Coaching Blog

Google Business Blog Nightmare: Reality 2.0

Posted by Jeremy Tick

Google Business Blog

Guest post by Jeremy Tick.

 

Ten years ago I made a mistake.  I stopped doing business with my business partner.

My colleague had made a larger financial investment and felt he owned more of the firm. Because it was my sales and marketing that helped the business quickly grow I thought the partnership equal.  We could never agree on who owned what and tensions frequently arose. When this happened, he reminded me of my youth and less formal education.  The relationship became deleterious to both my confidence and my ability to produce and it hurt the business.  After learning that he withdrew a larger portion of our income for himself without my consent, I left.

As children we’re taught to ignore bullies.  As adults we’re taught that relationships are sometimes transactional and we need to move on.  I thought I understood both sentiments and responded accordingly.  But these are not the old days anymore – we live in “Reality 2.0.”

Unsuccessful in running the business without me, my partner closed it down.  Ten years later, however, he still maintains the company website with the caption on Google stating the business is out of business and “cannot be held accountable for any of Jeremy Tick’s actions.”  Embedded in it are links to my old resume, tax documents from 2004, and a slew of defaming blog posts, written by him, about me.   These posts attack my personal character, work ethic, educational and socio-economic background and psyche.  Despite my effort to end an unhealthy relationship the web won’t let me.   My former partner doesn’t have to do anything to maintain our connection: Google does it for him.  And I pay the price.

When I first learned of the blog’s existence I paid no attention.  It was 2004 and I had never heard of a blog.   But while earning my Master’s Degree these posts became of concern. Despite being in a top-notch school with significant real world experience, my resume didn’t get nearly as much attention as those of my peers.

I soon learned why.  It was now 2007 and ever more frequently people were being “Googled” by hiring parties.  Curious, I looked up my name and found the return search populated entirely by these slanderous posts.   Unbeknownst to me, the relationship was still alive in the eyes of the world – and that was the only thing that mattered.

Learning that most websites claim no responsibility for the content they house, I attempted to create alternative content to push the blog down in search results but it was so chock full of my full name that anything I created was secondary.  Some ‘THING,’ had more control over my own name than me.

But I’m not the only one.

Businesses suffer tremendously when unwarranted or exaggerated negative feedback is posted without recourse.  People are hurt when bullying occurs over social media.  These mediums, by their design, empower the abuse and further disempower the abused.  The repercussions of such acts are of far greater consequence than the costs: it’s easy to do, often anonymous and, as evidence has shown, it can hurt.

It’s sad that this vehicle with which we can do so much good can render us so imprisoned by our new ‘sensationalist’ behaviors.  ‘Business at the Speed of Thought,’ might not be so thoughtful.  But we can change that.  Through the speed with which we exchange information and the impact we quickly have on others, we can actively redefine what constitutes social norms, decorum, and common sense.  We must learn to exalt compassion, kindness and responsibility ‘online’ and not tolerate petty meanness and hate – just as we do not when ‘offline’.  We need to remember that some relationships live their course and come to an end, that just as in real life, some things are better left unsaid, even online.   Our impact on others, not because of a lack of proximity to them, but because of our new proximity to everyone, has become far more substantial.  With any new tool comes precaution for its potential harm.   We need to learn to use this one more responsibly.

So go ahead, Google me.  Besides learning what a crud I once may have been, you’ll learn just how accomplished and resilient I am - how despite the one negative check in my background, I’ve done some pretty cool things – probably because Google encouraged me to do so.  I dare you, Google me.  Just remember, don’t believe everything you read online.  

Coach for EntrepreneursGuest blog post by Jeremy Tick, Coach for Entrepreneurs. A business owner since the age of 24, Jeremy is uniquely familiar with the challenges faced by individuals at all stages of business development.  His work is dedicated to aid Creative Professionals in building meaningful brands and developing systems and structures for success with which to create sustainable profit. You can reach Jeremy at www.jeremytick.com and www.tickmanagement.com

 

 

Visit Jeremy Tick on School of Coaching Mastery

 

Topics: business coach, blog, blogs, blogging, blogosphere, coach, Google, business, Entrepreneur, black hat

6 Reasons to Run Screaming From a Coach Training School

Posted by Julia Stewart

Red Flag Coaching schools are businesses and sometimes over-state what you, the coaching student will experience, if you join them.

And although most coaching schools are honorable, there is probably no school that can give you everything you want exactly how and when you want it.

Coaching is all about personal responsibility, so if you look at getting what you want as your responsibility (Or at least your shared responsibility), you can always find ways to work with a good coaching school that will leave you saying, I'm so glad I started my coaching career by attending XYZ Coaching School. 

That said, there are some big red flags to watch for when choosing the school where you get your coach training and it's your responsibility to check them out. Here are a few:



 
Red FlagDon’t think for a minute that you can learn everything you need to succeed as a coach in one weekend or in a few hours or days, or even two weeks, no matter how intensive the program. Shy away from promises like these. Short training programs rely on 'systems', 'formulas' or 'templates' that only work in very limited circumstances and are useless in the real world of coaching. Most comprehensive coach training programs take about 2 years to complete. However, you can start attracting paying clients even before you graduate or get certified.

Red Flag

      Think twice about a coaching school that paints a too-good-to-be-true picture of what your coaching business will be like in the first few months. If you want to work part time, make hundreds of dollars per hour, take several weeks of vacation per year, only work when you want to and still make hundreds of thousands of dollars each year, this is indeed possible, but you must work up to it and it doesn’t happen for every coach. Expect to develop your ideal coaching business over time and commit yourself to actively creating it. The best school for you will assist you in succeeding with comprehensive tools that meet your needs.

                                                                                                                                                                 Red FlagMoney-back guarantees sound great, but they can be a bad deal for the coach/student, because they give a false impression that you have nothing to lose. The wrong school for you will get in the way of your success and can cost you far more than the price of tuition. Most reputable schools will expect a strong commitment from you to your own success, which you demonstrate with your willingness to invest in yourself. Because nobody really wants their money back from their coaching school. What they want is a successful coaching business, as quickly as possible. Look for a school that will give you a “value back” promise, which simply states that they will do everything they can to assist your success, as long as you are committed and trying your best.

     Red Flag Coaching SchoolRun away fast from any coaching school that promises you'll make a six figure income in a year or less. What you earn as a coach is ultimately up to you, so any school that offers a dollar amount it pulling that number out of thin air.

                                                                                                                                                           Red Flag            

Watch out for the coaching school that feels overly “slick” or commercial. Some of them are. Look for a commitment to quality and a willingness to give you what you need, not a prefab learning structure that forces you into a model or mold that may not fit for you.

Black Hat

Run like crazy from "Black Hat" coaching schools. These "fly by night" companies may have internet addresses that look and sound like reputable coach training schools or professional coach certifying organizations. In some cases, they may use "black hat" practices, such as buying links or email lists (SPAM) to promote their companies quickly. Google often identifies and shuts down black hatters on the internet in a matter of months, so a "red flag" that you're dealing with a "black hat" is that their URL (online address) is less than a year old and/or it's set to expire in a year or less.

The internet empowers those who use it.

 

Look up the URL of your school at a domain registrar, like GoDaddy.com and check the "Who Is" info for it, to find out how long the domain is registered. You can investigate further by Googling the name of the contact person in the registration. Look for evidence that they have been in the coaching business at least for several years. Note whether they are mentioned in lawsuits on the internet.

Use the "search" functions at Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn and look for the profiles of the school, the owner, or the contact person associated with the domain registration. Also look for current and former students on social networking sites, such as these, and find out if they are happy with their schools. Even a few minutes' investigation can be very enlightening.

Last but not least, check the school's own site for evidence that the owners and instructors are qualified to teach professional coaching skills. Just because they have experience teaching something else, doesn't mean they know how to teach you to be a successful professional business or life coach. 

There are plenty of good coach-training schools, so you can avoid the both the red flags and the black hats. If you'd like more informations, plus a table that compares several of the better schools...

Become a Coach eBook  Download the free Become a Coach! eBook. 

Red Flag photo by archeoastronomia. Black Hat graphic by Joe Shlabotnik. Both from Flickr Creative Commons.

 

 

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Topics: coaching business, coach training, Coach Training Programs, coach training schools, coaching schools, coach training school, money-back guarantee, black hat

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