Getting personal coaching can be a very expensive investment of your time, so you’ll want to get as much as you can from each session. While most personal coaches should provide you a list of things to prepare for a one-on-one session, you’ll get the most value if you have the following information ready.
1. Your own goals for the session
What do you want to walk away with when the session is done? At the least, this should be an action plan. But you might also be looking for specific feedback on something you have done or created. This could include a sales page, an article you wrote, or even a new tactic you’ve tried that didn’t succeed.
2. Areas you’d like to focus on
Which parts of your business, behavior or life do you want to focus on in this particular session? Is it a specific area of your business, such as your customer conversions? Or maybe it’s a difficult situation you’re trying to dealing with, such as with a vendor or another person?
3. Progress you have been making
What have you achieved since the last time you talked? What progress have you made on your action plan? What are you proud of? Which parts of your plan did you not manage to get to?
4. Problems you have been struggling with
What kinds of problems or obstacles have been preventing you from moving forward? Have there been specific things that kept you from achieving more? Do you need help with identifying a solution?
5. Things you have learned about yourself or your business
What have you learned that might affect the way you move forward? Is there anything that would affect your goals or the tactics you are using? Are there things that you now know are particularly effective? Or maybe there are tactics that you now know will not work for you?
6. Your own ideas for what to do next
Based on everything you have learned since your last session, what do YOU think you should do next? While you are going to discuss this as part of your coaching, it’s good to be able to bounce a few ideas off the coach. Just don’t expect the other person to agree with you.
7. Specific questions you have for the coach
What questions do you have that you need answered either right now or soon? It’s best if you keep an ongoing list of questions in between sessions. While you should always ask for help as you go along, not everything needs to be answered immediately. Keep a list of questions that can wait for this next coaching session.
Just thinking through each of these 7 items may give you some insight in how you need to move ahead. And, being prepared in advance for your coaching sessions will help you stay focused on the most important issues you need help on.