There’s a reason so many Fortune 500 companies hire business success coaches: study after study proves that business coaching works.  In one recent study, executives who utilized a business coaching model increased their productivity by more than 5 times.

Of course, not all coaching initiatives meet with this kind of success, and business coaches are not all equal.  The trick is to find a coach who has the necessary skills, experience and temperament to help you succeed, and to find one who’s not just right for any business, but right for your business.

The truth is that just about anybody can hang a shingle that reads “ business coach ” over his door.  So how do you decide which coach has the requisite expertise to boost your business?  Here are 3 questions you need to ask to find the best business coach for your success.

1.  What experience do you have running a business?

This is an often overlooked question, but probably the most important one you need to ask.  You wouldn’t hire someone to teach you how to win a marathon who’s never been a runner, and you shouldn’t hire a business coach who’s never built and run a million dollar business.

A coach with actual business experience will understand your concerns and know what it means to face actual problems on a daily basis.  Take the time to research a prospective coach’s background.  Go to his website to see how he markets his own business.  And don’t be afraid to run through the specific challenges your business is facing and ask what he would do to address them.

Remember the old adage:  those who can do; those who can’t teach.  The best success coaches are able to do both.

2.  How much success have you had as a coach?

The best coaches have trained to become the best, and they’ll probably have won some awards and received recognition from a number of organizations for business coaching excellence.  Ask about this, and about whether they have any significant publications under their belt.  Finally, ask what businesses they’ve worked with and how they measure success.

3.  How involved will I be in this process?

Coaching is a collaborative process.  The goal of the business coach is not to “fix your business”: it’s to show you how to fix your business, to give you the skills you need to make it work.  The best coaches take the time to know you—in this way, they can assess where change needs to occur.  That means that the best coaches know how to listen as well as talk.

These are the questions you need to ask, but there’s one final step.  Assuming you get the answers you want, that your coach has built a business, had success as a coach and will involve you in the coaching process, ask yourself how you feel about this person on a gut level.  Is this someone you feel comfortable talking to, someone your instincts tell you is trustworthy and has your best interests at heart?  Trust those instincts—they can go a long way to helping you find a coach who’s the right fit for you and your business.

To learn more about business success coaching, contact us today.