Community isn’t just a nice to have, it will grow your business

Hello and welcome to the Business of Executive Coaching Podcast. I'm your host, Ellie Scarf, a senior executive coach with over 18 years experience coaching, which I now bring to my role as a mentor and business coach to other executive coaches. When it comes to coaching business, I've done it all. I've grown coaching businesses solo and in partnership and with teams of coaches working with me. I've been an in-house coach and I've been an associate coach. So when I talk about selling coaching to corporate clients, you know that I'm sharing from a place of experience and empathy. I work with coaches now through my group coaching program, the Corporate to Coach Accelerator, where executive and leadership coaches grow their business with more corporate clients. So today I want to talk about community and the importance of community, not just for friendship or connection, but also for the business benefits that are associated with it. Now, that's not to undermine the emotional components, and I'll talk about that as well, but I think we often look at community as a nice-to-have rather than a business essential. And so today I want to talk about all the ways that I see community contributing to the businesses and the lives of my members inside the Corporate to Coach Accelerator, but also that I've experienced personally over my life. Now, my life as a coach, I guess I'm talking about, and my experience has been that I've had quite an extraordinary community of coaches. And at the core of that community of coaches have been some coach mentors, and you've heard me interview a number of them on the podcast. Mentors, uh, business partners who have started as coaching friends. They've been people that I've trained with through my initial coach training or my ongoing professional development. And just coaches that I've met and connected with along the way that I might have worked with as an associate or in an organization. This community for me has been hugely pivotal to my business and not just the, my experience of being in business through, through friendship. It's been a community that has opened doors for me and I hope that I've opened doors to as well. And it has been, yeah, it has honestly been one of the richest and most joyful parts of being in business as an executive coach. And now I'm fortunate that community is expanded to coaches who are in an earlier stage of their business. And I consider a lot of these coaches who are my clients but are also my friends and my coach network as well. And so, you know, I really see this community being one that really is a virtuous cycle where we connect more, we see more opportunity, and then we start to, to grow and expand from there. I think it's that positive psychology idea of heliotropism where it nourishes. We nourish each other and we nourish ourselves through the communities that we build, particularly with coaches. And so we really need to be mindful then, if there is such positive benefits that come from community, we need to be really mindful that we are leaning into building our community of coaches. And that is for the emotional benefits, the practical benefits, the financial benefits, all of the above. It's just pays off on so many levels. So today I'm going to talk through some of the— I guess it's a combination of ways community can support you as a coach. And I'm going to talk through like a whole bunch of different ways. And some of these will be ideas that you could apply within your existing communities. Some are examples of what we do inside the Corporate to Coach Accelerator. I'll share some examples of what it's meant for me. And yeah, as I said, hopefully it's inspiration, a reminder of how you might connect even more deeply and deliberately with your coach networks. And of course, if you need more of this in your life and business, do book a call with me, elliescarf.com/bookacall, and we can discuss whether the Accelerator could be a good fit for you. Because I have to say, the community inside the Accelerator is extraordinary. It is high-level coaches with extraordinary stories. There is an incredible diversity of background and experience and I guess perspective that I really truly value, and I know everyone else does. And it's also very geographically diverse. So wherever you are in the world, there are likely some of our members who are in the region as well. Okay, so how does community help? One of the ways that I wanted to start with is like a few— I want to start with a few of the practical ways, and that is that community is an extremely effective accountability mechanism if you are a person who needs that. Now, a lot of us, and I put myself very firmly in this bucket, a lot of us need support when it comes to accountability. So we start our businesses and suddenly, yep, no KPIs, no one telling you what to do, no one wanting to, to report on it, no one giving you a bonus if you do things faster, or no performance reviews. When you don't do things on time. So accountability is up to you. And I needed this when I was an employee. I need this now. The way we structure using our community to help with accountability inside the Corporate to Coach Accelerator is that in our community portal, which is hosted on Slack, we have an accountability channel. And on that channel, everyone posts so that the whole community can see as well as myself and other coaches in the group, we all post, well, everyone posts their 3 top 3 priorities for the week. Now, sometimes it's 4, sometimes it's 5, sometimes it's 2, the number doesn't matter. But they post their priorities for the week and I always encourage them to make sure that there is a focus on a business development priority, at least inside that as well, not just delivery. And so we, everyone sets that intention on Monday and on Friday we follow up with everyone. And we ask, how did it go? And so there is a lot of power. And I guess this additional commitment that comes through this visible commitment to your community. And I know from talking to members that the people who do this get a lot of value out of it and are much more likely to be sure to get done the things that they've committed to. Accountability and I guess support with commitment is one really important but perhaps underlooked role that community can play for you as a coaching business owner. The next one, which is related to this, I kind of clustered them together, is help to get shit done. And when I say that, one of the really common themes that comes up with the coaches that I work with is that It's often really easy to set goals, to write really massive to-do lists, but the thing that gets in the way is not that we don't know what we need to get done. It's that it is really hard to get into action sometimes where there is resistance. And a lot of the time we're working through that in our coaching sessions in the accelerator. The resistance may be to things like not wanting to feel salesy, which is getting in the way of us doing our outreach, or Feeling uncomfortable about visibility and so putting off writing posts for LinkedIn or feeling overwhelmed and not putting a proposal together or knowing that you have a big workshop coming up, but putting off developing the slides, for example. And I've done all of those. Like if you think of anything that could be procrastinated, I can be sure that I have procrastinated that thing. So feel, know that you're in good company. But community can help you to get these things done. And one of the ways that I've seen our community independently, I guess, grow to support each other through this is through setting up coworking sessions or body doubling sessions, depending on which language you use. And that might be that you find a group of people on a similar time zone who all want to get on board and just hop on to Zoom with each other. On silent and just make a commitment at the start of the call what you're going to get done and then go through and at the end report back on what you did get done. So this is a really practical thing you can do with your coach network, but it helps to do it with people who are in the same boat, who know this work you're doing. And so having a group of like-minded people is really helpful for that. I guess it's an emotional or a supportive aspect to community. And one of the examples of this is that as humans, we are relationship-driven. We are connection seekers. And honestly, if you're a coach, whether or not you're an introvert or an extrovert, you are almost certainly someone who values connection, right? Values connection, not just professionally, but just that human connection. And we often have that need met for us without even having to think about it when we are employed, right? Because we might have the opposite problem is that We've got connections coming out our eyeballs and we're like, please don't talk to me anymore. Because we cross paths with people. We, we see them at the water cooler. We sit next to people. Of course, in a remote work environment, this is a little bit different, but we're probably having regular team meetings on Zoom. And we have bosses and we have peers and we have people reporting to us. So the opportunities for connection are huge. When we don't have those inbuilt connections, it is really important that we find them somewhere else. And so you may have community avenues for where you find that connection, which is great. But there's also just that, that connection through our, the work we do, right? And I think that is so important. And so the connection you can build with other coaches in business on a regular basis is really important. And so the way I see that in the accelerator is that there is this regular connection with our weekly coaching events, whether that is the coaching business Q&As or the LinkedIn coaching or our networking sessions or our masterclasses or coaching supervision. There is always every week an opportunity to be connected with your peers and these people who you are growing in parallel with. Growing businesses and growing personally in parallel with. And I think that is so important. And for me, in my businesses, I've found that I've usually been in partnership with 1 or 2 or 3 brilliant coaches and team members. And we have had teams of associate coaches. And so all of these things have meant that there are, there are rhythms in place where I have felt that sense of connection. And also I've really leaned into those connections of almost those thought, thought leadership communities of coaches as well. So that has been a part of how I've done that. Another part of connection, I think, or the emotional support that a community can provide is this idea of a shared experience of the things that are going, the things that feel hard. And I think that is so important because while I, and I will go into this, it's really important that we celebrate the wins and we do that out loud and we signal to ourselves what is it that we want more of? What do we want to pursue more of? But there are also, there is an inevitable experience of the harder parts of business as well. The disappointments, the struggles, the feeling stuck, right? When things don't, don't work out, getting the nos, the feelings of rejection. Just that those moments where, you know, and I say this for all coaches, is that you will in any given week, you might decide that you're going to quit your business and start a full-time job and realize that this is the best decision you've ever made, right? So it is so normal to, to have that, but that experience of the lows of the roller coaster is much easier when we have people who are there with us in that experience and holding space and who can be having their own experience and still able to show up for us and empathize and commiserate, right? So that is so important for us. And honestly, it makes all the difference to those down periods when we can just be in those down periods and be in that state of disappointment and know that there's no judging, there's no being forced to reframe. And don't get me wrong, like, I'm going to— if we're in a coaching session and we're there, I'm going to talk you through ways of, of finding the upside. But as a community, we're here to say, yes, we know, we feel that too. And there is nothing wrong with that experience. That is a normal part of being in business. I guess the flip side of that is that we inspire each other. And I see coaches regularly inspiring each other through the wins that they share, through the hard work that they do and the outcomes that they get. And so I find that just extraordinary to watch coaches share that. And I've had that myself with coaches, seeing things like people getting PhDs, writing books, doing the most extraordinary things, landing big deals, winning tenders. I find those things really inspiring. And sometimes it's not the big stuff. I'm also really inspired by, by my friends and my coach network. When someone says, I'm going to take off a month and know that my business is doing fine and I can be flexible and I can schedule. Like, I find that inspiring. I find it inspiring when, when people say, I've figured out this weekly rhythm that allows me to live this life with my priorities. I find that inspiring. So inspiration through the wins, not just the financial wins, but all of the wins, like the big ones, the little ones. And again, related to that is that we need our communities, especially of coaches, to support us in celebrating and celebrating ourselves, celebrating each other. And part of that is cheerleading. And so this idea that we all need cheerleaders and we all need to be cheerleaders for others, and partly that's for when we're down in the slump, is that, you know, it can be extremely powerful to have someone say I know you might have dropped your belief or your confidence for now, but let me hold that for you and let me remind you why you're brilliant and why this work is— why we're so lucky that you are doing this work. And so the cheerleaders, the people who help us to celebrate those wins and helping others to celebrate their wins is extraordinary. And, you know, in positive psychology, I really anchor this back to that idea of active constructive responding. Which is that we build deeper connections when we can be present with someone in that way where we are not just saying, oh yeah, good on you, or hearing their wins, but when we can lean in and say, holy wow, you did that. That's amazing. How are you going to do it? How are you going to celebrate? What does it look like? What are you most excited about? That is to me this really constructive part of cheerleading. And I think cheerleading, being a cheerleader, being cheered on, amazing. We all need that. And so make sure that, you know, you have that community of people who can do that. I'm also seeing, of course, a lot of connection happens virtually now with our communities, but I also think there's a value to geographic in-person connection with your coach network. And now I'm seeing that pop up in the accelerators that people are forming these little geographic subgroups. Which is amazing, chances to go and have coffee or go celebrate or whatever that looks like. But for you, it could also be joining a local ICF chapter or going to a networking event. Now, not at the, to the expense of networking with your ideal clients, because I will absolutely always say, please prioritize that. But the two aren't mutually exclusive and we just need to be really clear about why we're networking. And sometimes those networking events, it doesn't have to be coaches that you're networking. It could be just saying, I'm going to connect with other business owners in person because it fills me up, right? Because it gives me this sense of nourishment. Then there's more of the practical and business-oriented side to how your communities can really help you. One of those is that I really have experienced this and I see this in the accelerator is that your coach community is an amazing source of advice on specific topics. And this comes back to the fact that your coach network, they haven't always been coaches, right? They have come from an extraordinary wealth of backgrounds, some inside the organizations that are your ideal clients. They may have had some deep expertise on things that you want to know more about. And so this knowledge sharing, this advice giving, is also really powerful. And we have a community and a coaching channel inside our community, our accelerator Slack groups, and we have a lot of this, a lot of asking each other for ideas, for advice, for feedback. And that could include anything from program design to expertise in a particular type of coaching, like for example coaching neurodivergent folks. But there's a lot of that, the depth that you can get from a larger group of coaches in your network is amazing. We can also crowdsource opinions, which is a slightly different thing, which is tell me where you have done your coach training. Did you like it? What assessments are you certified in? Do you value? Did you like it? Have you used it? How much did you pay for it? How do you sell it? All of those sorts of things, or it could be. I'm thinking about this page on my website. Which color palette do you think lands best? And so I see all of those things and it's so valuable because when we are alone, it can feel like we're in a vacuum and we might ask our partner, you know, what do you think about this? And they'll be like, I don't know, I like blue. Whereas you'll get some really thoughtful responses from people who are in a similar boat to you. And so I think that is really powerful. And then we have some opportunity-related benefits, I guess, to building a really rich and deep coach network. And one of those is referrals, which might be, okay, this opportunity has come up. I don't really want to do this, but I know a coach who does, right? And so you may build relationships where people go, oh, this is Ellie's really passionate about coaching in law firms. I'm really much more focused on healthcare. So if I have a lawyer or a law firm pop up, I'm going to refer it to Ellie. If she has something in healthcare, she's going to refer it to me. Or it could be job-related, which is, oh, I hate running training, but I know that Jen, she loves running time management skills or something like that. And so we do a lot of that. The other opportunity that I'm seeing more and more of in coaching community, and particularly in our community in the accelerator, is this idea that we can pop up teams to respond to opportunities. And so it may be that there is an opportunity that you want to go after, but you will really need to have more than one coach or more than one facilitator or more than one consultant on the panel that you pitch. And so you have the ability to build a pool of people quickly that you trust so that you can go after that opportunity. So that is another one. And yeah, that the other thing is you might act instead of saying, I'm going to bring these people into my team, you could also develop a deliberate partnership to go after an opportunity. So that is also pretty amazing. And look, then there's also some more casual fun ones, you know, conference buddies, people to go with you to training, to conferences, to events. We've seen some actually I've organized for my local coaches here in Western Australia. We've shared a photo shoot, right? So we did a photo shoot just before Christmas where a lot of people could get those professional photos that they might not have otherwise done, and for a more reasonable price point. So those are the other sorts of really practical things you can do with your coaching communities. And then just, you build friendship, right? So I think we often talk about work and life as being separate, but actually the richness of these friendships that you build, it's not just about work, it's actually about a real human connection that goes beyond work. And the— I just wanted to end with saying the connection that you invest in, and I mostly time and energy, but whether it maybe that is money if you don't have this, those connections will pay off in the short term, they'll pay off in the medium term, and they will pay off over time. And I don't mean pay off in terms of real opportunities or referrals necessarily, but in terms of the richness of life and business that emerges as a result. And so if you don't have this type of community, that is one of the big focuses that we have inside the Corporate to Coach Accelerator alongside our very practical curriculum and coaching to grow your business with more corporate clients. But we can't underestimate that community is something that helps you to grow your business, right? And to grow a business that doesn't just do well, but that is also joyful. And connected. So do reach out if you want to, and we can have a chat about what that could look like for you. You can do that at elliescarf.com/bookacall. Until then, I will see you next week.