Have you considered hiring a personal coach? Jack Canfield, in The Success Principles says hiring a "personal coach is one of the best-kept secrets of the successful."

1. A coach can help you clarify your vision and goals. If you have a sense that what you are doing isnt the thing you really want for your life but you dont have a clear vision of what you do want, then a coach can help you get clear.

2. A coach can support you through your difficult times. Sometimes, we just need someone to talk to who isnt too busy, too distracted or too involved to just objectively support us when times are tough. If you feel you just need someone to talk to who understands and doesnt judge you, then a coach can help.

3. A coach can help you develop momentum. How many times have you started something, felt good about it but then lost interest, never to return to it again? A coach can help you sustain that momentum and keep you focused on the prize. This is similar to hiring a personal trainer to help you sustain the momentum of exercising when you feel like doing something else.

4. A coach can help you stay on track and be focused. Have you ever let the little, unimportant things take control of your day and by the time the day ends, you realize you havent accomplished anything you were hoping to accomplish? A coach can help you stay focused on the important things while learning to delegate or dump the unimportant things.

5. A coach can help you take an objective look at exactly what you have been doing. A good coach will ask you to take a close, and sometimes painful, look at what you say you want as compared to the things you are actually doing. Do you see a match? If you continue to do things the way you are, will you get to the place you are hoping to get to? Coaches ask the hard questions.

6. A coach may help you identify both effective and destructive behavior patterns that you may not see. Since the coach isnt standing in the forest, he can typically see the trees that you dont. How often do we continue the same destructive patterns over and over again just because we cant identify them? A coach will help you see this more clearly.

7. A coach will hold you accountable for the goals you set. A coach is not a babysitter. When you decide you want to get going and accomplish some things in your life, a coach will not accept your excuses for why it wasnt done. Making a public declaration of your intent will also provide you with the needed incentive to keep your commitments.

8. A coach can show you how to accomplish more by working less. Coaches are adept at teaching time-tested systems for being more productive. Did you know that research shows that the average 8-hour-a-day worker is only productive for 1-2 hours a day? A coach can help you be more productive in less time.

9. A coach can help you discover your true passion. Do you ever wonder about your unique abilities and what your life purpose is? If these are not questions that you even think about, then you really DO need a coach! We all have unique abilities and a purpose but some of us never discover them and the rest of us who do are too afraid to just go for it! A coach can help you uncover your passion---the thing that will make you excited to get out of bed in the morning.

10. A coach can help you identify your core values and show you how to live in synergy with them. The values by which we live our lives are very important to each of us. Many times, certain values we hold may be in conflict with each other. Sometimes, we are not even consciously aware of the values of importance to us. A coach can help us to live our lives in accordance with our values. This will provide the kind of life of which you can be proud.

This is not a plea for you to hire me, necessarily, although I would be willing to discuss that possibility. What I am suggesting is that you will be able to do more than you could ever have imagined with a coach than without one.

I know. After I left my 9 to 5 job to begin my coaching career, I floundered around for six months. I knew I wanted to hire a coach, but I thought I couldn't really afford one and I didn't want to hire just anybody. I thought there needed to be a good match between us.

I now am employing two coaches---one to help me build my business and the other to help me write my book. Since hiring them, I am on a path creating more momentum as I go. In hindsight, I realize I couldn't afford not to hire a coach.

Regarding the right match, I do believe that this is important which is why I'm saying this is not an appeal for you to hire me. If you are serious about taking your life to the next level, then find the coach who is right for you. But don't delay. Once this day is gone, you cannot get it back.

If you'd like further information about coaching, visit www.CoachingforExcellence.biz and check our calendar for upcoming teleclasses, chats and workshops or call me at (708) 957-6047.