Trained at the Coaches Training Institute in San Rafael, California, and member of the International Coach Federation, Noel works with Leaders at all levels in both private corporations and public institutions. Personal & Professional Coaching is Cost Effective Personal coaching with Noel McNaughton is more cost-effective
than most other training techniques, because it is customized,
focused on achieving clear goals, gives ongoing support and feedback,
and is 100% experiential. Coaching is Rewarding Coaching with Noel McNaughton leaves you feeling invigorated, optimistic and fulfilled. You will have a greater understanding of issues you have been struggling with, clearer goals, and be taking more focused action in reaching them, in both your business and personal life. In short, you empower yourself.
Aren’t sure whether coaching is for you? Try a FREE ½ hour telecoaching session with Noel. There is no obligation, and no high-pressure sales pitch. For more information and to book your free session, simply call Noel at 604-736-1552. Or email: Coach@midlife-men.com
Here Is A Simple Exercise To See How Balanced Your Life Is Right Now: Directions: Draw the "wheel of Life" diagram shown below on a sheet of paper. The eight sections represent Balance. Seeing the centre of the wheel as 0 and the outer edge as 10, rank your level of satisfaction with each life area by placing a dot in each segment. Next, connect the dots to get a picture of the balance in your life.
by Noel McNaughton When it is working well, a business run by a couple can be extremely rewarding. When it is not, it can be frustrating, and place a strain on the business and marriage. As a coach, I work with couples to help them manage problems inherent in couple (and family) businesses. The business couples I coach are often looking for someone to act as a sounding board... someone they can talk over their ideas with, who will not judge them, but will ask probing questions to help them explore their ideas more fully. We usually begin with goal setting, a much ballyhooed, yet little-practised discipline. But just as all the experts say, having goals can make a big difference in focussing the energy spent in running the business. Just as importantly, goals help the couple running the business clarify the quality of life they are seeking for themselves and their family, so the business doesn’t take over their lives. I begin by helping couples with the quality of life goal. Most people, whether they work for themselves or somebody else, spend very little time talking and writing about exactly what they are looking for. Couples must clarify the kind of relationships they want in their family, the goals and dreams they have for their individual personal lives as well as their lives together, how much material wealth is “enough”, and how much of their lives they are willing to devote to their business. Next is helping the couple clarify what, specifically, they want their business to be like over the near, mid, and long term. If the business is to succeed, a plan is essential. Perhaps most critical is a financial plan, yet I find many of the couples I work with have not found time to do one. Or if they have an annual plan put together, they have not managed to keep the monthly books current, so they know whether they are “on plan”. When I worked with Alberta ranch couple Alfred and Mary a few years ago, they did their first financial plan. To their shock, they discovered they were only a few months away from bankruptcy. I recommended a consultant to work with them intensively for a couple of days to plan their way out of the mess they were in. They took steps to reduce their debt to a manageable level, began to plan, and follow their plan religiously, and within two years had completely paid off their debt, and were ready to build their business to the size they wanted. In any business, and particularly couple or family businesses, clear roles and appropriate divisions of power are essential. Without these, couples end up with power struggles, resentment, overlapping of authority, and generally poor business performance. A coach can help sort things out. Tim and Jan are both well-educated Ontario business people. Jan has worked until recently as a network television producer, but quit to work full-time in the family business. Her challenge was finding some part of the operation that felt like hers. She knew her husband was far more knowledgeable about the business, but she did not want to end up just being his helper. Through coaching, she identified the part of the business she loved the most. She and Tim agreed she would be primarily responsible for that part of the operation, and they developed a plan to increase that part of the business. Tim had a different challenge. He'd been invited to give presentations on his operation at several conferences. He was excited, but anxious, as he had not done any public speaking in the past. With coaching, he improved his speaking skills, and became confident enough to increase the fee he asked for speaking. Many family businesses are passed down from one generation to another, and they come with their own special problems. The parents, particularly the father, although agreeing to the transfer of the business, can be reluctant to let go of official ownership, which can be very frustrating for the adult children trying to take over. Gail and Brian are buying the family business from his parents, and when I began coaching them, they were frustrated that the details of the purchase and title transfer seemed to be stalled. Brian was reluctant to appear “pushy” to his father in order to get the purchase agreement finalised, but it was creating strain between him and Gail. With coaching, Brian developed a strategy for approaching his father in an effective but non-threatening way, and the deal moved forward. Eventually, the deal probably would have been concluded whether Gail and Brian had coaching or not. But with a coach as a sounding board, they were able to explore their concerns and talk out an effective strategy. At its heart, coaching couples is like coaching anyone. It is listening, and asking questions to help people discover the answers for themselves. Gail, mentioned above, put it this way in a note to me: “Brian and I agree that coaching was worth every bit of sweat that formed on our brows when you wouldn't stop asking probing questions. WE knew that YOU knew that WE knew the answers and you made us use our own problem solving tools instead of borrowing yours.”
For the Executive HR Managers
|
