So, what's your elevator pitch as a coach or a mentor?
In almost any other profession it is relatively easy to explain what you do. With coaching it is very different. Here is a simple exercise that fixes it.
By David Clutterbuck · 4 min read
Coaches, Mentors & business professionals using my Ask David AI clone (a curated AI clone of me & my work) are having conversations with ‘me’ 24/7 and work through ideas, challenges and to develop clarity in your decision making which gives us an interesting insight into recurrent themes. Over the coming months, I will be sharing some of those themes and offering reflections around them, on the basis that what concerns one coach will probably be of interest and impart to others.
Coaching has an identity crisis
Today’s theme concerns how coaches present themselves. I was surprised that a number of the Ask David users were using it to help define and refine their unique selling point and positioning. It reminded me of a recent conversation with a very experienced coach and mentor told me: “In almost any other profession, it’s relatively easy to explain what you do and how you add value. With coaching, it’s very different. We are not like a doctor or a psychotherapist, curing people; we don’t deliver a tangible product. No wonder people struggle to work out why they are paying us!” It’s not an exaggeration to say that many coaches – and perhaps coaching in general – have an identity crisis.
There’s an upside to this, too. Coaches come with a wide range of backgrounds, skills and interests. When a coach differentiates his or her practice from, say, counselling or facilitation, he or she also differentiates themselves from other, competing coaches – or at least, has the opportunity to do so.
A simple but very effective exercise
Here’s a simple but very effective exercise. Sit with a colleague, friend, partner or anyone else, who you trust. Talk to them for a few minutes about what it is that you do and how you add value. Their role is simply to listen and to take occasional notes to capture key words or ideas. It’s quite OK to ramble a bit and to talk longer than you otherwise might.
Review together words and themes that seem particularly relevant or important. Now, with your partner keeping an eye on the time, condense your previous thoughts into 60 seconds. Pause and reflect again, before condensing your thoughts into 15 seconds. Reflect together yet again, then finally capture your thoughts in just 5 seconds. Now you have your elevator pitch!
Repeat it as your identity evolves
It’s useful to repeat this exercise from time to time, as your sense of identity evolves. You may also reflect upon whether your elevator pitch describes what you actually do/ who you are; or what you aspire to do or be. When you know who you are as a coach, it’s much easier to be that coach!
You can also try out Ask David (my AI clone) to create your elevator pitch with our free 7 day trial. Let me know how you get on.
Questions
Why is it so hard for coaches to explain what they do?
Unlike a doctor or a psychotherapist, coaches are not curing people and do not deliver a tangible product, so clients can struggle to work out why they are paying. As one experienced coach put it, in almost any other profession it is relatively easy to explain what you do and how you add value; with coaching it is very different.
How do you create an elevator pitch as a coach?
Sit with someone you trust and talk for a few minutes about what you do and how you add value while they take notes on key words and ideas. Review the themes together, then condense your thoughts into 60 seconds, then 15 seconds, then finally just 5 seconds. That is your elevator pitch.
How often should you revisit your elevator pitch?
It is useful to repeat the exercise from time to time as your sense of identity evolves. It is also worth reflecting on whether your pitch describes what you actually do and who you are, or what you aspire to do or be.
Is having an identity crisis as a coach a bad thing?
There is an upside. Coaches come with a wide range of backgrounds, skills and interests, so differentiating your practice from counselling or facilitation also differentiates you from other competing coaches, or at least gives you the opportunity to do so.