The art of getting your boss to pay
With the right strategy, you can get your employer to foot the entire bill, or at least part of it. This is what you do:
Think about the benefit coaching will bring to the company
Hardly any company is going to pay for your coaching unless they get some concrete return on their investment. The more “benefits” you can point out, the more likely your boss will be willing to open his wallet. So get out a piece of paper and write down all the good things that can come out of your coaching, seen from the company’s point of view.
Ask your colleagues about coachin
Has anyone else at your company had coaching? Talk to them. What kind of arguments did they present to get the boss to go along with it? It is perfectly allowed to use exactly the same arguments if you think they are relevant to your situation. Have others been denied coaching? Talk to them, too. What kind of arguments did they use? That way you will know which earlier arguments had no effect.
Present a complete package
Often, a boss wants to know exactly what it is he or she is saying yes to. Prepare as much as you can beforehand: at least mention the coaches, how great an expense it will be for the company and the references for the coach. If you want, you can compare your coaching with ordinary courses for “conflict resolution”, “stress management” and “leadership”. One big difference between a course and coaching is that a course takes place in a classroom with many others, while coaching is a personalised training tailored to just your own situation.
Present your idea at the right moment
Timing is important if you are to get the boss to foot the bill. The experiences of others show that there are five instances that are particularly favourable for a discussion about coaching:
- At a work conference. This is where the boss often has demands put upon him (implicit or explicit from the board of directors) to talk to you about your overall role and to help you to progress in your job. If you mention coaching, it shows that you have ambitions as well.
- When negotiating your salary. Many include coaching as a part of their salary negotiations. For example, you can tell your boss: “One way for you to keep down labour costs is to accept the costs for my coaching for half a year. That way we both gain. In that case I would be satisfied with a pay-raise of 300 dollars”.
- When downsizing. Decent employers see a great value in helping their laid-off staff move on in their working lives and are therefore open to listening to your requests.
- When the work situation is overstressed. If the employer is aware that you teeter on the brink of burnout, coaching is much cheaper than paying for sick-leave.
- When you have done a good job. Have you saved up a few brownie points for some reason? You just might get a favour returned …
Naturally, you can just go and knock on your boss’s door at any time. Just make sure that he or she is not too stressed out at the time. A tried and true method is first to book a time: “I would like to talk to you about something which I have given a lot of thought. It will take maybe fifteen minutes. When is a good time for you?”