Sure at the
start of the conversation he had sounded positive about the way
his business was performing. 'Yeah it's going pretty good, can't
complain, could always do with a bit more', the sort of comments
I'd heard many times before. Comments that really mean, business
could be doing a WHOLE lot better.
See, I'd met Bill at a business luncheon, the type business owners
go to, to network with other people. Bill had explained to me
that he was a mechanic, who owned his own garage with 4 people
working under him. As he went on to explain how business was going
'alright', I said nothing. I simply stood there smiling, thinking
how many times I'd had the same conversation with so many other
business owners.
"So
what do you do Trev?" asked Bill. He obviously wasn't
overly interested in the answer, asking more out of politeness
than anything else.
"I'm
a business coach," I replied. "I help people
grow their businesses. You know Bill, the type of people who are
going 'alright', but could always do with a bit more."
I knew what was coming next. As I said, it didn't take long for
Bill to open up and start talking about the problems in his business.
Bill admitted he was working 10 to 12 hours a day, 6 sometimes
7 days a week. But despite his hard work the bills were mounting
up, and he was finding it hard to make ends meet.
"Sounds
like you could do with my help Bill," I said when he'd
finished.
"What,
have someone tell me how to run my business," said Bill
with a tone that suggested the notion was some how offensive.
"What do you know about fixing cars?"
"I
don't know anything about cars," I admitted. "But
I do know how to fix a business."
Bill was obviously not impressed with the idea, making a number
of excuses for why business wasn't going so good. "Nah,
things will pick up soon, I just need to run a few more ads."
See, to Bill, getting a business coach to help him with his problems
was like admitting defeat. A 'real' business owner should be able
to work things out for himself.
I
let it go.
Sure I could've pointed out to Bill that top sports people all
have coaches. That even the heads of state have advisors they
turn to. Why shouldn't business owners have someone to 'coach'
them on how to grow their businesses? But instead I left him with
my card, wished him the best and told him to give me a call if
he changed his mind.
I didn't hear from Bill again for almost 12 months. When he did
finally call, things had become quite desperate. After his ads
failed he'd put on another mechanic, in the hope that things would
improve. But of course instead of things getting better, things
had become a whole lot worse.
At the time I started coaching him he was down to 2 employees,
and working even longer hours in an attempt to stay afloat. In
fact the his situation was so bad, he was only weeks away from
closing his doors.
Nowadays Bill the Mechanic has a team of 8 people, and a business
that has made him financially independent for life. He's lucky
to spend 20 hours a week in his workshop, and the last time I
spoke to him, he and his wife were planning a trip to Europe.
Their first holiday in over 6 years.
Now Bill was one of the lucky ones, he bit the bullet just in
time. Even after I'd started coaching him, it had taken months
of hard work to turn his business around. As Bill says himself
'If only I'd come to you sooner, back when business was still
going alright. I would never have had to put myself through all
that heartache'.
So I wonder, as you're sitting there reading this story, if you
don't perhaps see a little bit of Bill the Mechanic in your situation?
See, regardless of how your business is performing now, a business
coach is the best investment you can ever make. Now you can choose
to simply get up in the morning, go off to work, and do the same
thing tomorrow as you did today, and the day before that, and
the day before that. Or you can decide to make the most worthwhile
investment of your life, and get a business coach to help you
grow your business.
I
know which one Bill would choose!
