ho are your clients?"

Before my friend answered this question, he responded with a question, "You said that you help your clients. Tell me, what kind of measurable differences do you provide to your clients." Again, she heed and hawed a bit, and answered, "Well…….ummm……most of them get better." He quickly followed with "How much better?"

The coach responded with "I have so many different clients that I really have no idea."

Then

Every Monday night a group of 7 committed individuals who are considered to be business coaches, executive coaches and business consultants meet via teleconferencing to mastermind. During these 90 minute masterminding sessions, weekly successes and missed opportunities are shared. We learn so much from each other. For reinventing the wheel is truly a waste of time.

The mental energy and output from this masterminding process is incredible, but the email threads that are shared provided even greater opportunity for reflection and learning. One of the coaches revealed a conversation that he had with another business coach who belonged to a local chapter of a national coaching association.

During their conversation, the other coach made the statement that "executive or business coaches who coach other business or executive coaches were preying on their own by taking advantage of all the problems currently existing within the business coaching industry."

Everyone within this mastermind group has head similar statements before, but my enlightened colleague took this opportunity to truly reveal the ethics of this coach. So he replied, "Gee, you make that sound like a piranha preying on their young." The other coach responded, "Well isn't it?"

My colleague continued with "I guess that assumes that we either prey on our own if we work with coaches, or, instead we prey on our other clients, and the latter must be OK. And does that mean that coaches just prey on the weak?"

The coach who started the conversation staggered backward, stammered a bit and said, "Well no. I do help my clients." At this moment, my coaching friend then asked the other coach, "Does that mean that you are implying that I don’t help mine?" Her response was, "Of course not. Who are your clients?"

Before my friend answered this question, he responded with a question, "You said that you help your clients. Tell me, what kind of measurable differences do you provide to your clients." Again, she heed and hawed a bit, and answered, "Well…….ummm……most of them get better." He quickly followed with "How much better?"

The coach responded with "I have so many different clients that I really have no idea."

Then

but the email threads that are shared provided even greater opportunity for reflection and learning. One of the coaches revealed a conversation that he had with another business coach who belonged to a local chapter of a national coaching association.

During their conversation, the other coach made the statement that "executive or business coaches who coach other business or executive coaches were preying on their own by taking advantage of all the problems currently existing within the business coaching industry."

Everyone within this mastermind group has head similar statements before, but my enlightened colleague took this opportunity to truly reveal the ethics of this coach. So he replied, "Gee, you make that sound like a piranha preying on their young." The other coach responded, "Well isn't it?"

My colleague continued with "I guess that assumes that we either prey on our own if we work with coaches, or, instead we prey on our other clients, and the latter must be OK. And does that mean that coaches just prey on the weak?"

The coach who started the conversation staggered backward, stammered a bit and said, "Well no. I do help my clients." At this moment, my coaching friend then asked the other coach, "Does that mean that you are implying that I don’t help mine?" Her response was, "Of course not. Who are your clients?"

Before my friend answered this question, he responded with a question, "You said that you help your clients. Tell me, what kind of measurable differences do you provide to your clients." Again, she heed and hawed a bit, and answered, "Well…….ummm……most of them get better." He quickly followed with "How much better?"

The coach responded with "I have so many different clients that I really have no idea."

Then

f all the problems currently existing within the business coaching industry."

Everyone within this mastermind group has head similar statements before, but my enlightened colleague took this opportunity to truly reveal the ethics of this coach. So he replied, "Gee, you make that sound like a piranha preying on their young." The other coach responded, "Well isn't it?"

My colleague continued with "I guess that assumes that we either prey on our own if we work with coaches, or, instead we prey on our other clients, and the latter must be OK. And does that mean that coaches just prey on the weak?"

The coach who started the conversation staggered backward, stammered a bit and said, "Well no. I do help my clients." At this moment, my coaching friend then asked the other coach, "Does that mean that you are implying that I don’t help mine?" Her response was, "Of course not. Who are your clients?"

Before my friend answered this question, he responded with a question, "You said that you help your clients. Tell me, what kind of measurable differences do you provide to your clients." Again, she heed and hawed a bit, and answered, "Well…….ummm……most of them get better." He quickly followed with "How much better?"

The coach responded with "I have so many different clients that I really have no idea."

Then

rey on our own if we work with coaches, or, instead we prey on our other clients, and the latter must be OK. And does that mean that coaches just prey on the weak?"

The coach who started the conversation staggered backward, stammered a bit and said, "Well no. I do help my clients." At this moment, my coaching friend then asked the other coach, "Does that mean that you are implying that I don’t help mine?" Her response was, "Of course not. Who are your clients?"

Before my friend answered this question, he responded with a question, "You said that you help your clients. Tell me, what kind of measurable differences do you provide to your clients." Again, she heed and hawed a bit, and answered, "Well…….ummm……most of them get better." He quickly followed with "How much better?"

The coach responded with "I have so many different clients that I really have no idea."

Then

ho are your clients?"

Before my friend answered this question, he responded with a question, "You said that you help your clients. Tell me, what kind of measurable differences do you provide to your clients." Again, she heed and hawed a bit, and answered, "Well…….ummm……most of them get better." He quickly followed with "How much better?"

The coach responded with "I have so many different clients that I really have no idea."

Then my friend quietly concluded with “Well, let’s see I prey on a few small business clients who typically double their business in 3-4 weeks…..but of course I also have a few of my young that I prey on…coaches I mean. Would you say that preying on someone might have a different perspective depending on whether you are helping them to secure measurable results or not?"

The other coach was stunned and walked away because she had no answer.

Given that research revealed less than 5% of all coaches make over $100,000 a year, my colleague’s niche market of helping other coaches is valid. What also makes this coach different as well as the other 6 coaches in this mastermind group is that everyone can share actual measurable results. For their ethics and values are all about delivering a positive return on investment for their coaching services. Without such core values, why would anyone hire any of us?

The simple reason is that most coaches fail to earn more than $100,000, fail to have more than 20 clients during the course of their practice is because they cannot consistently deliver measurable results. This failure is truly one of ethics and core values. So the final question is: Are your ethics as a business coach centered around just helping people or securing measurable and sustainable results?