Thursday, October 29, 2026
A lot of owners try the wrong format, see no shift, and decide coaching doesn't work for them. Here's what a peer room is actually good for, what 1:1 coaching is actually good for, and a 3-check way to pick.
Choose a mindset coach if you know what to do but keep not doing it. Choose a strategy coach if you are working hard but unsure where to point the effort. Most growing businesses need strategy first, because confidence built on a weak plan does not last. The best coaches blend both, led by the business, not the pep talk.
A disclosure first: Simple-Growth publishes this guide and Kevin D'Ambros-Smith, an Auckland-based business coach and advisor who has coached 200+ businesses one-on-one across 30+ industries, is one of the coaches discussed. So the guide explains the options and gives you criteria to apply to anyone, Kevin included. Checked 1 November 2026.
A mindset coach works on the person running the business: confidence, habits, fear of selling, the story the owner tells about money and risk. A strategy coach works on the business itself: who the customer is, what you sell, how you price it, where growth will come from and what to stop doing.
Both are legitimate. The trouble starts when you buy one while holding the other problem. A confident owner with an unclear offer simply fails with more energy. A brilliant plan handed to an owner who avoids the phone stays on the shelf.
Run this two-minute test on your last quarter. Ask whether you could write down the three things most likely to grow the business, in order, with a number against each.
If you cannot, you have a strategy gap. You are guessing, and no amount of motivation fixes a guess. If you can, and the list has been sitting there for months, you have an execution or mindset gap. The plan exists and the follow-through does not.
Many owners have both, in sequence. Clarity comes first, then the behaviour that delivers it.
If both lists describe you, that is normal. It usually means the constraint is a decision you have been avoiding. A good coach helps you name it, then makes the next step small enough to take this week.
Because confidence is a result as much as a cause. You feel braver when the numbers are clear, the offer is sharp and you can see why a customer would choose you. Working on belief before the plan is like tuning an engine on a car with no steering.
That is the approach behind the Simple-Growth System. Find the real constraint first, fix it, then build the habits that keep it fixed, before you spend another dollar on marketing, hiring or tools. Strategy and accountability sit side by side, and your thinking is challenged along the way, which is where the useful mindset work happens.
Whether a coach describes themselves as mindset, strategy or both, put these five questions to them and apply the same questions to anyone you are comparing:
A coach who answers these with specifics is worth a conversation. One who answers with slogans is not. Credentials matter less than evidence that they have done the thing, and can show you how.
In the first few sessions the work is diagnostic: where the money comes from, who your best customers are, what is slowing growth. Then comes a short list of priorities with owners, dates and measures, usually over 90 days. After that each session reviews what happened, removes the blocker and sets the next step.
The mindset work is not a separate module. It shows up when you admit why the hard task keeps slipping, and the plan is adjusted around the real reason. Kevin's background across DDB, Ogilvy and Saatchi and Saatchi, then founding or co-founding 9 companies, means he has seen both sides: the strategy that looks right on paper and the owner who has to carry it out on a Tuesday.
"Now have clarity of purpose and belief."
"Pragmatic way of looking at things so what seems impossible becomes very possible."
Lina
Good Gravy
Coaching clients surveyed through The Icehouse return a Net Promoter Score of +72.
Not exactly. A life coach works across personal goals. A mindset coach usually focuses on beliefs, habits and confidence, sometimes inside business. Neither is a substitute for someone who understands how a business makes money, so check what experience sits behind the title.
Yes, and the best ones do. The strategy gives you something concrete to be confident about, and the accountability turns it into action. Ask how a coach blends the two and what they have personally built.
Usually strategy, because a clear priority list makes every later dollar work harder. If you already have a plan and just need to act on it, accountability on a smaller scale may be enough. A short call can help you decide. Eligible New Zealand businesses may also be able to claim co-funding through the Regional Business Partner Network, so ask before you commit.
That depends on the business and the constraint. A good coach should agree measures with you in the first sessions and review them at 90 days, so progress is something you can see rather than a feeling.
Not necessarily. Coaching tends to pay off when you are ambitious, growth has plateaued or a big decision is coming. If you are unsure, an outside conversation costs little and can confirm you are on track.
If you are not sure whether your business needs a clearer plan or a firmer push, a 30-minute conversation will tell you. There is no obligation, and you will leave knowing which gap to close first. You can also read how coaches, consultants, mentors and peer groups differ, see how Kevin coaches NZ business owners, or join The Inside Track to hear first when the online programmes launch.
Last updated 1 November 2026.
Kevin and The Simple-Growth Team