulfillment, being confident in your value, landing on your target market, and defining a great service offering will be very difficult because you don’t even know why you’re doing it.
So what is a “good” purpose?
An honest one
Gets you fired up to keep moving forward (even when times are tough)
If fulfilled, has a positive impact
Moves the profession forward
I’d like to challenge you to land on what your purpose is as a fitness coach.
Why do you do what you do?
Then, move forward and identify solutions to your challenges. I think you’ll find that a very clear purpose can answer a lot of questions for you.
I get to have live-time conversations with coaches enrolled in the OPEX Coaching Certificate Program every week. If you’re interested in taking part in one of my upcoming mentorship groups, you can apply here to learn more by chatting with a coaching advisor over email or phone.
FULL SERIES LIST
1: Purpose before Prosperity as a Coach (this one)
4: Why Create Autonomous Clients?
5: How to Create Autonomous Clients
Want to learn more about the Coaching Certificate program? Download the Curriculum Guide.