1. Be 100% Responsible: Take full responsibility for the coaching. A coach can’t do your work for you. A healthy approach to coaching is to consider yourself 100% responsible for how the relationship goes and what value you get out of each call. This means keeping yourself informed by watching the videos, attending the events, and staying on top of your plan. It also means keeping your coach informed about what’s going on with your vendors and any thoughts of change on the horizon.

  2. Create the “Coaching Experience”: Think carefully about what you want to cover before the call begins. Your coaching calls are brief – 30 to 45 minutes - so make every minute count. Ask yourself the question: “If I could cover just one thing on the call, what would it be?”

  3. Write up the Pre-Meeting Questionnaire so that you give as much of the background information as possible before the call. One of the greatest value-leveraging tools is the Questionnaire. When you fill out the worksheet prior to your call and send it to your coach, s/he will have the necessary information before you ever say a word to each other. In this way you can start the call already running rather than warming up. Be sure to include any potential changes in your life that could have a financial impact such as planning for tuition, a vacation, or a big purchase.

  4. Make Clear Requests: Once you have your list and the priority, write down what requests for coaching you have in one or two short, clear statements. For example, ask yourself, “How do I want my coach to support me in the issue I am working on?”  What is going on in your life that has financial impact that you need to talk through with your coach? For example: father needs full-time care; a daughter starting private school soon; medical expenses, or a nagging fear.

  5. Leverage your Time: Working off the Pre-Meeting Questionnaire, make a list of 3 - 5 things that would be valuable. Have more on your plate than you think you can possibly go over, you just might be surprised! Of course, you don’t want to rush past something important. Some matters take time; you may only cover 1-2 items, just make sure they are important ones. Remember that your Coach has an agenda as well.

  6. First Things First: One way to see to it that your call is well worth it is to prioritize what’s on your list. Coaching calls are not the place to save the best for last. Put the most important item at the top. That way, even if that’s the only item that gets handled, the call will have been worthwhile.

  7. Prepare Your State of Mind:  Take a few extra minutes before the call to mentally prepare yourself, rather than ‘jamming’ the call into an already full day. Book 15 minutes in your calendar to prepare ahead and reflect after the call.

  8. Hit the Ground Running: Keep the “chit-chat” to a minimum. Get down to business with your coach.
  1. Train Your Coach: Give regular feedback to your coach so s/he knows what works or what is most valuable to you so s/he can do more of it. Also, let your coach know what’s not working or has less value so it can be eliminated. Remember your coach has needs and expectations of you as well.

  2. Debrief: Take a moment after the call to make a note about discoveries, insights or themes that were explored during the call. Block a little buffer time after the call if you can so that you are not jumping into something else while your mind is still processing. Be sure to add any homework to your action list.