Eileen Bristol has a business in Ann Arbor and a business dream in Austin, Texas. She never thought it was possible to have both.
Bristol found the solution to her dilemma with AdviCoach David Waymann. The two worked out a strategy that is letting Bristol keep RelaxStation Massage Therapy of Ann Arbor while opening up a restaurant/lounge in Austin.
“Eileen is like a lot of good business people. They start with an idea and expertise in a certain area that can get them started. Often, what they don’t start with is a long-term strategy that might include expansion, or turning the business over to someone else in order to try something new,” Waymann explained.
The lack of a long-term plan results in a type of role reversal, according to Waymann. Many successful business people end up feeling the business is running them instead of them running the business. Waymann has watched this happen many times during his 30 years in business which includes business development, sales management, consulting, product development,
and business coaching.
“At first David and I started talking about just finding someone to run the business so I could develop my second dream business in Texas,” said Bristol. She soon discovered finding the right person and making sure the transition worked would be more involved than posting a job opening.
Bristol has been working in small businesses her entire life and didn’t realize how much she could still learn from Waymann. “David gave me ideas that took RelaxStation to the next level. And as a bonus, I’ll be able to use those ideas in running my new business in Texas,” Bristol said.
Waymann started Bristol’s coaching experience by helping her set a balanced foundation that would enable her to keep RelaxStation while turning over daily operations to a manager. The process included defining Bristol’s individual goals, establishing guiding principles for the business and identifying financial measurements.
Next they prepared for the recruiting process by creating a job description, establishing expectations for the new manager, developing questions for the interview and even narrowing down the field to five candidates. Waymann even sat in on the interviews and helped Bristol evaluate the candidates.
“The biggest surprise in all this was David’s generous spirit and persistence in helping through the entire process. I thought he would get his money and I would get the bare bones. Instead, he went above and beyond in helping me achieve my dream,” Bristol said.
Waymann believes a business coach must stay involved to help someone achieve their goals. A big part of this involves helping owners learn how to strike a balance between business and personal goals so one does not dominate the other.
Waymann helps create the balance by putting people in charge of their goals with what he calls a “bookend strategy.” Basically it’s helping business people clarify the gap between where they are and where they want their business to be. He then works with business owners to develop the necessary tools and strategies to help them keep focused on achieving those goals.
The “bookend strategy” is simple in theory but involves a lot of work. Waymann doesn’t believe in taking “off-the-shelf” solutions and trying to make them work for every business.
“Every business is different and every business person has different goals,” said Waymann. “Nearly every business owner or manager I talk with believes they could be doing better, they just don’t know how to make it happen. My job as a coach is to help them define their success and then help them achieve their full potential.
During his career as an AdviCoach, Waymann has worked with companies in retail, health care, service and technology. In many instances he has been able to help these businesses increase net profitability by more than 30% annually, build a team, and find time to enjoy other personal or business pursuits. Waymann has a Bachelor of Education from McGill University in Montreal and a Master’s of Science from the University of Michigan.
To learn more about AdviCoach services in the Ann Arbor, MI area, contact AdviCoach David Waymann at dwaymann@advicoach.com
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