Supporters part 2 - Coach

Yesterday we talked about the importance of having supporters. Today, let's talk about the types of supporters we have (and need!) in our lives - and especially about our coaches.

Generally, your supporters will fall into 3 groups.

Casual supporters are plentiful and you can find them in any general interest group. For example, I have a goal to write a book on a specific subject. To help keep myself motivated I've recently joined a writers' connection group and they've been very supportive! They're a great group of people and I really enjoy them, and the last time that we got together they were very encouraging for me and helped to re-enforce my desire to write this book. It's awesome! I love having a group of people who are so willing to stand up and say "Write that book!"

Casual supporters are wonderful! They make us feel good and they'll always tell us how awesome we are.

The second group is the invested supporters. These are the people who have a reason to want you to succeed. Maybe they're financially invested in your success, maybe they'll get some kind of emotional satisfaction from it, there's many ways we can invest ourselves in the success of others. These supporters are going to be a little more likely to tell you the truth about whether you are doing something well because they've got something riding on you doing well.

Surround yourself with people like this. They are good for you and they help keep you sharp.

The third group of supporters are your coaches. Coaches are so important to our ability to be successful in life, yet so many people try to do big, important things without a coach. You wouldn't expect a group of men to become a great major league baseball team without a significant amount of coaching. You wouldn't even expect your child to play a sport without a coach! So why on earth would you expect to start a business, or work on improving yourself as a person without the help of a coach?

Coaches come in many forms, with the label and without them. I have a certified health coach who helps me with my goals to better myself physically, and a mentor who helps me with my personality and leadership development. We have seasoned business owners who are friends of ours and function as our business coaches, and there are people in our church - including our pastor - who we rely on to coach us in our spiritual improvement.

Why so many coaches?

Because anything worth doing cannot be done alone. And wouldn't you rather rely on the wisdom of people who know and love you and are experts in their field, instead of trying to Google how you're supposed to handle every situation?

Your coaches won't sugar coat or tiptoe. They're there to make you better, and sometimes that means calling you to the carpet so they can help you straighten out your mess.

The difference between casual supporters and invested supporters and coaches has been illustrated very well for me with my writing recently. My casual supporters gathered around me and said "You're awesome, you can write a book!" My invested supporters said "When you're done I'll help you edit it, to give you another perspective." But my husband - who also happens to be my coach in this area...well, he made me cry. He took the ego that my casual supporters had filled with helium and popped it, telling me to sit down and really evaluate the truth of my ability, the story I want to present, and whether it's all going to be worth anyone's time.

This may sound harsh. Coaches sometimes seem harsh in the ways that they are teaching us. But all perceived harshness makes us better, it's like the grindstone that sharpens a sword. My husband's perspective forced me to improve on the story I wanted to tell and turn it into something that will really add value to people when it's finished.

Casual supporters boost your ego, invested supporters push you along, and your coach (who is usually also an invested supporter) tells you to run faster because they know you've got more potential hidden in there. They all serve different purposes in your journey, and they're all important - but especially the coach!