It all started with the best of intentions.
I had been coaching executives for a little more than a year and decided to send out a “feedback” form to my clients to find out how I was doing.
After a few weeks, I received some encouraging reviews and felt great about my progress. I decided that this would be a regular part of the program.
I got to the point where I couldn’t wait for the positive feedback.
Then it happened.
A relatively new client sent back their survey. It came via fax, and I distinctly remember watching it come over the top of the machine, eagerly awaiting the eventual praise.
Instead, here’s what I heard:
“This isn’t what I expected. I am not receiving the value I had anticipated. I am not sure this is a good fit for me.”
I was devastated, and I almost puked – seriously. In fact, I get a little queasy telling this story more than 8 years later.
Seconds after processing the criticism, I begin to seriously doubt my abilities wondering aloud – “Am I really cut out for this line of work? What if I get that from all my clients?”
48 hours lately, I regrouped and carefully reviewed his thoughts asking myself – “What can I do differently to ensure that I never receive this type of feedback again?”
The good news is that he stayed a client for another 3 years.
The much better news is that I became a much better coach because a client cared enough to tell me the truth.
Every client since then has benefited from this hard lesson.
The truth is that we rarely learn anything meaningful unless we feel a decent amount of pain.
Do you remember the last meaningful improvement you made in yourself as a result of a minor mistake? Of course you don’t.
I used to show up a few minutes late to meetings until a great prospect told me they wouldn’t work with someone who couldn’t manage their time.
I am not trying to suggest that you look forward to the suffering resulting from your missteps.
What I am suggesting is that you look at each one from a different perspective. Your journey is filled with experiences – some good and some bad. The best teacher you’ll ever have is failure.
As with most things in life, the solution is simple. You just need to execute.
