Discovering Your Inner Samurai Blog

What's the Difference Between an Agreement and a Contract?

Today . . . I am thinking about this question that came in from one of our women entrepreneur readers. Joan (not her real name) just signed up for coaching services with a new coach, and her coach sent her a Letter of Agreement to sign. Our reader wonders about this practice, and wanted to know the difference between an agreement and a contract. Good question!

If you have a small business question that you'd like for me to answer, let me know.

Q: "My coach just sent me a Letter of Agreement to sign before coaching services begin. Is this standard practice? What's the difference between a Letter of Agreement and a Contract?"   

A: Yes, a Letter of Agreement is standard practice in the coaching/mentoring industry. It is designed to lay the groundwork for a productive working relationship, and sets the tone for your upcoming work together.

The biggest difference between an agreement and a contact is that the courts will enforce a contract, whereas an agreement is just an arrangement between the parties. Sometimes, however, an agreement is included in a contract.

Here's the difference:

•    An agreement is based on an offer. In this case, your coach made you an offer for coaching services. If you sign the agreement, that means you have agreed to it. This is why it is called an agreement.

•    A contract, on the other hand, comes after there is an offer and an agreement. For example, a contract is signed between a publisher and a writer - after an offer has been accepted and terms agreed upon.

For most coaching/mentor relationships there is just an offer and an agreement. No contract will follow.

Disclaimer: I am neither an attorney nor an accountant and am not qualified to give you financial or legal advice. If you are starting up a business, it is important for you to contact qualified law and tax experts and seek their advice.

If you have a small business question that you'd like for me to answer, let me know.

Susan L. Reid
Inner Samurai Business Expert

Award-winning author of Discovering Your Inner Samurai: The Entrepreneurial Woman's Journey to Business Success

Women Entrepreneurs Tips for Success

Several years ago, I began keeping a "tips for success" list. Not the usual kind of list from famous people who have been successful. Rather, a list of success tips from ordinary, every day people who have worked hard and become successful in their life and business.

Who are these people? My former clients. 

I thought you might enjoy reading some of the gems from my client's success tips list:

• What ever you do keep it simple!
• Be a product of your service!
• Learn the things that work for you and don’t stop doing them when success starts to come your way!
• You may have to spend a little money to make some!
• In order to be great you need to be good first! In order to be good you may have to be bad first!
  
• Be bold! Great and mighty forces will come to your aid!
• Life begins at the end of you comfort zone!

So what do you think about these tips?

If you were going to add a tip or two of you own, what would you say?

Susan L. Reid
Inner Samurai Business Expert

Award-winning author of Discovering Your Inner Samurai: The Entrepreneurial Woman's Journey to Business Success

 

Coaching Letter of Agreement vs Contract

Today . . . I am thinking about this question that came in from one of our readers. Terry (not her real name) just signed up for coaching services with a new coach, and her coach sent her a Letter of Agreement to sign. Our reader wonders about this practice, and wanted to know the difference between an agreement and a contract. Good question!

If you have a small business question that you'd like for me to answer, let me know.

Q: "My coach just sent me a Letter of Agreement to sign before coaching services begin. Is this standard practice? What's the difference between a Letter of Agreement and a Contract?"   

A: Yes, a Letter of Agreement is standard practice in the coaching/mentoring industry. It is designed to lay the groundwork for a productive working relationship, and sets the tone for your upcoming work together.

The biggest difference between an agreement and a contact is that the courts will enforce a contract, whereas an agreement is just an arrangement between the parties. Sometimes, however, an agreement is included in a contract.

Here's the difference:

•    An agreement is based on an offer. In this case, your coach made you an offer for coaching services. If you sign the agreement, that means you have agreed to it. This is why it is called an agreement.

•    A contract, on the other hand, comes after there is an offer and an agreement. For example, a contract is signed between a publisher and a writer - after an offer has been accepted and terms agreed upon.

For most coaching/mentor relationships there is just an offer and an agreement. No contract will follow.

Disclaimer: I am neither an attorney nor an accountant and am not qualified to give you financial or legal advice. If you are starting up a business, it is important for you to contact qualified law and tax experts and seek their advice.

If you have a small business question that you'd like for me to answer, let me know.

Susan L. Reid
The original Accidental Pren-her™
Award-winning author of Discovering Your Inner Samurai: The Entrepreneurial Woman's Journey to Business Success

Five Hot New Retreat Ideas for Coaches

Who hasn't heard of personal coaching?

It seems as if everyone from Oprah to Investors Weekly is raving about the value of having a personal coach.

In the 90s, it was cool to have a therapist. Now, it's cool to have a coach.

While coaching has been around for a long time, it wasn't until this decade that personal coaching became a bona fide profession. Now, it's recognized as a "must have" service for motivated individuals who are serious about making positive changes in their lives.

Today, there's a coach for just about everything. And specialized coaching practices, such as retreat and getaway coaching, are on the rise. 

Make your coaching retreat business big in 2009 with these five hot, new retreat ideas:

1. New job and skill retreats.

While there are many non-profit vocational training and job placement centers in the U.S, most are offered in a building. It's time to take these out of the classroom and into nature, where people can connect with nature while exploring options and learning new skills.

2. Turn your current skills into a freelance business retreats.

People with a lifetime of skills and training need help converting their assets into a viable freelance business. Retreat coaches who specialize in helping people make the transition from worker to freelancer will be in demand this year. Consider partnering with a business coach to provide weeklong retreats that combine niche clarity with rest and relaxation.

3. Be ready to relocate retreats.

Many U.S. corporate jobs are moving overseas.  Think about the ways that you, as a retreat coach, could be of value and service to individuals and families who will be relocating overseas. The list is endless.

4. Find work that you can do on the weekend retreats.

All over the U.S. people are getting creative about paying their bills and taking care of their families. People, everywhere, will be looking for ways they can make some extra money during the weekend. What better way to do that in a natural retreat setting with an experience retreat or getaway coach, who can both help them explore extra money possibilities and affirm their value as individuals.

5.  At home retreats.

How many times have you heard people say "I'm too busy to get away for a retreat!" No problem. Bring the retreat to them. Design one-day retreats for busy executives, moms, or business owners in their own home. You provide the structure, exercises, and support coaching throughout the day. They spend the day reflecting and visioning their life, direction, or business within a nurturing, self-care experience that allows them to slow down, relax, and unveil their inner knowing.

So what do you think of these ideas? Do you think you can use any of them in your business this year?

Susan L. Reid
The original Accidental Pren-her™
Award-winning author of Discovering Your Inner Samurai: The Entrepreneurial Woman's Journey to Business Success

Three Costly Mistakes Coaches Make

Today . . . I'm thinking about how coaches often struggle to make ends meet on what they're coaching business brings in.

Three Costly Mistakes Coaches Make

1. Charge too little.

I know, I know. When you first start out, you're told to price your services low to attract clients. In theory, this sounds good. In practice, however, you're shooting yourself in the foot.

Here's why: When you charge next to nothing for something, your market perceives the value of your product or service as being too low. That translates into your value as a coach being viewed as low, too. The same with giving something of value away, without asking anything in return. The likelihood of it being appreciated or used is low.

Why is that? There's an energy of lack associated with charging too little for your services. Often potential clients who seek out the lowest priced coaching services aren't looking for the highest return on their investment. They are coming from a place of lack and looking for the cheapest price.
And here's the rub. Those very same clients who pat themselves on the back for shopping around and finding the lowest-paying coaching services are the same ones who will turn around and demand the most from you. They will repeatedly cancel appointments, have a thousand-and-one excuses for not completing their homework, call in-between appointments with crises, and inundate your in-box with questions.

2. Provide only coaching services.

One of the biggest mistakes coaches make right out of coaching school is to focus exclusively on setting up their coaching packages. The problem with this is that coaching packages are typically the highest priced services in a coach's arsenal.

So what happens if you are a new, inexperienced coach and you start promoting your coaching at the $300 - $400 per month price range? Do you think people will happily plop down their hard-earned money just for the opportunity to work with you? Of course they won't.

People don't trust what they don't know. If you are an unknown entity fresh out of coaching school, you will have to create multiple price-point options for your potential clients to choose from, in order to make a living as a coach.

What that means is that you will have to create services AND products that are lower on the price-point scale. This will give your potential clients the opportunity to try you out and get to know you through your lower-priced products and services, before they sign up for one of your higher-end coaching packages.

3. Create passive revenue income.

Yikes, what is she saying? Creating passive income is a detriment? How can she be saying that? Passive income is all the rage! You're right, it is. However, it's not for you, at this time. Here's why.

When you're first starting out as a coach, you want to create leveraged, not passive revenue income. Passive revenue means: create once; sell once.

Leverage revenue, on the other hand, means that you put in a certain amount of hours and you get a very, good return on your investment over time. Leveraged money can increase the amount of money and the amount of profit you can make from your product. Leveraged revenue means: create once; re-purpose multiple times.

That's why it's so important to create both services and products at multiple price-points that you can leverage multiple times in multiple ways.

What do you think of this list? Are there other costly mistakes you as a coach make? Or, if you are a client, do you see some costly mistakes that your coach is making? Let us know.

Susan L. Reid
The original Accidental Pren-her™
Award-winning author of Discovering Your Inner Samurai: The Entrepreneurial Woman's Journey to Business Success