No one laughed.

Recently, I went to an OpenMic event where comedians get the chance to test their programs. One of the performances was heartbreaking. No one laughed. Not a single time.

Which was a good thing. Because it provided the comedian with an opportunity to grow. Had we laughed, he would have assumed that the jokes do work.

But that night, the jokes didn’t work. Now he knows. And can work from there.

In general, comedians are in the fortunate position to get immediate feedback on any of their actions on stage.

Great comedians seek these situations out.

In business (or even in private life), it often feels easier to hide from similar situations. After all, it feels so much better to get reassurance than rejection.

But if growth is your goal, then the comedian’s way of getting honest feedback might be a better approach.

Brilliance booster

When you hire a coach, it’s most likely because you want to improve your situation in some way. But there’s a huge gap between how bad coaches and good coaches try to achieve that.

Bad coaches try to make you feel less miserable.
Great coaches try to make you feel more brilliant.

Which means that both sit on opposite sides of a spectrum … it’s not that bad coaches are like great ones, just not as good. They are different.

Great coaches work from the assumption that you are brilliant and that you have both, the skill and the will, to achieve even more brilliant things.

Bad coaches work from the assumption that you are miserable and don’t really know what you’re doing. Thank goodness you called them so they can save you from that misery. This kind of coach often has way more answers than questions and they tell you what to do and what not to do. Because they know while you don’t. It’s an off-balance relationship where the coach thinks they are more brilliant than you.

Great coaches have a different approach. They establish a balanced relationship in which they are brilliant at what they do while you are brilliant at what you do. They usually have more questions than answers and help you find a way that allows you to grow from where you’re at. They don’t tell you what to do. They’ll figure it out with you. They use their brilliance to boost your brilliance.

(PS: If you want to learn more about how I approach coaching, just schedule a free discovery call.)

Being you

Sometimes, we’re so busy becoming someone that we forget to be someone.

How about you take this day as an opportunity for just being you.

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Picture of Dr. Michael Gerharz

Dr. Michael Gerharz