There’s a lot going on right now, I know. And so I wanted to share this from my heart because these questions help me when I’m deciding where to put my time and my cash, eight questions I see that are vital (and when I skip them and go straight to, because I just wanna, I don’t usually see the wins!)

1. Is it a skill you’re missing?

The thing is with being an entrepreneur is that no one really told us how to do it (and even if they did, it might not have worked out the same way for us) This is both a blessing and a curse and that’s OK. We figure it out as we go along. I have been caught in the mindset of all the extremes so I know this one well from “I must learn everything there is to know about this before I dare set foot in the arena” to “That sounds fancy must try it” and also “how on earth am I going to put it all into practice?”

Are you getting the results you want right now or do you see a gap in your knowledge?​​

2. Do you need it or do you want it?

I was in two minds as to whether to put this last actually because at the end of the day if you really want that shiny object, you’re going to move hell and high water to get it (see also: I really want a desktop Mac but can’t really see the benefit to the business apart from I really want it) ultimately this is the most emotionally led question on the list and it will be up to you as to whether you actually need it or you just want it so you don’t get FOMO.

Do you really want it? Why?​​

3. What are the results you want?

What are the results you want? Of course the ultimate answer is you want more sales and you hope this course or coach will give you that. But having done a LOT of courses and hired a LOT of coaches in my time (and I continue to, because I am of the philosophy to always keep learning), I have some experience to share. For example, I bought a money + manifesting course this year and it was brilliant. It cost just over £200, the content was brilliant and it has served me well. Did I know some of it already? Yes. Had I done much about it? Not as much as I do now! I also bought a PR course back in April that I’m paying £250 a month for a year for and I hate it. I realised recently that I bought it because I wanted it to give me answers that actually it never promised me. I got caught up in FOMO and didn’t look at it rationally so naturally that course has not served me results.

So what are the results you want and does this coach or course promise these?

4. Do you like the reviews?

Of course the initial question here is do they have reviews? It may be a new offering in which case they should still have reviews from a similar service or product even if they’re very new. Examine the reviews – who is saying good things about this coach or course? Are they people you trust? Are they similar businesses to yours? What specifically about these reviews impresses you? Is it because you want to be taken care of by a coach in the same way? Is it because you want to be this excited too?

Make sure you read the reviews and check that you want those results in your life too.

5. Are you willing to change your ways?

This is a big one. Before you spend a penny with any coach or course you have to ask yourself – are you willing to get unstuck from your current ways? Because guess what? Many people aren’t. They want to be told they’re doing the right things just need to do more of them, and then they like to complain that they bought a coach or course that told them what they already knew. They don’t want to change. You have to be willing to change your ways, to evolve. The old cliché is true – if you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always got.

Make sure you’re open minded enough to learn new things or to learn old things in new ways.

6. Are you willing to do the work?

This is another big one. There is zero point in downloading that coach’s latest bundle whether it’s £30 or £300 or £3000 and just adding it to the pile of papers on your desk or adding to the folder on your Dropbox called Must Do. I have done this and it sucks. It goes firmly on the This is Why I’m a Bad Entrepreneur column (yeah it doesn’t, it just means we are human beans). But this is why the other questions on this list are key too because if you don’t know the answers to those, then you are going to be less willing to do the work because you don’t trust that it will work for you. It’s like a delayed gratification (see also: procrastinating about marketing our businesses in any way)

Make sure you are willing to do the work, schedule it, block out the time to do it.

7. Ask the course creator or coach questions

Every time I launch something whether it’s new or more familiar to my audience I get asked a lot of questions and I expect it. If there are questions that are new I try and figure out what they’re really asking which is usually one of the questions listed above. And naturally if I haven’t warmed up the audience enough (see also: foreplay is important peeps) then they’re not willing to go all the way with me and add me to their cart. But also? Suspicions are curiosity and fear and they are closely related. We think they aren’t because we have been taught that one is positive and the other is negative but this just harks back to the prehistoric days of fighting to survive.

How did the course creator respond to your questions? Are you satisfied?​​

8. Are you choosing comfort or risk?

Ultimately it comes down to this, how much of a risk are we wiling to take? Right now the market feels a bit stale because buyer confidence has taken a hit. But if we are all nervous about spending then we will be stuck in a mindset of everyone else is nervous about spending, which isn’t true. You have to look at what you’re selling, what the market wants and whether it’s the same thing. That’s how you’re going to make sales and bookings. THEN and only then can you look at these questions that will support you in whether or not you need that coach or course in your life.

Have you made a decision?
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Remember, no one is forcing you to buy anything. It’s up to you. You can say no, unfollow, unsubscribe and move on with your life. But that can feel scary and so we like to blame those who are confident enough to sell. That isn’t their fault. You can just say no 🙂

I hope my 8 questions to ask yourself before you book that coach or course helps, come and tell me on Instagram, I’d love to hear from you,

Maddy

P.S. If you liked this you may like reading my tips on building a strong foundation too.

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