Tara Butler Floch, CPCC, PCC: Meet My Network Interview Series
Tara Butler Floch, CPCC, PCC. Business Mentor & Coach
"Supporting Your Vision to Grow a Thriving Coaching Practice"
Tara Butler Floch is known as The Coaches’ Coach. Since 2000 Tara’s passion for helping entrepreneurs has empowered hundreds of coaches to create and up-level sustainable, profitable and joyous businesses. Having been an Executive herself for three global companies, Tara initially coached Executives, helping them and their teams perform together at the highest level..After helping so many of her Executive clients leave their jobs to start their own successful coaching & consulting practices, Tara realized she loved helping experts sprout their entrepreneurial wings and she transitioned to working primarily with coaches and “coach-sultants” in 2007.
Tara has always been passionate about helping others fully step into their full potential, passion and gifts. She loves combining that passion with her love of Branding, Marketing, Client Experience, and Business Development. She focuses on helping established, experienced coaches and “coach-sultants” who are ready to uplevel and scale their income while also being more discerning, having more freedom, working fewer hours, and focusing on work that truly inspires them She loves that by working with professional coaches, she gets to exponentially widen her ripple effect of change in the world. Tara herself has a full, thriving practice only working 25 hours a week between her coaching practice and properties business, leaving plenty of time to enjoy her beautiful Kindergartener, Connor.
INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:
In a few words tell us about who you are, what you do and who you serve.
I am the coaches’ coach who helps successful coaches become more discerning so they can up-level their business, love their work again, not work so damn hard, and make more money.
When did you start your business and why did you get started?
I started my business in 2000 after being an Executive at three global companies. At the heart of it, I believe I’m on this planet to help people bring out their best selves and although I had the opportunity to do that every day as an Executive, there was so much about the work that had me wonder “so what? Who cares?”. I wanted to dedicate my energy to the work I loved the most which was helping leaders be great leaders. And I loved that work for many many years. What I found is that I, more often than not, attracted Executives similar to me that felt called to do more in the world and they would say “I want to do what your doing” and I found that my business just began to naturally transform into helping former Executives launch their own coaching and consulting practices. Over time, I realize that my biggest ripple effect happens when I work with successful coaches and “coach-sultants” create businesses they really love being in again.
What is your mission for your business?
To help successful coaches be more discerning so they can make the biggest impact in the world and I get to widen my ripple of global change.
What’s the one thing about your business journey that you didn’t expect?
I thought I would always love working with executives and leaders but as the economic climate began to change and profit and shareholder value became increasingly more important than people, I became disenchanted because I believe that people are the lifeblood of true success.
What is a common myth about your industry?
I think there is a belief, even among many coaches, that coaching is a “nice to have” vs. “essential”. My clients’ work with leaders and they have never faced bigger challenges than they do today. I believe coaching can have an impact beyond measure.
If you could go back in time and do something different in the way you built your business, what would you do and why?
One of the things I talk about all the time is that much of the content and tenets to business that I have built were a result of my blood, sweat and tears. My clients get to benefit from that and get to accelerate and succeed with much more ease.
I always had a coach but never had a coach that was as successful as I was until I hired my first business coach in 2014. I certainly would have hired a business coach and mentor right at the get go if I could go back in time. I would have enjoyed the journey more and had more true success sooner.
What advice would you give someone who is struggling with growing their coaching business?
There is a ton of resources available to coaches now, many of which are free. As an example, I have hundreds of free articles on my website about the various elements of building a thriving coaching practice. If you are struggling, get curious about the struggle and get honest about what’s working and not working. Get the support you need, even if it’s creating a peer coaching group of other like minded coaches and coach-sultants. Also, hire a coach. I always marvel when coach’s don’t have a coach because it feels energetically misaligned. How do you expect others to value you as a coach if you don’t feel it’s essential yourself?
What is your favourite part of running your business?
Doing the 1:1 coaching is (obviously) my favorite part of running my business. Doing Business Breakthrough Sessions with potential clients is definitely my second favorite part. If I had the time, I would do these all day. I love that people get deep value no matter what and I just love digging into the challenges that coaches experience and help them see the solutions that would work for them.
What tool (or software) is indispensable for your job?
I am a self proclaimed luddite so I only use tools and software if it can exponentially help me. WordPress has been amazing because it’s so flexible that in addition to being the engine behind my website and blog, I’ve created a very extensive client resources library with video trainings, templates, workbooks and examples that is extremely valuable to my clients’ success.
What’s one upcoming project that you’re excited about right now?
I am in the beginning stages of creating a coaching program specifically around creating Savvy Strategic Alliances.
Who would you really like to connect with? I would love to connect with organizations and podcasts that cater to professional coaches and organizational development consultants. I am also always in search of expert team members to help my clients in areas beyond my Sweet Spot.
How would your parents or family describe what you do?
Hopefully they would say that I am a coach that helps other professional coaches with their business but I have actually redirected family members who have told people I am a life coach or executive coach.
What’s your favorite colour and what does it say about you?
Sage Green. It’s beautiful, serene, nature inspired and goes well with my Irish freckly skin. Everything in my home is in this color or something that coordinates. I have lots of burnt orange to contrast it which is more fiery and warm but also beautiful and nature inspired, too.
Are you an introvert or extrovert?
I am an ENFJ but was always just a smidge over the E line. I think I classify as a classic ambivert. Certain people give me energy, certain people drain it. I love to do speaking events but also can spend the entire weekend at home without leaving (I live on 3 acres in CA though so I am mostly outside). I think the pandemic has made me be more discerning about where I spend my time and have been much less social in the past several years, but my closest friends and I have gotten even closer.
I’m a personality test junkie - what are your scores (Enneagram, Myers-Briggs, etc. whatever you’re excited to share – give ‘em all to me):
ENFJ and pretty classically one! The Enneagram always seems to peg me wrong as I am not a classic anything.
What do people misunderstand about you most?
I am a deeply spiritual being that has figured out how to work in this rather weird construct that we’ve created called capitalism. I love coaching and helping evoke change in the world but I think our system really isn’t working for the vast majority of people. I know how to work within the system but at my heart I want to change it because I don’t believe that we were given consciousness and intelligence to create the reality we’ve created. It’s fascinating to me.
What’s your biggest pet peeve?
Business Coaches that make promises that the majority of their clients do not experience. They’ve created a credibility challenge for my industry.
Who has been one of your biggest mentors in your entrepreneurial journey?
I have had so many great ones. For sure, Henry Kimsey House was an incredible mentor to me in becoming a better coach and leader. Ursula Pottinga and Ann Betz who do advanced coaching programs on neuroscience and consciousness have been amazing mentors and partners in a myriad of ways. And my current spiritual coach and mentor, Michelle Renee Johnson has helped me uncover my essence and bring it further into my life and business.
As you know I’m a sales copywriter, what is your favourite way to build your email list?
It’s what I called the three prong approach. Writing great blogs and posting them with a lead magnet on my website, send out to my list and post on social media. Usually I get an exponential effect by doing these three things to growing my list. I also do a lot of speaking and add a lot of new followers that way.
What does freedom mean to you?
To be able to fully honor what I want.
FAST 5:
What’s your favourite book you recommend to others?
I work with executive coaches and one of my favorites to share is “Leadership and Self Deception” by the Arbinger Institute. I believe if we all lived in alignment with this, we would live in a harmonious world.
What’s your favourite way to consume content (audio, video, written)?
Lately I have been really into podcasts, particularly ones that bring positivity into the world like “A Little Bit of Optimism” with Simon Sinek and “We Can Do Hard Things” with Glennon Doyle, Abby Doyle and Abby Wombach.
What are you reading right now?
Becoming Supernatural by Dr Joe Dispenza;
What are you watching right now?
So You Think You Can Dance; Hacks, Brene Browns Atlas of the Heart
What are you listening to right now?
See above for podcasts
Audio Books: How to Read the Akashic Records by Linda Howe and The Dark Side of the Light Chasers by Debbie Ford
Tara Butler Floch is known as The Coaches’ Coach. Tara’s passion for helping entrepreneurs has empowered hundreds of coaches to create and up-level sustainable, profitable, and joyous businesses. Tara has always been passionate about helping others fully step into their full potential, passion, and gifts. She loves combining that passion with her love of Branding, Marketing, Client Experience, and Business Development. She focuses on helping established, experienced coaches and “coach-sultants” who are ready to uplevel and scale their income while also having more freedom and focusing on work that truly inspires them. Learn more about how to work with Tara on her website or connect with Tara on LinkedIn.
