Lesson #6: Most Coaches Are Shady

(rolls up sleeves, takes off earrings; deep breath)

One thing I’ve learned from working in the coaching industry for over 15 years is this: most coaches are shady.

During the first few years at Pregame, I coached a lot of coaches. Beyond that, I’ve been a marketing and business consultant to professional coaches since 2006, before anyone knew what coaching was (my marketing job was much harder then!).?

It was painfully common in my consultations to coaches to discover that their business was resting on a shoddy foundation.?

There was the salesperson charging a premium for coaching services even though their last gig was multi-level marketing.

There was the one who branded their coaching services as the path to entrepreneurial freedom while behind the scenes they couldn’t pay their bills.?

There was the coach who manipulated people into their program by suggesting they’d land major PR, even though that “coach” had never helped anyone land any media coverage and had no background in PR.

There was the “business coach” whose “methodology” on how you should build your business came from an “intuitive download.”

And my least favorite, the coach who acts like your best friend and loooovvvves you until you don't buy their services... then you never hear from them again.

I’ve been scared to call out these coaches because, well, conflict is scary. But I'm willing to step up because I absolutely hate the idea of you throwing down $10,000 to work with someone who tells you they’re a pro but has no track record of results.

As we’ve seen in the rap game, fake MCs are never gonna stop. So the only solution is for you to become a savvier shopper.?

Never sign up with a coach or coaching program without comparison shopping, doing research on results, and doing what you can to make sure you will get a satisfying return on your investment.?

I’m a damn good coach, but I’m not the best coach for everybody. That’s also why I’ll freely refer people to other coaches on the Pregame team, or even refer companies to other programs when Pregame is not the best fit. I believe any coach with integrity should do the same.?

The problem with the coaching industry is that no licensing or education is required. Unlike therapists, attorneys, or other experts that charge a premium, anyone can call themselves a coach.

Thanks to people trying to sell you stuff (like coaches trying to sell coaching programs to other coaches that they can be a coach), there’s this idea that lived experience makes someone an expert.?

They might have a valuable perspective, but they have absolutely no business positioning themselves as an expert on a topic next to people who have spent years doing legitimate work, study, and objective exploration building expertise in their area.?

Then there’s the person who did something once at their job and proceeds to become a coach about it. Yo, just because a “coach” achieved a result with the support of an entire team and multimillion dollar budget while they were a full time employee at a global corporation doesn’t mean they can create those results in one hour every other week telling you what to do for your small business.?

Don’t even get me started on life coaches. (Ok I can’t resist: practicing unlicensed therapy is dangerous and unethical. Strict boundaries are essential, but rarely present.)

The moment I got my first marketing job, which was at a coaching firm, I got down to studying. I inhaled every book and resource and practiced applying them in the real world, all to legitimize my game.?

When I started my first business, a marketing firm, I doubled down on legitimization. A central part of my job as a consultant was to keep learning, trying, applying: books, conferences, workshops, collaborations.

This humility serves my clients, but it doesn’t always serve me. For years I undercharged for my services, and I didn’t always speak up when people went to work with an iffy coach.

That ends now.

Now I’m in the zone with 10,000+ hours of coaching and consulting people on creating their game plan. But I’m not done learning.?

Today, my best teachers are our clients: executives with amazing business acumen, visionary thinking, nuanced management styles, and a deep, sincere desire to make a real impact. I am so honored to work with each of them, and I am so grateful for the depth and width of experience that has built my own expertise.?

Strategy & Style,

Ciara Pressler