iCoach Magazine – CREATE edition – September 2013
Robin Thicke’s song “Blurred Lines” may have been the most popular song of this past summer, but one thing is for sure, blurred lines are not so popular with clients.
Clients like clarity, directness, and boundaries. Clients want an accountability partner who supportively stretches them through places of discomfort so they can grow and create. Clients want clear lines in the sand to know how they can best achieve their goals.
So why are so many coaches afraid to exert their boundaries?
Why do we hesitate to be crystal clear around payments, missed calls, and communication? When that client misses that call or payment, why do we back down saying “Oh, that’s okay, don’t worry about it”. We don’t stand in our value. We blur the lines.
What Can You Do to Prevent Blurred Lines?
1. Be Clear about Your Boundaries from the Start. From your first discovery call, stand behind your offer and investment and remember the value that your clients receive from working with you.
2. Put Your Boundaries in Writing. If coaching by phone, put your expectations into a rock-solid Personalized Client Agreement. If coaching in person at a workshop or retreat, have participants sign a Waiver when they arrive.
3. Remember Your Clients are Looking to You as their Leader. Clients choose to work with us because they know we will help them stretch, heal and grow. They look to us to hold the vision of what is possible for them and to support them as they step into that vision.
It is time to show up for your clients as the powerful coach that you are, without any blurred lines or confusing boundaries. Challenge yourself to be the leader your clients want you to be – and the leader that you know you already are.
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