18

Making the Transition

In the 8 years since publication of the first edition of this book, it has become clear that coaching is here to stay. Several powerful trends support this statement. The workplace continues to change at an accelerating pace. It is a fast-moving, independent, creative, and more demanding place than ever. Job security, at every level, has disappeared, and the economy is uncertain at best. Diversity is finally coming of age. Women continue to crack and break through glass and pink constraints. Customers are more demanding. International markets are open, and the Internet is connecting us all. The world economy has gone through frightening changes, and effective, honest leadership is more important than ever. Executives and managers who want to make it in this economy will need every possible advantage. What remains to be seen in the current cycle is how executive coaching will fare when businesses and other organizations tighten their belts.

It has become clear that mental health practitioners have much to offer the business community, and it is time for some to make a transition from therapist to executive coach. You may want to stick a toe in the water first. Just because a new market has potential does not mean there is a good fit. Coaching might not suit you, because the business world is different from the psychotherapy world. There are some lovely aspects about working as a psychotherapist, and you just might miss them. Psychotherapists help people who are struggling and in pain. They heal wounds. They help people grow in the most important ways. They fill in gaps left by inadequate parents. They occasionally dissuade someone who is seriously suicidal. There are the smaller perks, too. Therapists have significant professional autonomy. They can call most of their own shots, choose their own hours, and wear comfortable clothes that express who they really are. They can occasionally provide their services gratis or at a low fee to someone who really needs it and is appreciative. They can use their work as a platform for their own personal development. Many careers tend to unbalance life. A career as a psychotherapist has the opposite effect. It presents an opportunity to think seriously and continuously about health, what it is, how to find it, and how to keep it.

One could certainly do some executive coaching on the side or on a part-time basis without making a total commitment to life in the consulting world. This might involve some measure of dissociation on your part, but it is a viable option. The consulting world includes two kinds of coaches: One is an employee or independent contractor for a large consulting firm. The firm finds and sells work and controls the action of the coach, while paying that coach some percentage of the total fees. The other kind of coach is the individual consultant, referred to by the large firms as the “boutique” operator. This person must find and sell his or her own work, and as a result, can keep all of the profits. They get to take all of the associated risk as well. Coaching fees tend to be substantial relative to those paid to psychotherapists, and there is no managed care broker or bothersome paperwork to contend (although the consulting world has its own forms of onerous paperwork to be sure).

The fact that many therapy skills are transferable to executive coaching should not encourage you to jump in willy-nilly or to take the dilettante’s path. You can spot articles in the newspaper from time to time highlighting a therapist who has gleefully transformed her psychotherapy practice into a “coaching practice.” Instead of struggling along with depressed, low-fee patients, she now does executive coaching from the comfort of her home, over the telephone! No more difficult people, no more managed care, no office hours. One such recent success story showed a photo of an ex-therapist doing phone coaching in Bermuda shorts and expensive sunglasses from the hull of her sailboat. She is gazing off over the water for inspiration and speaking to a client whom she has never met in person. One brochure depicts a coach sitting on a sandy beach, breeze blowing through his hair, telecoaching in the sun. One flyer calls coaching “The hottest market niche for the new millennium.” Much of this kind of coaching is actually personal counseling framed as “life coaching,” outside of the business world with clients who are mentally healthy but looking to get an edge or make a change. Such personal success coaching is a fine activity, but it is not executive coaching, and it is potentially damaging to the corporate coach’s reputation (and focus) to mix them up.

Various types of coaching have evolved over the past decade, and some coaching activities are a cause for concern, especially when clients could be placed in harm’s way. Coaching gets a bad name and business/executive coaches are hurt when life coaches, personal coaches, transformational coaches, and success coaches advertise and conduct themselves in ways that trivialize the real challenges people face. The ethical issues associated with this very real problem were addressed in Chapter 17 “Ethics in Coaching.” Life coaching seems fine (when it is not psychotherapy without a license or training), especially if it is done effectively. But the risk associated with untrained, well-meaning people who somehow think that they have a special talent that enables them to fix others is real and significant. If you do plan to take a serious look at business or executive coaching there are transitions to be made.

Transition A: The Business Culture and the Profit Motive

Executive coaching requires considerable involvement in the business and corporate world. There are several areas that require attention and adjustment.

Money

The most important difference between the therapy world and corporate culture is fundamental, and it has to do with money. Simply stated, the purpose of a corporation is to return value to stakeholders and stockholders. That is typically accomplished by making a profit. In business school, students are taught that this is an ethical issue. Officers of a publicly held corporation must make decisions that are aligned with the interests of investors. To confuse the profit motive with other tasks or motives is to do a disservice to shareholders who are counting on you to use their money well. To place other functions ahead of profit is unethical. That is how important the bottom line is to a publicly held corporation. Small businesses are not held to this profit-oriented standard, but the motivation is still powerful. You have to pay your rent and your employees. You must make a profit or stop doing business, properly labeling what you do as a “hobby.” The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) insists on this. If you do not make a profit after a certain period of time you cannot deduct expenses against revenues, because the government would then be underwriting your hobby. Small-business owners, in many ways, are even more serious about the importance of the bottom line. If they do not make money, they go out of business. Such risk tends to focus one’s attention. The bottom-line profit orientation in the business world runs deep, it is powerful, and no one makes apologies for it.

In the therapy world, money is seen as a by-product of having provided a useful service and for caring. The health care service is central and the money is a happy bit of a “necessary evil.” Few revel in it, and few therapists don’t know how much money they make. It is not part of the culture. Therapists are uncomfortable with greed. Most would love to make more money, but they do not speak directly about this. Most psychotherapists probably chose their profession because of a desire to help people, to make a positive difference, or because they were fascinated with the theories and ideas. Money was secondary.

Businesspeople (always, but especially after about 1990) have no such pretensions about the role of money. It is the way to keep score. The money you take home tells you (and others) how you are doing. It is a clear and simple standard, and few apologize. That is just the way it is, and most think it is a pretty good way. Of course many businesspeople are doing work that is intended to improve the world, but the money is still how they keep score. Read Ayn Rand for the overarching perspective. Read the Wall Street Journal (called The Journal by business folks) to get the day-to-day point of view. Any psychotherapist making a transition into consulting must grasp this difference concerning money and accommodate it in some healthy, effective, realistic way.

Speed

The business world tends to move more quickly than the world of psychotherapy. “Getting directly from point A to point B” prevails over a therapist’s “peeling the onion” metaphor. Although psychotherapists value contemplation and reflection, the business world insists on results—soon. Businesspeople tend to be action-oriented; they trust activity, often at the expense of reflection. They avoid the “paralysis of analysis.” Psychotherapists work with abstractions; they reflect. Therapy constructs are difficult to quantify and measure, and that is OK. Businesspeople are taught to be goal oriented and to measure progress continuously. They like benchmarks and “metrics.” They must present bottom-line results on a quarterly basis, and improvement is expected. As a result, they move as fast as they can. Thoughtfulness sometimes gets lost in the shuffle. There’s no time.

Executive coaches must be able to swim in these waters. You do not have to agree with this point of view, but do not disparage it if you want to work in the business culture. Find a way to live with it. Find a way to let it energize you, too, without compromising the values you cherish. Indeed, coaches often represent a mandate for reflective activity. Reflection is powerful. There just is not enough of it in the day-to-day work world.

Transition B: Presentation of Self

You cannot go into business organizations and act, look, or speak like a psychotherapist. Therapists have patients, and businesspeople are reluctant to take on the qualities associated with the role of “patient.” The two main areas of difference are appearance and speech.

Appearance and Culture

First, you must dress and behave like a businessperson to some reasonable extent. Initial impressions are powerful (remember social psychology), and you will make a poor impression if you dress like a stereotypical “bohemian” therapist. If you are serious about coaching and think that you need help in this area, get a clothing coach. It is entirely possible that you do not have good judgment about how to dress yourself. Perhaps you do not really care, as you do not value clothing and physical appearance much. However, if you understand that clothing is a mode of self-expression, take care to express business savvy in the business arena. If you view clothing as a tool, sharpen and focus it. You do not have to try to look like a banker, and there is ample room for self-expression, but your appearance must convey a sense of seriousness and substance, and, to some extent, conformity. Outliers frighten businesspeople. Happily, corporate dress codes are changing, and many firms are dumping ties and high heels. Find out how they dress at the places you want to consult and match them, especially when you intend to physically enter the workplace to coach or to “shadow” your client on-site. Businesspeople tend to respect those who know how to “dress sharp.” Be cautious about dressing in sexually expressive ways, and keep your tattoos and piercings to yourself unless the organization values them.

Speech and Language

Second, you must change your vocabulary. Psychotherapy, like all professions, has its own jargon. This vocabulary is not obvious to nonpsychotherapists, as it seems normal, but its use can become a distinct “turnoff” in the business environment. Businesses and specific industries also have their own way of speaking, and you must learn that language. You do not need to speak it yourself (and attempts to do so can come across as phony), but you must be comfortable with the vocabulary of the industry. For example, if you consult or coach in a dental office, you need to learn what they mean by terms like perio or restorative, and you need to call patient files charts, and know the difference between hygienists and assistants. No one will expect you to know these things immediately, but you must learn quickly. Do not fake it, and be willing to ask lots of questions at first. Then do your homework.

Table 18.1 contains examples of generic business language changes to consider. For example, instead of saying “You have issues around performance under stress,” you might say, “One of the challenges you face is how to take advantage of unanticipated opportunities.” This business-speak can get a little ridiculous, and it typically involves positive sounding action words such as solution-oriented. But to an important extent, it is the coin of the realm. People do not take this kind of language completely seriously, but there is a game to be played here, and as an outsider you have to pay attention to the game. Be wary of jargon, though. Instead of saying, “I get a sense that you are feeling anxious,” you might consider, “You seem nervous about this.” Or “You look nervous. What was your reaction? What’s your thinking?” You may want to consider the word upset when emotions are involved. Rather than inquiring about anger or hurt feelings or shame, as you might in a therapy setting, mention to clients that they seem “upset.” At any rate, develop your own coaching vocabulary to bridge these two very different cultures.

Many psychotherapists have developed unfortunate vocal tics and tonal habits that will undermine their impact in the business world. These manners of speech do not matter much in the therapy world, but they stand out in the corporate world. For example, if you use the word like more than once in each paragraph (or sentence) you will be perceived as “young” or not “so bright.” If you tend to use “rising intonations” (raising the tone of your voice toward the end of sentences) even though you are not asking a question, you will confuse listeners. They will wonder if you are certain about your assertions or if you really know what you are talking about. Linguistic uncertainty makes sense in the world of science and psychotherapy (where we are never completely sure about anything), but it can sink you in the business world. Listen to yourself. Record yourself and listen to the audio. Enlist others to help you enhance your speaking skills and style.

Transition C: Marketing and Sales

You must learn to market and sell your services. Most people do not understand the difference between these two essential tasks. Marketing is not the same as advertising, and many psychotherapists hate the idea that they must sell something. They do not see themselves as able to do it, either. Marketing is an umbrella function, and it includes advertising and sales. But it involves much more, and it can be very interesting.

Marketing means that you must figure out what consumers need or want and what they are willing to buy, and then match those things with a product or service that you are willing and able to provide. It involves assessment of potential clients and an accurate understanding of what you can offer that might fit client needs. It includes an assessment of what the market lacks. This may sound simple, but it is not easy, for there are many out there trying to do the same thing, and they have already met a lot of known consumer need.

The evolution of customer demand requires constant adaptation. Executive coaching is an example of how mental health providers can fit evolving business needs, and most of the heavy lifting has already been done for you. The coaching market has already been developed. Corporations are now well aware of executive coaching and of their need for coaching, but coaches need to figure out how to make themselves useful and attractive in a down market. At the same time, employers do not want to lose their best and brightest and they do not intend to squander money on training and development. They know how much it costs to hire and train a good executive, and they do not like it when employees leave, taking their knowledge with them along with some negative feelings. They are generally aware of the havoc and damage a poor or inappropriate leader can wreak. They also know that they cannot simply promote an excellent analyst or software engineer and expect him or her to make a quick and easy transition to manager or partner.

There is work to be done in marketing, however. First you must figure out just what it is that you have to offer. Then add to it or adjust it to meet the needs of prospective customers. That might involve research about what customers want. It might involve serious introspection and self-assessment. It might even allow for creative development of new services that you could offer to clients (still close enough to your core competencies), once you have made them aware of a need that you can fill. You may want to offer new “products” or new ways to provide coaching. Or you may decide to offer coaching to a subset of potential clients that others have not considered (e.g., dentists or attorneys or accountants or printers or hardware store owners or hotel managers or family businesses). It really helps to enter a niche that you know or a content area where you have some experience.

The Core Competency

At the same time you must decide to focus on one or two core competencies. This is a central concept, as it defines what you do and keeps you pointed in the proper direction. A core competency (sometimes called a distinctive competency) is defined as the single thing that you do the best, and it distinguishes you from others. It is what you are all about, and it includes your unique strengths and qualities. It is your specialty, that which you have organized your efforts around for a long period of time. It is what you know best and do best. It includes your natural talents, your skills, and your resources, and it is difficult for others to imitate. Every successful business has one, whether acknowledged or not. (If they do not have one, they probably will not survive without some other significant advantage, such as a unique location or reputation.) Leverage that distinctive competency; do not spread your energy all over the place and become mediocre. Do not try to do everything or to be all things to all people, even though this impulse can be tempting. Focus on your core competency and become exceptional at it. This creates an interesting tension between evolving needs of the marketplace and the solid constancy of your core skills (the market might not be interested in what you would like to offer). Pay attention to this conflict. Trends come and go. The big idea is to create a sustainable competitive advantage.

Marketing traditionally includes the “Four Ps.” Together they form the basis for comprehensive marketing planning. They are product, place, price, and promotion.

Product

Decide what it is that you want to offer. This can include a “product mix” of several services including tangible products such as books, DVDs, workshops, or Web materials.

It is especially important to be able to describe what you do in a clear and concise way. You must be able to define coaching, and you should choose a definition that is results-oriented. This is not an easy task, for the service that coaches provide is intangible by nature. Here are some thoughts to help you construct your definition. First, consider the tasks a coach can accomplish. A coach can enhance a client’s:

• Listening skills
• Interpersonal skills
• Delegating
• Behavior in meetings, and ability to run meetings
• Public speaking
• Ability to give feedback
• Understanding of company politics
• Self-understanding
• Presentation of self
• Strategic thinking

Coaches must be able to also talk about what they offer in terms of client company outcomes. For example, coaching can:

• Enhance an executive’s performance
• Help increase market share
• Enhance the company’s image or reputation
• Increase customer satisfaction
• Decrease complaints
• Improve productivity
• Increase efficiency
• Retain high-performing executives
• Develop leaders

The main idea is that coaching must be explained to potential clients in terms of what’s in it for them. What will be different (better) after you have done your coaching? Where’s the benefit? Such outcomes need to be expressed in practical terms (increased profitability or employee retention) whenever feasible. Organizations are not likely to spend money to make employees feel better or happier.

Place

Figure out where you will operate and how customers and clients will find you. For example, decide whether you will operate as a consultant to a larger consulting firm, as an independent operator, or as an in-house consultant to the company whose employees you will coach. Create an effective Web site. Decide how much you are willing to travel. Business consultants sometimes travel extensively. Determine whether you are willing to live in a hotel room for days or weeks at a time when necessary.

Price

Determine how you will price your services. Consult with others in your geographic area and in your target industry. Consider a wide range of pricing alternatives including a daily rate, an annual rate, acceptance of stock options or other benefits instead of cash, and strongly consider value-based fees. A value-based approach sets a fee (one total number) based upon the total worth in specific and general outcomes to the client. Read Weiss (1998) for a detailed explanation of this approach to pricing. Be careful about locking yourself into an hourly fee. It can become too restrictive after you have established your reputation and value in the marketplace. Project pricing is the model most often used these days in management consulting, and businesses are quite used to paying consultants on this basis. One more thing about price: If you have something of value to organizations or corporations, do not be shy about your fees. Remember to factor in all of the costs involved in placing yourself in front of clients.

Promotion

Decide how you are going to inform and educate potential clients about your services and their value. You cannot expect clients to find you, and although self-promotion is anathema to many psychotherapists, it is an essential aspect of successful consulting. Think this one through. Find a way to understand the key idea: You have a valuable and important service—something that can make a very positive impact for the right client. (If you do not believe this, rethink what you are doing and why you are doing it. This has to be true—as a baseline requirement. If you do not think that you have something valuable to offer, develop or change what you offer or get out of the business.)

You have to connect with a potential new client. Promotion does not mean bragging or hustling people. It means that you match your services with client needs in a win–win paradigm. There really are many clients out there in the world who would benefit from excellent coaching. Remember that you have much to offer the business and corporate world. And do not limit your target to mainstream businesses. There are many businesses and organizations that can dearly use your services, including dental offices, physician practices, law offices, nonprofits, and family businesses. There are books available to help with this process, and some are listed in the “References” section of this chapter.

If you have decided to give coaching a shot, here’s what you have to accomplish:

1. Figure out what the market wants and needs—You could do this by reading, taking coaching training, or interviewing businesspeople. The goal is to figure out where opportunities exist and how to assess the existing barriers. What forces or factors exist in the market environment that will make penetration difficult? Where is the opportunity greatest?
2. Figure out what you have to offer—Decide if you are willing to adapt or learn new skills to fit the need. Take a clear look at your strengths and weaknesses relative to the opportunities in the market. Some companies or businesses are likely to be more accessible than others, given your contacts and skill set. Match your skills and resources to the existing opportunities and barriers.
3. Differentiate your services from psychotherapy and from the services of your competitors—Decide about your distinctive competencies, the things that you are really good at. Be able to succinctly explain how you are different and what kind of situations you are best suited to handle. When you are not the optimal coach for a particular client or industry, be ready to recommend someone else. Take a service orientation, and help customers solve their problems, even when you are not going to get the current piece of work. Most businesspeople are wary of consultants who are trying to hustle business. Direct your efforts toward their success. They will remember your help and be more likely to come back when they need your skill or to recommend you to someone else in the future.
4. Make your presence known—Let companies know about the services you offer. Organizations need consultants. Consultants help them solve problems they do not know how to solve. Consultants save them money. Consultants provide expertise that the company does not have and does not want to develop. You can do it less expensively and more efficiently for them than they can do it for themselves.
5. Constantly assess the value of your service—Adjust as you go along. Work hard to match what you offer to what clients need. Help them discern their needs, as well. They probably have significant and unrecognized needs. Help them understand these needs and the fact that paying you to help will, in the long run, save them money and make them better. It must be a value proposition for them if it is to be sustainable for you. One way to do this is to develop and implement data-based outcome evaluations of everything you do. Produce and retain information that documents your impact and success. Your clients and future clients will be impressed and able to defend your practice to those who pay the bills. If you are not sure how to do this, hire someone who can help. Think about paying them on a contingency basis as a variable cost, then pass that cost on to your client.
6. Spend time with businesspeople—Do not spend most of your professional time with other psychotherapists. As Weiss (1998) notes, that is like trying to sell stamps to the post office. Skip meetings of therapist organizations, and start to attend meetings of management consultant organizations. Better yet, attend meetings of businesspeople. Seek out chambers of commerce or rotary clubs or human resource trainings. Let people know what you do, and let them help you structure your service. Rotary clubs are always looking for speakers at their lunch meetings, and businesspeople are well aware that one of the reasons for these organizations is to connect businesspeople to one another.
7. Find a mentor—Establish a relationship with someone who knows what you do not. Nourish the relationship and pay attention. (Be prepared to pay for this help.) A mentor can make all the difference.

What You Have to Offer

Although connections and reputation are the two main ways that you will get work as a business consultant, if you do not already have those, you must start somewhere. In the Harvard Business Review survey (Kauffman &Coutu, 2009, p. 20) experienced executive coaches recommended that organizations should look for the following (in rank order) when thinking about hiring a coach (percentages represent the number of coaches, out of 140 responding, who endorsed the criterion):

1. Coach has experience in a similar setting (65%)
2. Coach can articulate a clear methodology (61%)
3. Quality of the coach’s client list (50%)
4. Coach has experience as a coachee (36%)
5. Coach has a background in organizational development (35%)
6. Ability to measure return on investment (32%)
7. Certification in a proven coaching method (29%)
8. Experience working in a similar setting (27%)
9. Status as a thought leader in the field (25%)
10. Experience as a psychologist or therapist (13%)

Wasylyshyn (2003) came to similar conclusions from a survey of 87 executives who used the following criteria for choosing a coach:

1. Graduate-level training in psychology (82%)
2. Experience in business/general management (78%)
3. Coaching experience and positive reputation (25%)
4. Experience in client’s industry/knowledge of company culture (15%)
5. Trust in judgment of person who recommended coach (12%)

Happily, they seem to value training in psychology!

The top three personal characteristics mentioned by the executives in Wasylyshyn’s study were ability to form a strong connection with the executive, professionalism, and use of a clear coaching methodology.

Consider the sources of your own authority and expertise. What is your authority as an executive coach? (Note from the aforementioned surveys that your wonderful, hard-earned experience as a psychotherapist is not highly regarded.) Why should someone take a chance on you? There is much more than money at stake for most coaching clients. They (or their organization) need serious help, and they need it to help quickly and effectively. Clients need help to be able to succeed in a new job, they need it to keep their present job, or they need it to keep an organization afloat. People depend on them to succeed. Ask yourself why they should listen to you. Why should they put themselves and their organizations in your hands?

Only 13% of the experienced coaches in the Harvard survey reported that previous experience as a psychotherapist was an important calling card, whereas more than half pointed to a coach’s experience on the job as key. What should a novice coach do to break into the field? This is an important question for someone lacking experience as an executive coach. Here are some possible sources of your attractiveness:

Possibility 1: You have a track record—Maybe you have demonstrated effectiveness under the same or similar circumstances. You may even be able to produce letters of support or recommendation from a small number of former coaching or organizational clients. This is the most effective kind of authority in the marketplace. Some prospective clients will demand it. Consider offering services to local community organizations at no cost and let the director know that you would like a letter of support later if your services are helpful.

Possibility 2: You have experienced the same circumstances as your client—You have worked in the corporate world and served as a vice president of marketing or human resources or finance. You have been there and you understand what it takes to succeed. Or perhaps you ran a small clinic or a university counseling center or a drinking driver program. Maybe you served as an officer in a professional organization. Perhaps you managed a budget and a staff. Consolidate these experiences and describe them in a way that emphasizes the business components of your experience base.

Possibility 3: You have taken (or given) a lot of training in business coaching—It is increasingly easy to find training in coaching. Take some of your mandatory continuing education credits in this area. Read extensively in appropriate areas, and make sure to read the things that potential clients are reading. Do not limit your reading to coaching books. The Harvard Business Review is a must-read source for executive coaches. It is an expensive journal, but you can find copies at the library and some articles online.

Possibility 4: You have written about the subject—Maybe you have conducted a study in the field of coaching. Perhaps the newspaper printed an article you wrote. Write a regular column for the business section of a local newspaper or Internet site. You might be surprised to know that most editors are eager to find new writers to fill their pages. Perhaps you have your own newsletter about business coaching and related topics.

Possibility 5: You have a Web site that highlights your accomplishments and presents information and news about coaching—There are already many of these on the Internet from which to learn.

Possibility 6:You have years of experience as an effective psychotherapist—This one is actually quite valuable, especially if you are the kind of therapist who can readily translate previous work into business coaching, but it is a hard one to sell to many corporations. They typically are not interested in sending their execs to therapy, so you have to package your experience in a practical and attractive way. What are the core components of your therapy experience that can be packaged as attractive to industry? For example, if you have been a psychotherapist you probably have exceptional listening skills.

Possibility 7: You are smart, shrewd, and know how to develop quick rapport to influence people—This is a very important set of skills, but it is hard to convince people that it is true ahead of time. When you try to convince them directly, you are liable to come across as bragging or as needy. Smart people do not advertise their smarts, they demonstrate them, and other smart people notice. But those who keep their talents hidden do not fare well, either. Solid interpersonal interaction skills are often enough to keep you in the door once you get there.

Possibility 8: You are able to articulate a clear and powerful, convincing methodology for your coaching in general and for the client in question—This possibility, combined with one of the others on the list, might be enough to carry the day. Anne Scoular wrote about the importance of this task in an essay in the Harvard Business Review (2009, p. 31): “If a coach can’t tell you what methodology he uses—what he does and what outcomes you can expect—show him the door.”

Since this is such an important way to enhance your ability to gain work, it deserves much attention and some serious time. Ask other coaches about their own methodology, search out written descriptions of coaching methods, write and rehearse your own. You may notice that few are able to articulate a clear and plausible methodology, as it is distinctly challenging to do so. When someone actually does it, though, it makes a strong impression.

Assess yourself. Take a good, hard look at yourself, your strengths and weaknesses, your values and interests and figure out how hard it would be to make the transition and break into the field. There is actually a self-assessment instrument designed specifically to help accomplish this task. It was designed by Samuel Modoono (2002) of the Hay Group and can be purchased online.

Transition D: Mixing Relationships

Psychotherapists develop a special relationship with their clients, and they rarely, if ever, mix professional relationships with social ones. They do not party with clients; do not go out on clients’ boats; they do not play golf with patients; and rarely even attend weddings, funerals, or graduations with clients. There are good reasons for these restrictions and, in some situations, such contact with clients is actually against the law.

But things are different in the business-coaching world. Consultants are expected to socialize with clients. It is an essential and important part of the culture, and serious feelings will be hurt if you routinely decline invitations. You must do some socializing with clients in the business environment. If you do not, they will think you are disinterested or weird.

This difference has two important implications. First, when socializing you have to behave in a way that engenders confidence in your judgment and ability. You are always on in these social situations. These events are work, not necessarily play or fun. Businesspeople know this and they are used to it. Second, this means that you must be especially conscious of the level and kind of confidentiality that you can offer clients. In therapy, the fact that you have a professional relationship with a client is, itself, confidential. This is called contact confidentiality. Such a duty does not exist in the business world, and it is not feasible anyway. People will know that you are a coach and they will know that Bill or Sally is working with you. Discuss this with clients at the beginning of the relationship.

Be clear about how you will handle confidences. Do not present this in a way that pathologizes the information they will discuss or makes that information sound dangerous. It is especially important that you do not make promises you cannot keep. Consider discussing confidentiality in terms of discretion. Assure them that you will be discreet (careful of preserving prudent silence). Let them know that you intend to respect their confidence and their reputation. You are in their corner and your main goal is to enhance their career. It is usually possible to frame the coaching as a positive. Only those with high potential get this service, therefore it is prestigious to be coached, not a sign of weakness. In any case, learn to adapt to this new social aspect of your work.

Transition E: Contracts and Business Arrangements

Negotiate explicit contracts that are fair to all parties. The service you provide is a valuable one, especially when it goes well. Do not underprice or undervalue your work. Skills that may seem relatively simple or second nature to you are quite valuable to many businesspeople who have never spent a day in a psychology class or a human relations seminar. If you underprice your work, you will lose respect and feel abused in the end. If you overprice it, you will feel like an imposter and be discovered and unlikely to get more work in the future.

Create contracts that are clear. Make expectations explicit for you and for your client. Agree on a policy for no-shows, as they are inevitable (and do not take them personally, unless they are chronic; even then, they are worthy of interpretation). When an opportunity pops up for a client to close a lucrative “deal” with a prized client of their own, they will certainly miss their appointment with you. Be prepared to charge them fairly if you charge by the hour. They will understand, especially if you have a contract and an agreement about this in advance.

Your contract ought to include deliverables, explicit ways to know if and when you have accomplished your goals. What outcomes will you deliver, and how will you know when you have done so? This will require clear thinking and conversations about those goals. Choose them carefully so that they are measurable and achievable. Make them modest at first, and build on success in stages. This is not often easy, but it is always possible. Think in terms of what will be different as a result of successful coaching. Remember this from Chapter 1: Everything can be measured.

Finally, check with your malpractice or liability carrier. Let them know that you are doing executive coaching as part of your practice. They, too, know about coaching, and may have a policy in place. It is unlikely that the change in your policy will place any demands on you. You will not be the first new coach to call them. Do not give up this insurance policy (assuming that it covers your coaching).

Conclusion: Be Exceptional

Develop a vision for yourself and your new work. Make this vision real by writing it down in a sentence or two. Massage it until it speaks for you, motivates you, and keeps you focused. Refer to it regularly. Keep it real. Turn this vision into a concise mission statement, if you wish, and if you do so, make your mission statement memorable. It must be brief and it must remind you of the most important aspects of what you are all about. You can turn to it later for focus and guidance.

Remember that all consulting is relationship-based. Nurture personal relationships in business. Put long-term relationships ahead of narrow or momentary business matters. Be gracious and generous with your words and your resources.

Go the extra mile to become excellent at what you do. Get feedback from trusted clients and friends and listen to it. Then make changes or get more training or skills. Read extensively in the management consulting area. Certainly this book alone is insufficient preparation for successful coaching, and there are several similar other books now on the market. Many are listed in the Recommended Readings sections at the end of each chapter. Find a mentor. Use him or her, and pay for their time, if necessary.

Study the leadership and management literature. Become familiar with the core readings as well as the popular books that executives read on airplanes. Learn the business of business, along with its vocabulary.

Tell the truth when you coach. A large study of senior managers in Fortune 250 companies found that the most important factor in effective coaching was “honest, straightforward communication” (Peterson, Uranowitz, &Hicks, 1997, p. 1). This may not be altogether easy, but it is extremely valuable, and people will notice it. Do not be too afraid to say the unpopular thing. Your observation skills, listening skills, and your honesty could turn out to be your inimitable sustainable competitive advantage. In the long run, clients will hire those they trust, and they will trust those who tell the truth. They do not need another person who buys into the organization’s group think. Accomplished coach David Peterson agrees (Peterson &Millier 2005, p. 15):

My coaching is guided by two overarching principles:

1. Be the kind of coach that I would like to work with.
2. Aim to be a Great coach; do not settle for being a good coach. After working with hundreds of coaches from virtually every background of training and experience, I’ve concluded that it is relatively easy to be a good coach.

Aim high and enjoy the ride.

References

Berra, Y. (1998). The Yogi book: I really didn’t say everything I said. New York: Workman Publishing.

Kauffman, C., & Coutu, D. (2009). HBR research report: The realities of executive coaching. Available at: coachingreport.hbr.org.

Kotler, P. (1997). Marketing management: Analysis, planning, implementation, and control. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Modoono, S. (2002). The executive coaching self-assessment inventory. Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research, 54(1), 43. Available at: http://psycnet.apa.org/index.cfm?fa=buy.optionToBuy&id=2002-12515-005.

Peterson, D., Uranowitz, S., & Hicks, M. D. (1997). Management coaching at work: Current practice in multinational and fortune 250 companies. Minneapolis, MN: Personnel Decisions International Corporation.

Peterson, D. B., & Millier, J. (2005). The alchemy of coaching: You’re good, Jennifer, but you could be really good. Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research, 57(1), 14–40.

Scoular, P. A. (2009, January). How do you pick a coach? Harvard Business Review, 87(1), 96.

Wasylyshyn, K. M. (2003). Executive coaching: An outcome study. Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research, 55(2), 94–106.

Weiss, A. (1998). Million dollar consulting. The professional’s guide to growing a practice. New York: McGraw-Hill.

Recommended Readings

Barney, J. (1997). Gaining and sustaining competitive advantage. Menlo Park, CA: Addison-Wesley.

Benton, D. (1999). Secrets of a CEO coach. New York: McGraw-Hill.

Block, P. (2000). Flawless consulting: A guide to getting your expertise used (2nd ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass/Pfeiffer.

Bluckert, P. (2006). Psychological dimensions of executive coaching. Berkshire, UK: Open University Press.

Douglas, C., & Morley, W. (2000). Executive coaching: An annotated bibliography. Greensboro, NC: Center for Creative Leadership.

Doyle, J. (1999). The business coach. New York: Wiley.

Farson, R. (1996). Management of the absurd: Paradoxes in leadership. New York: Simon & Schuster.

Gilley, J., & Boughton, M. (1996). Stop managing, start coaching!: How performance coaching can enhance commitment and improve productivity. Chicago: Irwin Professional.

Goldsmith, M., & Lyons, L. S. (Eds.). (2006). Coaching for leadership: The practice of leadership coaching from the world’s greatest coaches (2nd ed.). San Francisco: Pfeiffer.

Hargrove, R. (1995). Masterful coaching. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass/Pfeiffer.

Hart, V., Blattner, J., & Leipsic, S. (2001). Coaching versus therapy: A perspective. Consulting Psychology Journal: Research and Practice, 53(4), 229–237.

Harvey, D., & Brown, D. R. (2005). An experiential approach to organizational development (7th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Holtz, H. (1997). The complete guide to consulting contracts (2nd ed.). Chicago: Upstart.

Holtz, H., & Zahn, D. (2004). How to succeed as an independent consultant. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

Kerin, R., & Peterson, R. (1998). Strategic marketing problems: Cases and comments. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Martin, I. (1996). From couch to corporation. Becoming a successful corporate therapist. New York: Wiley.

Miller, J., & Brown, P. (1993). The corporate coach. New York: St. Martin’s Press.

Palmer, S., & Whybrow, A. (Eds.). (2008). Handbook of coaching psychology. London: Routledge.

Peters, T. (1999). The brand you 50. New York: Alfred Knopf.

Sperry, L. (1996). Corporate therapy and consulting. New York: Brunner/Mazel.

Sperry, L. (2004). Executive coaching: The essential guide for mental health professionals. New York: Brunner-Routledge.

Stober, D. R., & Grant, A. M. (Eds.). (2006). Evidence based coaching handbook. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

Tobias, L. (1990). Psychological consulting to management: A clinician’s perspective. New York: Brunner/Mazel.

Waldroop, J., & Butler, T. (2000, September–October). Managing away bad habits. Harvard Business Review, 89–98.

Wallace, W., & Hall, D. (1996). Psychological consultation: Perspectives and applications. Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole.