We’re looking at the biggest challenges as a new coach. In previous articles, I wrote about the problem with Trying 
to Fix People and What to say next. Today I am writing about the challenge of Charging a Fee.
This challenge appears in a variety of issues:
- How do you get people to hire you?
- What should I charge?
- When should I begin charging a fee?
- I’ve never sold anything, how do I sell coaching?
I’m smiling as I review these questions — as a new coach, I also asked these questions. In fact, I was convinced that if there was an assessment that could gauge how successful a person would be at getting hired, that I would fail. To my knowledge there is no such assessment, and if you arenot good at selling – I have good news for you!
Here’s the good news:
- No “selling experience” is a positive, not a negative! I’m living proof.
- Stop SELLING! Instead, focus on meeting a need. What’s the need your coaching is addressing? People hire me because I am meeting a need that they have. And if I can’t meet their need, I help them find someone who can.
- It’s an INVESTMENT! When I charge a fee, I am inviting the person to invest in themselves. The fee, along with their time and the action they take, is their investment. In my opinion, if someone is unwilling to invest in themselves, then they are not ready to be coached.
- Start small. Set a fee that you can ask for with a straight face, and without apology. Don’t laugh, but the first fee that I charged for a month of coaching was $25.00. At that time, it took $25.00 to fill my car’s gas tank. I figured I was worth at least a tank of gas. BTW-the next person to hire me paid a higher fee. Over time, I stepped up my fees.
I know that for many of you, coaching is built into your job description. Charging a fee of your ministry group may not be appropriate. I would still press for some kind of investment on the coachee’s part. It’s in their best interest.
Next week’s topic–how to let go of a brilliant question or insight.
