It might seem like a luxury, but that’s the wrong way to approach it, psychologist Dr Matthew Jones says. ‘In terms of value bargain, it's by far and away the best. It's Bitcoin. For long-term value, it's going up and to the right.’

Three business owners and CEOs share how their coaches have made the difference for them. 

Kevin Lee, co-founder of instant-ramen brand immi

‘My coach removes a lot of my sabotaging voices or limiting beliefs. He helps me to label why I’m telling myself certain stories, so I can address them and ask myself: why do I think this way? I'm naturally very critical of myself when it comes to building our product. My coach helped me identify that whenever someone gives me a compliment, I just shrug it off. He showed me how that's going to drive me into a negative spiral where it can affect other aspects of how I work. Removing those negative sabotaging voices helps me perform at a level that I wouldn't be able to without him.’ 

Learn more about immi ramen here.

More from Kevin: Launching in a sector you've never been in before

Karen Young, founder of bodycare brand OUI the People

‘I came late to coaching, believing it merged uncomfortably close to psychotherapy. In fact, it has been more of a clarifier for the way I think about and approach leadership. I think every leader needs to have a spectrum of feedback and space to explore ideas, and coaching is the one place that I get to air my thoughts unfiltered and edit them in real time. My coach pushes back, prods when she thinks I'm skirting the issue, and is frank when she does offer limited feedback. The real-world result is seen in how I lead and grow my team and myself. In short, I'm a fan and it's the one thing I wish I hadn't overlooked early on.’

Learn more about OUI the People here.

Matthew Jung, CEO of luxury cookie brand Last Crumb 

‘It's definitely an expense that I thought was frivolous, but it's been game-changingly helpful in building mental shortcuts around the way that I'm approaching things – and really identifying things that were big time-sucks or mentally draining. In practice, I'm able to say “yes” to the right things and “no” to the wrong things without wasting any time, very objectively. When I'm going through complex decisions, it’s someone who gives me the platform to doubt things. A lot of times I think you have the answer, you just need a good safe place to explore it.’

Learn more about Last Crumb here.

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