See your vision clearly—and achieve it confidently

In general, a business coach will help an executive focus on where their business is now, where they want it to be, and how to bridge that gap. It’s less about giving advice, and more about asking questions that empower the CEO to come to his or her own understanding.

A business consultant or strategist, on the other hand, is about delivering practical, tactical solutions. They share knowledge, give advice, and create plans.

Where business coaches assist and guide, consultants may do some of the heavy lifting on behalf of their clients.

Coaching and mentoring can also sometimes be confused. Both roles bring years of experience to the table. The biggest difference is that a mentor focuses on advising, while a coach will assist the owner in goal planning and keep them accountable so that they achieve success.

A business coach helps business owners clarify the vision of their business and how it fits in with their personal goals. This allows the owner to understand the impact that reaching those goals will have on their life. If a business objective is not linked to the owner’s plans and aspirations, they are unlikely to passionately pursue it or, therefore, ever achieve it.

After clarifying the business owner’s vision, a business coach will assist in prioritizing the various goals. They can help owners see which items are just tasks and which are long-term objectives. From there, they may work together to determine which strategies will create the desired results.

Busy executives are so close to their businesses that they may fail to see the forest for the trees. As an outside observer, a business coach can more objectively see a company’s internal and external issues. They can help an owner better understand what may need to change, and can guide owners in craft an actionable plan to create desired results.

The coach will also lead the client in creating key performance indicators (KPIs), or metrics by which you can measure success. KPIs allow a coach to track their client’s progress, which is something a business owner might avoid if they are on their own.

Accountability is a critical component of business coaching. A business coach typically meets with a client regularly, either weekly or monthly, to check in on commitments made during previous coaching sessions.

Again, a coach isn’t a consultant who will do the work for you. Instead, they will keep you focused on the end result and remind you why it’s important. They’ll motivate you to keep your commitments, act as a sounding board, and hold up a mirror to help you see your personal and professional blind spots.

A business coach will most likely focus on helping a business owner develop their soft skills, such as communication, flexibility, leadership, problem solving, and time management.

Hard skills, on the other hand, are quantifiable technical competencies. These include things like language or technology proficiency. These are the types of skills you usually learn in school, in a certification program, or on the job.

This distinction between hard and soft skills is important as it relates to coaching. Excelling at soft skills is what sets leaders apart from doers. A business owner may be weak at soft skills, however, if they started as an employee and never learned how to manage and lead.

Working with a coach to improve your soft skills will help you step fully into the CEO role. Rather than working in your business, like an employee, you’ll learn to work on it, like the visionary CEO.