One of the many services we offer at HLS is coaching and consulting for online business owners and entrepreneurs. But not everyone is cut out for this kind of direct coaching. On each of our weekly MUA webinars, I offer a short “2 Cent Disclaimer” about my coaching style because I’m very straight forward.

You may not like a direct approach to business coaching, perhaps you want to be coddled. No judgments here, if it works for you go for it, but we probably won’t be a good fit. Let’s call this the FULL VERSION of my 2 Cent Disclaimer. If you’re not sure what type of coaching best suits you, then keep reading.

I am a passionate online business coach so let me preface this by saying that when I’m coaching or teaching I NEVER set out to hurt anyone’s feelings with my advice. That is NEVER my intention. I always try to say things in the way that they will be best received, but I don’t sugar coat anything. I know this may be a hard pill to swallow but… in the grand scheme of things, your success is much more important to me than your feelings.

Deep breath…

If my advice and coaching style makes you feel uncomfortable that means it’s working. It’s doing EXACTLY what I intend it to do. It’s making you look OUTSIDE YOUR COMFORT ZONE. It’s making you look at some things about yourself that perhaps you’ve been ignoring or dismissing altogether. When this happens you have a choice to make.

A) You can EMBRACE the discomfort with an open mind and see my advice for the growth opportunity that it is…

OR

B) You can get emotional about it, take it personally and close yourself off to my suggestions.

Either of these responses is fine with me.

If you chose to embrace my advice then you should write things down. Take a deeper look into how you got here and why you’re facing the problem in the first place. Consider how you can adopt a new pattern of thinking that will lead you to success. Ask more questions, be in the moment and embrace change. Take my advice in the spirit it was meant and take action based on the experience and knowledge I share with you. Success is a decision and that decision is yours.

You have every right to choose option B. You are absolutely within your own right to disagree with or even completely disregard anything I say. I am not the messiah and I don’t always get it 100% right. As a matter of fact, you don’t even have to be subjected to any of it. You are fully capable (and actually encouraged) to TURN ME OFF. Sign out of the webinar, unsubscribe from our lists, block me completely for all I care. I mean that sincerely and with a smile.

Though I may feel disappointed for a short while, rest assured that you are definitely NOT hurting my feelings and that my achievements, my success, and my income won’t be affected one bit by your decision. But yours might.

Here’s what you DON’T have the right to do… CHANGE ME. You can’t direct the way I teach, demand that I answer you in a certain way or a certain tone. You can’t dictate how I answer your questions or how I address the issues you bring up. You do not have the power to change me or even direct me, YOU ONLY HAVE THE POWER TO CHANGE YOURSELF. You control YOUR behaviors, not mine.

If my answers to your questions or my solutions to your challenges disturb you, then you can just shut me off or shut off your emotions about it. It’s YOUR choice to make. I would never ask you to change who you are or adjust your behavior just so I can feel better about myself or feel more comfortable around you. All the changes I may suggest are so that you can be more successful in business, and in turn feel better about yourself, not me.

To be clear, I’m not on the webinar to be your friend, I’m on the webinar to be your coach. If we end up being friends as a result of the process that’s great BUT please know and understand that I did not start an online business and become a business coach because I needed more friends.

I will not change the advice I give, the way I talk or the person I am in order to make you feel more comfortable around me. I’m not a cheerleader, I’m not a psychiatrist, I’m not a marriage counselor.  I am a passionate online business coach and you can be my student if you choose to be.

I am often blunt, direct to the point, and even crude at times. I speak to you on webinars and coaching sessions EXACTLY the way I would speak to you in the lobby of a hotel if we ran into each other at an event I’m speaking at. I always try to be mindful of the audience’s age range, maturity, and experience level but that’s not an easy task. I do try to make my talks age appropriate based on my own moral conditioning and I always try to be myself around people. This doesn’t guarantee that we’ll be a good fit for each other.

My coaching is NOT for children. The subject matter I teach on often deals with complex adult financial and business issues. We also talk about important life decisions as they pertain to our businesses. I occasionally say the words shit, fuck, and phrases that are inappropriate for little kids or that might even make YOU uncomfortable. That’s just me. If you feel offended… that’s just you. Remember, it’s the internet and if you can’t deal with a diverse set of personalities and opinions you’re better off just throwing your computer out the window. The internet has no chill button.

I sometimes go into a dissertation on a subject just because you or someone in the room brought up a question. I do this because I see it as a teaching moment for everyone that’s listening. If you don’t like any of that… well, as I said earlier you can TURN ME OFF, sign out of the webinar, unsubscribe from our lists, block me completely, do whatever you need to do to feel “safe” again.

Melinda & I have done well for ourselves. We’re not perfect and we still have lots to learn about business and life. I’m certain that there are even lots of things that we can learn from YOU. But when it comes to Internet Marketing and running an online business it’s important to remember that you are my subscriber, I am not yours. You are my student, I am not yours. You are on my list and I am not on yours.

Just like you can choose to ignore any business advice I give you as your coach I will most likely ignore any business advice you try to give me as my student because that’s simply not the dynamic of our relationship and you can’t just make it that. If you are unhappy with me as a coach, fire me. If I’m unhappy with you as a student I’ll fire you. It’s easier for each of us to go find someone that’s a better fit than it is to stay in a bad relationship and try to change one another. After all, we’re not married and we’ll both be better off.

Now if you’ve read this entire thing and you’re not feeling offended then we may actually be a good match.

If you’re tired of failing and you’ve finally realized that your way isn’t working…

If you are open to being called out on exactly what you’re doing wrong…
If you’re okay with getting a proverbial “boot in the ass” once in a while…
If you have DECIDED to succeed at online business…
If you’re ready to stop trying to reinventing the wheel…
If you’re ready to face your fears and hold yourself accountable…

If you’re ready to put your emotions in check and put success before your feelings…
If you can understand that online success is 90% mental and 10% physical…
If you have an impeccable work ethic and you are willing to make sacrifices…
If you understand that success requires a substantial investment of TIME and MONEY…

There may just be some hope for you. Go grab a pen and a pad, because YOU’RE GONNA LEARN TODAY!