Episode 04- Coach Training Expert, Stacey Ashley

10 June

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I explore the advantages of having your name on the business such as ‘Ashley Consulting’. It allows people to be able to find you very easily. Building a personal connection and building rapport with people is so important with what Stacey does. So having the business name allows her to start building trust straight away.

Stacey Ashley helps people discover their potential and their capability through coaching. I talk with Stacey about her company and about positioning herself and her brand.

There is always something else you can learn.

Key Takeaways from Today’s Episode:

Jane Anderson hosts the Jane Anderson Brand New Show, a podcast for experts aiming to enhance their impact, influence, and income. In the episode, Jane interviews Stacey Ashley, owner of Ashley Coaching and Consulting, a top executive coaching business. Stacey discusses her journey into coaching, emphasizing the importance of personal branding and flexibility in business names. Stacey highlights the significance of trust and connection in coaching, advocating for authenticity and storytelling to foster rapport with clients. She also underscores the value of speaking engagements in showcasing expertise and personality to potential clients.cription
Stacey Ashley, the owner of Ashley Coaching and Consulting, discusses her journey and insights in coaching with Jane Anderson on the podcast. Stacey emphasizes the importance of personal branding, encouraging coaches to use their names for their businesses to foster better connections with clients. They delve into the significance of authenticity and storytelling in coaching engagements and the value of speaking engagements in establishing expertise. Stacey outlines her future plans, including publishing a book and expanding her coaching practice. The conversation concludes with Stacey sharing how people can connect with her, highlighting her presence on various platforms. Jane expresses gratitude for Stacey's expertise and encourages listeners to explore resources on her website.

Full Show Transcript:

(0:09 - 1:27)
Hi there, my name is Jane Anderson and this is the Jane Anderson Brand New Show. It's the podcast for experts who want to have greater impact, influence and income for their businesses and careers. As experts, we know that people buy from people and work with people who they know, who they like and who they trust.

So I'm so glad you're here because it's that time again now to really amplify how you show up in the world. So welcome to the Jane Anderson Show. Today we're going to be talking to Stacey Ashley and on the show we talk about how you can use marketing techniques and tools to position yourself and whether you have a personally branded business or a business with your name in it.

We're going to be talking to Stacey about what she does in her business. Now Stacey's business is Ashley Consulting and Stacey is one of the top coaches in the country. She's an executive coach and she runs executive coaching training.

So I'm so excited to have Stacey with us today. So thank you so much for coming along and for sharing all your expertise today, Stacey.

(1:28 - 1:32)
Thanks, Jane. I'm really excited and I'm looking forward to it, to be honest.
(1:33 - 1:40)
Fantastic. So tell us a bit about the type of business that you have and who do you help?

(1:41 - 2:28)
Well, we've got a couple of different audiences. So the business is really focused on helping people to step up as leaders from an organisational perspective and I guess really also to just help people to take responsibility and be happy with their work and their life and how that goes together and how we do that is through coaching. So we offer a lot of programs around helping leaders to develop coaching capabilities so that they can have great conversations with each other and their teams and within their businesses.

And we also work with people who want to become accredited coaches and actually offer executive and life coaching and career coaching in their own businesses.

(2:29 - 2:38)
Right. So it sounds like you work with fairly large businesses as well as some smaller ones?

(2:38 - 3:11)
Correct, yes. So the majority of our leadership development focused activities around coaching capability with fairly significant organisations. We do work with some smaller organisations who realise how important it is to invest in their people and that their people make the business and so it's a real combination.

But I would say that those kind of larger organisations and often a lot of government as well who are really cognisant of developing their people actually adds to their overall business.

(3:14 - 3:22)
And how did you get into what you're doing now with your business and all the coaching that you're doing?

(3:23 - 5:31)
Like everyone who goes into their own business, I think there's a bit of a journey behind it. So for me, I worked in a variety of sectors, telecommunications, finance and IT. I was originally qualified as an accountant and discovered pretty quickly that that probably wasn't the best thing for me to do those month-end accounting routines endlessly.

And so over time, I started to get larger and larger leadership roles and working with people and challenging them to sort of really step up and discover what they were capable of. And so that was incredibly rewarding and so it really wasn't about the subject or the topic so much anymore but about working with people to do great things, whatever that happened to be. And so I guess I got to a point in my career where I could do that within an organisation.

However, I thought I could do so much more if I was able to work with lots of organisations and really, I guess, freeform a little bit more and be in a position where I could really challenge people without having an organisational agenda. So having that independence and also developing my expertise so I wasn't just a leader in a particular organisation but I could actually build my own expertise and bring that to an organisation that maybe didn't have that capability themselves. And then I could move on to the next organisation and offer the same thing and see the really big difference that it could make for the people and for the organisation.

And so that's what, I guess, evolved into the work that I do now and coaching became just a natural progression, you know, working with people, helping them to discover their potential and their capability. And so, yeah, I guess that is the vehicle that we use. It's not necessarily what people come and buy.

They come and buy the outcome which is they want great results and they want engaged people and they want to have great conversations and really great relationships within their business. But coaching is the vehicle that we use for that.

(5:32 - 6:38)
I see. And so in one of the other recordings that I've done on one of the other podcasts, I've talked about having your 10,000 hours of expertise. And so 10,000 hours, Malcolm Gladwell, in his book Outliers, talks about the sculpture that was, you know, the experts were called in to determine whether it was a fake or not and those who could determine that it was a fake had something in common.

It was their 10,000 hours and they described some stories around other leading experts like Steve Jobs and all those people who worked with computers who were really young. You know, by the time they started their business, they had something like 30,000 hours. So in your case, you've really built your business from building your 10,000 hours in a corporate context and then here's how I can bring that to other organisations.

Is that right?

(6:38 - 7:20)
That's definitely part of it, Jane. You know, just having that all day, every day experience, practical application, you know, and then adding to that by actually going out and deliberately building my skills as well and then continuing that process. You know, for anyone who's in their own business or particularly anyone who maybe wants to go into kind of a coaching or personal professional development space, it's a learning journey and it never finishes.

There's always something else that you can learn and that you can add to and that just means that, you know, you've got so much more to offer because you continue to grow yourself.

(7:21 - 8:29)
Yeah, and that's interesting because, which leads me probably to the question around how you named your business because one of the things that my experience has been and when I work with clients and through personal branding is that your branding, by using your name in your branding, allows you as much flexibility as possible as opposed to a company name, like instead of it being, you know, Ashley Coaching or something like that because, who knows, in 12 months time, you might evolve from coaching.

But also, people pigeonhole you very quickly. So, people go, oh, well, they've got coaching in the title, so maybe they don't do training programs. So, I guess I'm curious as to your insight because the name of your business is Ashley Consulting, right?

It's actually Ashley Coaching and Consulting, Jane. Coaching and Consulting, so you've got both in there.

(8:29 - 8:29)
Yeah.

(8:30 - 8:37)
Okay, can you tell us a bit about what made you decide to use your business, create your business name the way that you have? Sure.

(8:39 - 10:24)
So, originally when I first formed the business, I wasn't 100% clear on what I was going to do. I had some sort of general ideas and I called it Ashley Business Consulting, which I thought gave me sort of pretty free reign and it kind of indicated that I was more working with businesses than individuals. But over time, when it became clearer in terms of where I wanted to focus, I did actually change the name to Ashley Coaching and Consulting.

So, I still got the flexibility with the consulting piece that we do sort of quite a range of things. But coaching is primarily one of the very strong vehicles that we use. And so, I really wanted that to be represented in the name.

But using just Ashley, and I've got a variety of domain names that I use, including Ashley Consulting and StaceyAshley.com.au. So, having that really strong association, I think it just gives you so much freedom and flexibility because people can find you. That's one thing. But for me, I really, and this probably sounds a little bit silly, but there's such an advantage to having a name that starts with A.

Because, you know, you're really, I end up at the top of the list or our business name ends up at the top of the list often. And that can be so advantageous. And so, using that Ashley has been incredibly powerful in that.

And as well as having that real personal association, people can always find me. So, whether that's on LinkedIn or whether it's just doing, you know, an internet, you know, Google search, whatever, it's very easy for people to connect you and what you do.

(10:26 - 10:36)
And do you find that by the time people come to talk to you, that they've pretty much decided that you're who they want to work with?

(10:37 - 11:31)
I would say yes, in the majority of situations. And there's lots of reasons for that. Some of it is they've done their research.

So, they have done all the online stuff and they've found you. You know, they've looked at some things on YouTube or they've looked at some of our testimonials and, you know, the work that I've done with organisations and that's enough for them. But a lot of the work that we have is referrals.

It's a very personal business. Coaching and working with people to help them, you know, develop their own self-awareness and knowledge of strengths. It's very personal.

And so, they really need to have that sense of connection of rapport. And so, again, using, for me, having my name as part of that, that's part of that connection process. And I think that's really strong.

And, yeah, it just really supports everything that the business is about.

(11:33 - 12:02)
Yeah, because there's so much trust that comes with coaching. Like, I've got to confide in this person. Are they going to...

What are they going to think of me? Are they going to judge me? So, that personal connection, I can imagine, would be so strong for you.

And so, what types of things do you do to bring your personality into your positioning to help people connect with you easily?

(12:03 - 13:50)
I think, look, there's a few things. I really love storytelling. And so, that's one of the things that I try to bring.

And so, whether that's I'm speaking, you know, formally, I've got an actual speaking event, or whether it's just the conversation that I'm having with someone. Storytelling is just such a wonderful way to, I guess, really interact with someone and have a great experience together. Other things, from a personality perspective, I think, you know, just being yourself.

You know, really being genuine. It's not about, I don't try to be what somebody else is kind of looking for. You know, either we're going to connect or not.

And I think that that's really important. As you say, the trust that comes with that. And so, I think really keeping true to that and reflecting on it from time to time, making sure that, actually, you know what?

Is this really me? Would I really do this? And so, keeping it pretty honest is important.

Other things in terms of bringing personality, well, I do a lot of speaking. And so, I think that's a really wonderful opportunity for people to see you. This is who you are.

Yeah, you might be on a stage and you might have a microphone, but this is really who you are. And so, building that connection there and allowing your true personality to come through there is, I think, very easy. And so, that's probably a major part of our marketing process, actually, is the speaking part.

It's a great way to get in front of lots of people and really get them knowing who you are.

(13:51 - 14:08)
Yeah, and speaking is such a great positioning activity, isn't it? Because it does showcase you as you know something. Because speaking is such a bold and courageous thing to do in a lot of people's eyes who go, oh, I could never stand up there.

(14:11 - 14:54)
I think, yeah, for me, and you're right, for some people, it's maybe not the first thing they would think to do. I love to speak and I've always loved to speak. I've learned more about how to do it even better over time, which is great, and I'll continue to do that.

But I think, yeah, it just really allows people to get in touch with you. And if they're wanting to know, do I really want to work with that person? Would I trust them to, firstly, to share those confidences, but also, do they know what they're talking about?

Do they really have the substance that's going to help me or my team or my business? They can find that out pretty quickly when you're standing up in front of a big audience and sharing what you know.

(14:55 - 15:01)
Yeah, because your business is you. That is you. That's what's buying you.

(15:01 - 15:09)
Absolutely. So I think that's a really wonderful vehicle. And I would definitely encourage people to build their skills in that space.

(15:12 - 15:32)
And in terms of, I mean, you must see some amazing coaches that you get to work with and that you train. When they're talking to you about how they position and market themselves, is that something that you encourage them to do with their business name as well or how they bring themselves into their business?

(15:33 - 16:08)
It's a really interesting one, Jane, because a lot of people who decide that, yes, I'm going to become a coach, I'm going to leave my previous role and perhaps start a coaching business or coaching practice. And they have great plans, all of these different things that they're going to do, but a lot of them have come up with this really fancy name for their coaching practice. And one of the things that I do is I do actually ask them, so what is it about that name that is going to give you something over and above using your name?

(16:09 - 16:10)
Right, great coaching practice.
(16:10 - 16:35)
Because people who know you, want to work with you, how are they going to find you? Well, that would be your name. So it's great to come up with some really clever business name, but it's not going to connect necessarily nearly as well as just people who want to work with you, finding you under your name.

(16:36 - 16:45)
Yes. Yes, because that's what sets you apart and protects you from things. Because what makes it different?

(16:46 - 17:24)
Yes, absolutely, absolutely. And the people that want to work with you, they may come across your business name but not know it's you. And so how do you create the opportunities for connection and for your brand, however you market that, but how do you create the opportunity for people to actually put those pieces together and figure out, oh, that's you.

So give them, make it easy for them. Do that. It shouldn't have to be you pick up the breadcrumbs until you finally actually get to the end of the trail.

It should be really easy to find you.

(17:26 - 17:41)
Yes. It's kind of, I imagine that it's a bit like a hurdle, like running 100 metres at the Olympics and you've got to jump over all these hurdles before you can actually get to who you're trying to work, who you would be working with.

(17:41 - 17:43)
Absolutely, like who are you, where are you?

(17:46 - 18:04)
I think that's just such fantastic advice for people out there who are thinking about going down that path, because it is a big leap to make that shift into the coaching industry as well. So what are your plans for the next 12 to 18 months? What are you focusing on?

(18:06 - 20:24)
Look, how long have you got? I'll just give you, look, there's a couple of priorities. I have actually started my first book and I must admit it's slowed down a little bit, so I need to really ramp that up and get that published.

That's a book about people who are making the transition into their first leadership role and equipping them with all of the skills that we don't necessarily know as a team member but we need as a team leader. So that's the first one of my priorities. Another one is really just to continue to expand our business.

So while it is my business, I do have a number of other people that operate under Ashley Coaching and Consulting and we're really doing some wonderful work, particularly in the education sector at the moment, but also with a lot of government agencies and some really fantastic corporate organisations. So we'd just like to really expand, or I would like to really expand that reach so that we can touch as many people as possible and really equip them with great coaching skills and the ability to build wonderful relationships and have great conversations every day. And of course continue to help coaches to build their own coaching competence with a view to having their own businesses.

So all of those things kind of wrap around together. Look, there's so many things I could keep going for just ages and ages. Continuing my own professional development, I've got a whole list of things that I'd like to add into my own toolkit as well.

And to continue to collaborate with lots of my fantastic colleagues, including you of course, and really see what great things we can cook up and offer to people who will really benefit from being exposed to that information. So again, the speaking thing is such a wonderful way of sharing your knowledge with great numbers of people so that they too can really discover what they're capable of.

(20:26 - 20:55)
You've got so much to offer and for what you bring in terms of value to potential new coaches, or even people who have been coaching for some time and really want, like you kind of said, that formalisation of skills because you've got the Cert IV and the Diploma and that formalisation and to be able to get ICF credentialing, all those types of things that are great positioning credentials.

(20:55 - 21:09)
Absolutely, absolutely. In terms of industry recognition, you just can't go past that sort of thing to firstly, you know, set yourself up but also creating that credibility and supporting your brand. Yeah, very important.

(21:11 - 21:16)
So how can people find you if they would like some information about your program, Stacey?

(21:18 - 21:53)
Lots of the general things. I'm on LinkedIn, the company's on LinkedIn, same with Facebook. We're on Twitter as well, so either StaceyAshley or AshleyCoaching.

Our main domain is www.ashleyconsulting.com.au Come to an event that I'm speaking at. I'd love to meet people. Yeah, they're probably the most significant ways that you can get in touch with us.

(21:54 - 22:56)
Fantastic. Well, thank you so much for being on the show today. I'm so grateful for your time.

I know how busy you are and I'm sure that people listening will get a lot of value out of your expertise about how to position yourself as an expert, particularly through coaching. And so hopefully people will get in touch with you and will keep an eye out for your book, that's for sure. That sounds like a great read.

And for those listeners listening from here today, you will also be able to download, if you go to my website, so it's www.jane-anderson.com, you'll be able to jump on there and you'll see the Corporation News program, the online program that helps you how to position and market yourself if you're also thinking about setting up a business under YourName.com. So thank you so much for your time today, Stacey. And hopefully we get to check in with you when your book's done and you're happy to go.

(22:56 - 22:58)
Thanks so much, Jane. Really enjoyed it.

(22:58 - 22:59)
Thank you.