Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in coaching but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Ben Korte, Founder of Beyond Peak Potential LLC, located in Columbus, OH, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
Describing myself as a professional coach who supports and develops emerging leaders in personalized leadership development usually falls flat among people I talk to. A lot of people are unaware of what coaches do. Instead of using that line, I describe what my conversations look like. I ask a lot of questions and listen to how you respond. I direct the focus on you, not the story. I champion and celebrate your progress and provide perspective for you to shift your viewpoint (or realize there are multiple viewpoints). And lastly, I hold you accountable for what you committed to yourself and help you build the muscles to continue to do it on your own.
My goal is to empower individuals to take their ambitions seriously, take on challenging opportunities, and show them how to create space to turn inward to find the answers they want instead of looking outward for a quick fix or the latest trend. This includes educating companies on the value and impact of investing in their next generation of leaders through personalized development and support.
Tell us about yourself
I followed 'the plan' at the beginning of my career. I was a problem-solver in school, so I was told to be an engineer. When I graduated college, I went into consulting with a big company since that's what my peers did. I was successful and quickly became unfulfilled and burnt out after 4 years of meaningless projects and travel. I was looking for ways to pivot out of the industry and stumbled onto coaching from a TV show called Billions. I became fascinated. I did some research and discovered a local coaching chapter that I visited, which eventually led to finding a certification program to become a coach.
I immediately realized that this was my path and that this was missing in the professional world. I slowly transitioned from consulting and started making steps towards my dream of starting my own career as a coach. After 3 years, I finally had enough courage (I really was just fed up with holding myself back). I left my corporate career to embark on a 4-month road trip out West and create an adventure in my life that was calling me. After coming back home at the end of 2021, I had the motivation and mindset to start my business and support others in pursuing their ambitions too.
I would not have been able to make this leap without years of support from my coach and my commitment to doing the inner work and reflection to get to this point. My journey inspires me to give back and create space for my clients to discover insights that will unleash their passion and potential.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
My biggest accomplishment was taking the leap and committing to my dream of building a company and betting on myself. I've always wanted that challenge to push myself into doing something uncomfortable and growing in the process. I was coaching as a side business for 2 years, and I did not have the time and energy to fully commit to it. I dabbled with a few clients and was able to gather some research to get myself positioned to pursue it, but I was not following my own intuition.
I was terrified of leaving the security of a paycheck but eventually decided I needed to try this. Once I took that leap, I felt a wave of passion, energy, and support fueled me through all the discomfort of starting a business. The discomfort never goes away, but it's no longer holding me back from moving forward.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
Finding my direction has been a difficult adjustment after having years of structure to guide my initiatives. Learning how to run a business, figuring out the foreign language of marketing, and defining your value are new challenges I've had to face, and it's been tempting to look outward for advice and suggestions. I've learned from this experience that I want support to help me discover the direction I want to go in. It's been exciting and terrifying at the same time!
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
Oh man, I'm not sure I have any tips on how to run or grow your business yet. What I learned from my experiences is that by going slower, you will move faster. I've created my lifestyle around my business to allow time for space and rest to process ideas and reflect back on my decisions to be able to learn and adapt accordingly.
The biggest insight I experienced was once you decide to do it (any big decision for that matter), the momentum and attention shifts from debating on whether to do it or not to figure out how to make it work. This shift is what jump-started me into action. With action, I was able to build momentum and beliefs that supported my decision, and it snowballed.
Lastly, I've had to measure my progress and development in months. It's so easy to get dismayed with the perceived failures in the day-to-day view of your business. My real wins are seeing my failures now compared to my failures a few months ago and realizing I've moved on to bigger and better issues.
Is there anything else you'd like to share?
One thing I am still developing is building my inner circle of support. I have a lot of people in my network who hear what I do, and their response is, "Oh, that's cool." I've had to seek out the support of those who believe in me and my mission to help fill my cup and continue to challenge me. Finding a community has been an integral part of my business journey. I believe that goes with anything that you're pursuing in your life. Your passion cannot run on just your willpower; leverage the power of those around you.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.beyondpeakpotential.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-korte/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/benkorte/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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