What topics do architects discuss with a coach? And what exactly happens during a coaching session? Anna Mehner has been working as a coach and strategy consultant for architects for 10 years. In her column LET’S TALK, she gives us an insight into excerpts from coaching sessions with architects that could have taken place in this way or in a similar way.

“Hello. My name is Eva S. (fictitious name), I am an architect. I have my own office and I am calling because I think I should perhaps give up being self-employed.” She adds that she is looking for a coach who she doesn’t have to explain to the difficulties that self-employed architects repeatedly have to contend with. “And I thought you might be able to help me?”

When I ask her what she considers her greatest difficulty, Eva replies: “Definitely acquisition. And yes, asserting myself somehow, too.” I ask Eva about her career and she tells me how she got into architecture and why she decided to take the plunge into self-employment four years ago. After I ask her what exactly she would like coaching for, there is a long silence at the other end of the line.

When I ask her what she considers her greatest difficulty, Eva replies: “Definitely acquisition. And yes, asserting myself somehow, too.” I ask Eva about her career and she tells me how she got into architecture and why she decided to take the plunge into self-employment four years ago. After I ask her what exactly she would like coaching for, there is a long silence at the other end of the line.

„Well, as I said, I’m not really sure how to go about acquiring new clients. I realize that you have to sell yourself to a certain extent, but that’s exactly where I have a problem. It should really be about my professional qualifications. I often have ideas about who I could approach, but when I finally want to get started, I become uncertain. I feel like I don’t really have anything to offer that other architecture firms don’t already do. Then I don’t know how to start, and I lose my nerve. I kind of go round in circles.“

When I ask what will be different after the coaching, the answer comes promptly: “The best result would be that I am no longer afraid of acquiring new clients and that I know how to best approach it.” After we have talked for a while, she says she has a good feeling and would like to do the coaching with me. I inform her about the costs, my role in our collaboration, and the scope of the coaching. Finally, we clarify whether we will continue to use formal address or switch to informal address and agree on a first appointment.

A few days later, we begin the coaching process by asking Eva to phrase the goal we set during our phone call in exclusively positive terms. “Not so easy,” Eva remarks after she has begun her first sentences in her old habit with “I don’t want to anymore… There’s no way I’m going to… and It’s never worked that way before…”. The question of what she wants instead puts Eva on the right track. She then formulates her goal as follows: “I am enthusiastically creating my customer base.”

“Eva, you said that your head feels completely empty whenever you try to think about how to win new clients.” Eva rolls her eyes: “Yes, exactly. Total blackout.”
“If you haven’t gotten anywhere with this so far, then you probably haven’t asked yourself one crucial question. That question is: Who is my ideal client? If you can pinpoint what your ideal client should be like, you will automatically develop a keener eye for the people who are a good fit for you and your office.”

To enable Eva to define her ideal clients as precisely as possible, we start by asking the following questions:
What kind of clients do you have or have you had in the past?
Which of these people were the most pleasant to work with and why?
Which former clients are you still in good contact with today? Why is that?
Which of your clients have recommended you to others? What do you think were the reasons for the recommendation?
What makes your architecture firm attractive to these clients beyond the services you provide with your firm?

After Eva has been writing intently for a while and is now staring out of the window lost in thought, I ask her, “What happens when you’re dealing with the questions?”
Eva replies, “Well, what I feel very clearly is that the blockage in my head is slowly dissolving.
It’s just the last question I’m stuck on. I’m not sure I understand it correctly.”
“How do you understand it?” I ask.
“Beyond achievements? What could that be? Shared hobbies or something?”

Eva looks as if she has bitten into a lemon. So I try again: “How about replacing hobbies with interests?”
“That sounds a bit more serious. To be honest, I’ve never thought about that before,” says Eva. “Is there a connection between your interests outside of architecture and your work as an architect?” I ask. “Pfff, yes, maybe.”

“What makes acquiring clients so difficult in some circumstances is the attitude that often accompanies it. The unspoken message is: I want a job,” I explain.
“That’s right. But that’s exactly what I want. Right?”
„Yes, of course you want a job. You need jobs to keep your office running and to live the life you want to live. But honestly, who cares about that except you?“
“Gosh! Probably no one.”
„Probably, yes. If you move away from wanting to have to wanting to give, what is it that you have to give?
And don’t think about performance phases and time – and cost frameworks. Because, first of all, professional qualifications are what is rightly expected, and secondly, this brings us to the point where, at first glance, no distinction or, let’s call it a unique selling point, can be identified.“

“Okay. I see. Now we come to your interests, right?”
“Exactly. During our conversation today, you told me about a topic that has always been of great interest to you. And if I understand you correctly, it was precisely this topic that led you to architecture. Now imagine that there are people out there for whom this topic also plays an important role…”
Eva laughs. “So we have a match?”
“Almost. Because you don’t know each other yet. By answering the initial questions, you were able to find out how well you and your previous clients fit together. You can see who worked well with you and who didn’t. You recognize what contributed to a good relationship, and perhaps commonalities led to you being recommended and the contact continuing beyond the project period. This exercise may make it easier for you to describe your ideal clients.”

Before we end our first session, I give Eva an assignment to prepare for our next meeting.
“I’ll send you an email today with a worksheet containing questions that will help you design your ideal client profile.”
“OK, I’m excited. And what happens next, once I’ve answered the questions?”
“Then we’ll look at the environment in which the people who match your ideal client operate and how you can best get in touch with them.”

Eva sighs and smiles at me. I ask:
“How are you feeling now compared to when we started talking?”
“I feel amazingly refreshed, and above all, I have the feeling that prospecting might even be fun. It could be. Right?”
Now I have to laugh.
“It could be. It always depends on your perspective.”

Text: Anna Mehner

Architects