Do you need a coach?       Here is a list of questions to help you decide:   Do you know what it is you don't know? Is there a gap between where you are and where you'd like to be? Do you have clear professional goals? Are you willing to focus on the present? Are you interested in developing yourself? Are you about to make a critical decision pertaining to your life or career? Are you ambitious? Are you getting the message from those around you that you need to make some changes? Are you willing to work extremely hard? Do you have time and resources to invest in your future?  If the answer to most of these questions is "yes," then it's probably time to start seeking the services of a professional coach. Gone are the days when the word "coach" simply conjured up images of Little League and high school gyms. In the last 10 years, the business world has seen the emergence of a new breed of coaches whose mission is to help executives rise to their potentials, both personally and professionally. Coaching, as distinct from therapy, which deals largely with unresolved past issues, helps people make changes in their present lives in order to pave the way for brighter futures. How do you know when you're ready to hire a coach? Following is a list of questions designed to help you determine whether or not your life and/or career would benefit from the jump-start that only a coach can provide: Do you know what it is you don't know? In his book The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, John C. Maxwell says there are four phases of leadership growth:   "I don't know what I don't know." "I know what I don't know." "I grow and know and it starts to show." "I simply go because of what I know."  People who are stuck in phase one, Maxwell argues, don't grow because they don't even realize they have much to learn. However, if you've reached a point in your career where you at least have a sense of what you don't know, a coach can provide a lot of guidance in attaining the necessary skills and knowledge. Is there a gap between where you are and where you'd like to be? If you can picture the situation you'd like to be in, but have only the vaguest idea how to get there, a coach can help you formulate an action plan and motivate you to stick with it. Do you have clear professional goals? If you're unhappy in your profession and don't have the slightest clue what to do next, a career counselor might be more effective than a coach. If you find yourself in this predicament, though, don't beat yourself up over it. "If you don't know what you want to do, my answer is it's not time to know yet," says Laura Berman Fortgang, author of Take Yourself to the Top: The Secrets of America's #1 Career Coach (Warner Books, 1998). "Live with the uncomfortable feelings for awhile." Are you willing to focus on the present, or do you still have lingering issues to clear up from the past? Those struggling through past trauma and loss are better served seeking a therapist's services to clear up those issues before hiring a coach. That way, by the time you sit down with a coach, you'll be ready to leave the past behind and work toward the future. Are you interested in developing yourself? Often, a company will insist that an executive hire the services of a coach. "But there's no point coaching someone who doesn't see reasons for it, or the benefits of it," says Michael Banks, principal and director of KRW International, a top provider of executive development coaching services to Fortune 500 companies around the world. The coach's role, in part, is to help people see how their thinking and behavior patterns create obstacles. If you don't see any room for improvement in these areas, getting a coach is probably not worth either your time or your money. Conversely, if you're a self-blamer, willing to accept fault for everything, then it is also difficult for coaching to succeed.  Are you about to make a critical decision pertaining to your life or your career? When you're standing at a crossroads, unsure which way to turn, a coach can help you prioritize, and unearth your motivations and desires. "I wouldn't dare make a critical decision without calling a coach," says Jim Jose, an organizational effectiveness strategist and leadership coach based in Tucson, Arizona. "None of us works well in isolation, or achieves what we're capable of achieving, personally or professionally, without help from others." Are you ambitious? These days, there's no stigma attached to hiring the services of a coach. In fact, if anything, it signals to those around you that you're a "player." According to Banks, at certain blue-chip companies, being asked by the organization to work with a coach is "an absolute sign that the company is targeting for them to go to the top." Many of the people he works with -- all in upper management, rarely below the VP level -- are already extremely successful. "People who do best with coaching are those with a genuine desire to be as good as they can be, and are not too proud to admit that they could do even better." Are you getting the message from those around you that you need to make changes, but aren't sure how to implement them? It can be discouraging to hear a lot of negative feedback at the office. A coach can help you put it into some perspective so that you begin to grow from your mistakes. "If we're constantly beaten down with negative stuff, we don't take the time to look at the positive side, which is, 'what can I learn from this?'" says Jose. "A coach will help you look at the situation in a more balanced way." Are you willing to work extremely hard? Don't expect a coach to sit there and do all the work. On the contrary, good coaches hold their clients' feet to the fire. "My job is to constantly challenge my clients," says Zachary Green, senior scholar at the University of Maryland's Burns Academy of Leadership. "People need to develop a sense of integrity by keeping promises they make to themselves." Do you have the time and resources to invest in a coach? Even if you've answered yes to the majority of these questions, the practical realities of your current situation may not allow for a coach. After all, a coach can be pricey -- anywhere from $200 an hour to as much as $6,000 a day -- and if your company isn't willing to pay for it, you may not want to bear the expense yourself. Subscribe to low-cost daily ...or... weekly coaching tips from world-class teachers...or...take a 30-day test drive...or...sign up for free monthly tips below. Give the gift of personal success when you send a gift certificate for daily coaching tips to family, friends, employees, customers and even the boss. Receive our Podcast: http://coachingtip.blogs.com/coaching_tip/rss.xml or get Free Monthly Coaching Tips! by entering your name and email address below: Enter Your Name: Enter Your Email: What interests you about coaching? Call 734.426.2000 (US Eastern Time Zone) or email info@coachthee.com for a free consultation regarding your interest.  Learn more about John Agno, certified executive & business coach. Free Monthly Leadership Tips To develop your leadership ability through one-on-one leadership coaching, please visit: www.CoachThee.com For more information on mentoring and coaching, please visit: www.MentoringandCoaching.com For more on mentoring and coaching tips, please visit: www.MentoringandCoachingTips.com To get to know yourself better, please visit: www.SelfAssessmentCenter.com Click for information on self-directed learning. Click for suggested reading to become a more effective leader. Give the Gift of Personal Success when you send a gift certificate for daily coaching tips to family, friends, employees and even the boss. 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