Business Coaching and Consulting FAQ

You rock! The fact you’re visiting this page demonstrates character.

Commitment.

Boldness.

Intelligence.

Intuition.

Drive.

Ambition.

Inquisitiveness.

And…

I could go on. But you know what time it is—or you wouldn’t be here. And my job here is to explain our style of business coaching and consulting, answer common questions and help you decide if transformational coaching or consulting is right for you.

Let’s get right to it!

I’ve been coaching and business / technical consulting over 30 years. In that time, I’ve helped transform some of the smallest micro-businesses (e.g. a single person), to some of the largest governments and multi-national firms (e.g. United States Government, Disney, Microsoft, Cisco to name a few…) And all points in between.

I manage client projects with budgets well into the 8 figures. One our consulting businesses grosses into the mid six-figures.

You may be thinking: Corbin, that’s all nice, but how do I take my business into the 6-figures and beyond like yours.

Fair enough. Let’s fast-forward to today:

My experience, goal, and role in all of this is to help you reach crazy-high levels of success.

Not just a little bit of success—or a “taste” of success–but a LOT. Of course, “success” means different things to different people, so let’s dive deeper. Here are some of the most frequent questions new clients have for us:

Is Business Coaching Right For Me?

Are you coachable? (Be honest with yourself and give that one some thought. For many people in business, that answer may not be a big ‘yes’…)

Do you already have a working business? Are you already an expert in your area of products and services? If yes, then you’re like a fit for one of our coaching or done-for-you consulting packages.

Read on to see if you’re a match for my particular brand of coaching:

What’s the Difference Between Coaching and Consulting?

Here’s how I define coaching:

• Coaching advises, guides, directs, supports an objective. For example, launching a new service, or suggestions on how / where to get clients and new business. Think DIY + blueprint (coaching) versus “done for you” (higher-end consulting).
• Coaching provides accountability. **Coaching clients are generally 10x more likely to reach and surpass their goals when the accountability step is in place.**
• Coaches help clients brainstorm solutions, overcome limitations, provide a sounding board and *recognize those big “a-ha” moments*.
• Clients do much of the actual business work themselves. Coaches guide and provide “GPS” services.
• Coaches provide guidelines, suggestions, templates, exercises, and resources.
• Coaching is a longer-term endeavor. Coaches and their clients realize that big results may require an ongoing process of discovery, testing, and implementation.
• Coaching is often more relationship-based. Working together closely for a period of time toward the client’s big transformation(s).

On the other hand, consulting is:

• Consultants have a very deep-level expertise in a particular area. (E.g. a Human Resources Process Consultant, or a Procurement Consultant.)
• Consultants often (not always, but often) do physical work. For example, a consultant may be hired to go onsite at a client’s business, conduct interviews, or create / update software.
• Consultants are often brought in to solve a very specific problem or set of specific problems.
• Clients often have deliverables and dates tied to them. For example “fix this software problem by such-and-such date”.

Here’s another way to look at it: the consultant is often directly in control—and directly responsible for—a particular outcome. For example, reducing helpdesk costs by 25% per year, or automating a process that usually takes 10 days and 10 people to one that takes less than 1 hour and no people. (Yes, our firm does this as well!) Consulting agreements may even include guarantees in some cases, because consultants are directly in control of a work item.

How Much Is the Coaching Call?

Remember: coaching is an investment, not a cost. This is exactly how we justify hiring our own coaches and consultants each and every year. I personally spent over $30,000 USD in coaching last year, and it was worth many times that investment. Coaching has been a HUGE growth factor in our own business, which doubled last year.

That said, everything depends on what you’re looking to achieve. We offer a mix of one-time-calls, packages and good old-fashioned free educational resources on this site.. All new and potential clients start with a FREE “Business Clarity Call” to see if we’re a fit and what package options we recommend. If we can help and transform your particular situation, some pricing options will be presented on the call. Book one now:

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Are There Refunds? Can Calls Be Rescheduled?

All coaching and consulting appointments require preparation, calendar booking, saying “no” to other potential clients and paying consulting work.

In other words, the opportunity cost of booking exclusive time with you is significant. When we make a commitment to you, we plan to honor it and ask you to do the same. This is all part of coaching accountability, and a practice you’ll use in your own business.

Put another way: when an appointment is booked—it’s booked. Accountability, and meeting timeline commitments are hallmarks of ANY good coaching relationship.

Coaching / Consulting “refunds” are granted in one—and only one—situation: where I, or one of our scheduled consultants is physically unable to make the call. This has never once happened in my coaching (or consulting) career, but it could (disasters, acts of God, etc.)

Another possibility is if we find issues, or possible conflicts of interest with your coaching packet. Again—hasn’t happened before, but I work with so many different people that it is a possibility.

Should a refund become necessary for the above situation, you will see it promptly back in your account within 48 hours.

Likewise, if you have a significant and documented physical emergency and cannot make the call—and it’s medically impossible for you to reschedule within the calendar year, we can look at a refund there as well.

In all other cases, appointments are considered “set in stone” when you book them. Please use due care and caution when selecting your appointment time. If for any reason you select the wrong time by mistake, just forward your payment and appointment confirmations to “support@corbinlinks.com”, and a CorbinLinks.com Client Success Team member contact you to find another time.

C’mon Corbin—-I heard on YouTube or super-secret friend that consultants just use their “calls” as upsells. Won’t that happen with you?

No. In fact, our model for years (often to our financial detriment) is to help people “self-filter” themselves. We are far more likely to discourage than encourage new business for the heck of it, or for a few extra dollars. We only want folks who meet our profile and are ready to look toward themselves to achieve the best results. And if you’re not budgeted (or disciplined enough) to invest in transformational coaching or consulting, then the Podcast is for you. We’ve all been there financially.

Another way to look at it: our coaching service (IAM / CIAM is a different beast and covered elsewhere,) is designed to help you go from 60—120, versus 0—60, if you catch the drift.

Do You Offer “Free” or Non-Profit Pro Bono Coaching?

I offer a metric ton (or “tonne” for our friends across the pond) of free consulting in the form of this blog, podcast and videos on the net. In fact, one requirement of working with me is for all new clients to spend a minimum 2–3 hours with my materials and podcasts before booking a call. You should have a pretty good idea that my team is the one for you when booking the call.

The other main resource of ‘f-r-e-e’ consulting / coaching / advice is found on this site. I highly recommend ANYONE interested in creating or growing a service business spend time with the site blog and podcast. I share some of my best work there, plus many “insider” things I don’t share elsewhere.

I guarantee that between the free blog, podcast episodes, and VIP List, you’ll have a a suite of proven power tools to get you going. Plus, it’s a great way to see what makes me tick, how I approach business and life in general. You’ll know within a podcast or two if my style is a good fit for you.

That said…

Our parent company Links Business Group LLC does allocate a limited number of hours per year for “special-case” coaching. And yes, we already have a full list of private causes / organizations we support. If our team believes an allocation of limited “special-case” coaching is warranted, we will be in touch with you.

Then What’s the Difference Between Your Free “Business Clarity Call” and Your Paid Coaching?

I love this question: shows me folks are paying attention to different opportunities on the site.

Here’s how it works:

On the CorbinLinks.com ‘Home’ page, there is a link to book a complimentary “Business Clarity Coaching Call.” This call is very different from paid coaching or consulting in several ways:

• The clarity call is defined for visitors brand-new to my work who want to explore whether coaching / consulting is right for them.
• The clarity call is also for enterprise companies, governments, or higher educational institutions to explore high-end done-for-you business process and automation consulting. The clarity call is a “talk it over / explore” venue.
• Paid coaching, is a whole different ballgame. It’s intensive. It’s interactive. It’s laser focused. It’s all about specific strategies, recommendations and action plans for a specific business. When it’s paid, we’re diving in and doing stuff right now working strategies to boost your business now. With the paid option, there’s nothing to discuss, nothing to filter, nothing to sell / close / agree to. It’s an investment and we’re going to work.

In other words, paid / investment coaching is “we’re doing business, let’s roll!” and the other is “maybe we’ll do business, let’s see if we’re a fit…”

Make sense?

I use the term “clarity” in the “free” call, because that’s exactly what it is. Getting clear on our next steps together—if any. And here’s the beauty of it: the business clarity call is a mini-me version of a full consultation. Guarantee you’ll walk away from the clarity call with a minimum of one key tip / strategy to move your business forward.

In fact, many clients tell me the no-charge clarity call they started with was worth more than the big paid packages they’d purchased from other companies.

What About Enterprise Consulting? Business Automation, Identity Access Management (IAM / IDM) and similar. Can You Still Help Me?

Let’s talk. Enterprise-Grade Business and Technical Consulting is a separate part of the business. If you’d like to schedule an enterprise project analysis meeting, visit the Contact Page and request a meeting. NOTE: Enterprise Service Discovery Calls are not coaching or consulting calls.

How Are Your Coaching Calls Conducted?

I do almost all my coaching calls over Zoom.us (preferred).

Zoom is our preferred service, and what we use 99% of the time for all coaching and consulting work It’s free for clients to use, has excellent screen and audio quality around the world. For the most part, Zoom is also more reliable than Skype.

We can also do Skype-to-phone by arrangement, as long as your phone line is clear, and reachable via Skype. Call clarity is super-important when delivering coaching services. I highly recommend you test your computer audio setup (computer headset and microphone) and make sure it’s working great before getting on the call.

Is Online / Video Coaching as Effective as In-Person?

Honestly, the in-person, face-to-face is always a better experience. No matter how great phone and online is, there’s just no substitute for being together in the same space. If you are requesting a group session, or custom on-site meeting with your team, please send a custom request via our contact form.

But for pure speed and effectiveness? Online can be more effective in some ways. For example, sending files to review in real-time, split screen viewing of business documents, resources, and websites, call recordings for future viewing, and the list goes on.

Just be aware that a good microphone, headset, and (optionally) video camera are required to make everything work. Be sure to spend a bit of time tuning and testing your setup before the first meeting. Technical or audio issues on the client side may count against the call time.

Which reminds me of another common sub-question to this: calls that disconnect or need fixing due to technical issues do not count against your time. Just be aware that if your connection is bad and a lot of reconnecting is needed, we may need to reschedule at least part of your call.

Do You Provide Recordings of the Coaching Calls?

We do for all paid appointments and plans, but not the no-charge clarity call.

Just be aware of two things:

1. You should plan to use the highest-quality internet connection and audio equipment you can find. This will ensure we not only hear each other clearly, but that your recordings are sharp and crisp.
2. Recording your call will require Zoom.us (preferred,) or Skype. Landline calls (pre-agreement required for landline calls) are not recorded. For this reason, we generally avoid phone-to-phone calls for the actual sessions.

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What Can I Expect From a Paid Coaching Call?

1. We’ll get started right on time.
2. We’ll discuss your business, do Q&A, establish firm goals for the session.
3. We’ll pick 2–3 areas to focus on for the hour call.
4. Expect to take a LOT of notes.
5. Actionable strategies, tools, and suggestions to meet your goals.
6. A follow-up mail within 24 hours after the call with list of specific actions.

In short, expect a focused action-packed call with specific results strategies.

NOTE: All paid coaching calls include a mandatory registration / onboarding survey at the time of registration. Please be as complete as possible when filling it out. I will review it before our call and have some ideas flowing when the call starts.

Do You Guarantee Specific Results?

I guarantee I’ll give you 100++% during our call and do everything possible to help you hit your goals.

Unfortunately, I cannot legally or ethically guarantee you specific results—no real business coach can.

Why?

The actual doing and action-taking is up to you. (See previous Consulting / Coaching definition above.)

I’ll guide you, discuss strategies with you, advise you, and give you tailor-made, you-specific action strategies.

But let’s be honest—only YOU can actually do the work (or not…) If you’re already an expert in your field and have drive, ambition, and willingness to get things done, then we’re the perfect fit. Success is sure to follow. In that scenario, you’ll implement all my suggestions and get results.

Do You Offer Coaching Packages?

Absolutely. Real transformational coaching can take weeks, months, or even years to see the biggest results. Typically, most coaching arrangements start with 90 days. Many new clients start with a coaching start with a call or two, then join a longer-term, more intensive program. We also offer customized seminar and group packages and ‘done-for-you’ consulting packages.

If it makes sense to work together, we’ll discuss some options during your free business clarity call.

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“Gosh Corbin—coaching and consulting is quite an investment. What if I can’t afford any of your packages?”

As the old sales saying goes, there are only 3 reasons you won’t work with me, and it’s not really about the dollar amount:

1. You don’t believe our service or I personally will work for you.
2. You don’t believe you will work for you.
3. You’re not the actual decision maker or controller of your budget.

Let’s tackle #1: if you don’t believe I or our company can help you reach your goals by now, then it’s my fault. I obviously haven’t done an effective job with the blog, podcast, VIP List, free trainings, clarity call and products. In that case you’re right: you’re probably best served elsewhere.

#2: You don’t believe YOU will work for you. Call it fear of success. Or fear of failure. Maybe you’ve tried other things in the past and didn’t get the results you wanted. Or you think it might work too well and you’ll have to actually take action! If so, you’re right: you will have to be accountable and take action in a coaching arrangement.

#3: You’re not the decision maker. Meaning, you don’t control your company finances or budget to make the decision. Notice I didn’t list the option “don’t have the money”…because we always seem to find money for the stuff we want. Right? TVs, cars, software that costs hundreds or thousands per year, trips, restaurants, sporting events, etc. It’s all a matter of priority.

If you’re not equipped to invest in your business growth, then my best advice is to re-listen to the podcasts again and work from there. I provide a lot of free and low-investment content.

Deep down, you know this: whether it’s me, or someone else you have affinity with, good coaching is crucial to next-level success these days.

Think of any major celebrity, pro athlete, or business / life expert, top CEO, entrepreneur out there, and they’ve had coaching. Most have ongoing coaching (including me!)—often 2 or more at the same time!

I’ve been coaching and consulting over 30 years and even I have also invest heavily in coaching and consulting. It’s been one of the biggest growth factors in our own business as well. I’m a HUGE believer in the value—and necessity—of quality coaching for any “I want to be successful!” business owner.

I suggest you re-frame the money question. It’s not a matter of “can I afford it?” It’s “can I afford NOT to invest in business transformation coaching?”

Only you can answer that.

What Paperwork / Agreements Do You Require?

Paperwork is very easy when working with us. For current clients, it’s even easier.

Coaching calls require:

1. Completely fill out the form and onboarding survey.
2. Make a payment.
3. Confirm the meeting time.

That’s about it for coaching calls. Be aware that we do not:

(1) Require an NDA of any kind. If you think you need one to be coached or discuss your business freely, then be sure to send it in advance, before booking a call. Be aware that such arrangements may require custom pricing to accommodate for the overhead of NDA legal review. Instead, we suggest reviewing our privacy policy and see if that works for you. For most all our clients, it is more than sufficient.

(2) Submit “proposals” for our coaching calls for “review.” We send payment agreements not “proposals.”

All the necessary information is posted on this page, and the coaching appointment form. In fact, if you become a coaching or consulting client, I promise we’ll do our best to convince you to not do proposals either.

“Corbin, this all sounds good…but I’m Still Not Sure…

You have all the facts now. The rest is up to you. You’ll know when you’re ready.

In the meantime, I’ve created literally hundreds of hours of audio and written content on CorbinLinks.com. Most all of it is there to help you be a better, healthier, wealthier, coach, consultant, or service provider. I even created a full end-to-end coaching-business course, which releases twice yearly. (Stay tuned for announcements.)

I you’re still unsure, just browse around for a while and listen to a few episodes of The Corbin Links Show.

You’ll know when you’re ready to stop the success waiting game and build the business you’ve always wanted. Our team will be here when that time comes.

Done enough reading, thinking, and considering? Ready to finally hop off that fence and blow up your business? Click over to the coaching appointment page and you’re on your way!

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