The benefits of coaching for entrepreneurs

Surviving as an entrepreneur is not only about the skills and knowledge you have about your business; it is mostly about your mindset and how you adapt to the ever-changing business environment, how you deal with setbacks, how you keep inspired and inspire others.

Founders who succeed over time are the ones who learn the fastest - not just about product-customer fit but also about themselves and other people. They create agile, learning cultures by leading in sync with their own values.

Therefore, coaching can help entrepreneurs, business leaders and manager’s succeed in key areas:

Closing the knowledge gap

Coaching can have a positive impact in all growth stages of the business. However, usually in the initial stages, entrepreneurs might not know they need the support. They also don't have the financial resources to pay for it as their focus its on other areas of the business. The so-called knowledge gap has been identified to exist in four different areas: know-why, know-what, know-how and know-who.

Organisational Culture & Identify the Right Team members

During the growth stages when you need to expand your team. Your values are the cornerstone of your business culture. You need to put in place a people framework for scale. Strengthen & embedding your company values. Implementing a value-based hiring & induction in your company will help support with talent hire and retention.

Mental Health

Stress from a heavy workload, lack of social support and job insecurity can create havoc. Below are some of the most common issues entrepreneurs are struggling with…

• Delegating effectively – Finding ways to do it more quickly, efficiently and understanding that it is a process worth investing your time in as it can initially feel like it would be easier to do it yourself. You need to think about the bigger picture, the long-term results of investing the time to train and delegate tasks to others.
• Time management – It is not about working hard but working smart. Knowing when you are at your best, being aware and using your strengths, network, contacts, delegating and establishing boundaries with others.
• Self-management - The biggest challenge we have as people, and especially entrepreneurs, is the internal battle with ourselves with our own insecurities and personal barriers. If these are not identified and addressed, they will manifest in different areas impacting the business and the people in it.

Coaching will help you keep focused on what’s important. Learning to maximise and strategically develop your network and your team in ways that are right for your business. 'Slow-down to speed-up' for planning and defining priorities that will set your business up for the best possible future success.

Coaching can assist you to bridge the gap between where are you now, to where you would like to be far more effectively and confidently than if worked alone.

To conclude, this talk by Atul Gawande encapsulate how coaching can help professionals in any areas. Even if you are already good at what you do, if you want to become great hire a coach.

Tamara Medina Sapovalova has 10+ years international experience in providing Scaleup founders with a result driven leadership skill set to build high performance teams, creating a sustainable and healthy business culture.  Working alongside fast growing start up companies based in the UK and Latin America

She is the founder of Sapovalova Coaching, cofounder of Latam Tech UK, member of Tech London Advocates and Co-leader for TLA LatAm, former Huffington Post Spanish blogger and author of ‘10 days, 10 actions, 10 times more productive’ published in English and Spanish. She has written for various magazines and international publications. She has also been a judge in several technology competitions and she is the official Coach for Latam Edge and Brazil Tech Awards.