I LOVE to ski—for years now, it’s been a passion of mine. I love it for all the things you’re probably imagining: the beauty of nature, the peacefulness of fresh fallen snow that sparkles, the adventure.
I also love it for what it taught me about business and life.
I learned how to ski when I was a teenager and lived in Illinois—where most of the mountains are manmade, and the Black Diamonds are like little anthills. So when I moved to Virginia, I encountered real mountains, and they scared me!
Because I was under the spell of Perfect Portia—an inner villain who insisted I always look good at whatever I was doing, no matter what!—I skied only the mountains where I thought I could get from top to bottom while looking perfect (or at least, really good).
For years, I justified this by telling myself that I didn’t want to fall and break a leg. But the truth was that I didn’t want to fall and look bad.
After my first husband and I got divorced (we did a lot of skiing together), I stopped skiing for years. When I eventually started again, I noticed the same pattern: I’d only ski where I thought I looked good.
As a result, I was missing three-quarters of the mountains.
I’d travel to places of incredible beauty like the Rocky Mountains and the Canadian Rockies. And I’d hear other people talking about the amazing adventures they had on these bigger mountains, the beauty they immersed in, and the wildlife they saw (like moose and foxes!).
I was missing out on SO much … because I was playing it safe.
Then, on one particular trip to Banff, Canada, I heard some guys talking about the runs they’d had that day and how beautiful it was up there, and I thought, “I can’t miss this any more. I’ve got to figure out how to get there.”
The key here: my desire became greater than my fear.
These guys weren’t experts, but they were great skiers. They could ski any part of any mountain, enjoy the experience, see the beauty, and have the adventure (with no fear of how they looked).
So that was it! I made a decision then and there: wherever they went, I was going, too.
Now let me tell you … when we got to the top of the first mountain, I thought, “OMG. What have I done?”
I was terrified. But there I was, looking down, and I knew there was only one way off that mountain: to ski, no matter how imperfect I might look.
And that’s when I had an epiphany.
I realized that if I followed the tracks these guys had already laid down, and did what they did, then I’d be okay.
And it worked! Even though I was scared to death, and my skiing did NOT look pretty or perfect (truth: I’m sure I was anything but graceful!), I made it down that mountain.
I got to have that adventure I wanted.
Yes, I got stuck on my way down. I even needed help to get unstuck and keep moving forward! But I saw the trees and the mountains and the wildlife. I experienced more in that single day than I had in all the 20 years before that combined.
And it was the best ski day of my life!
I felt accomplished. And I learned that I AM capable—even more so when I have guidance.
So I started taking lessons at every level of ability, to continue sharpening my skills and keep improving as a skier. Now, I know, with confidence, that I can go to any part of the mountain and get down it. It may not be perfect, but the imperfections allow me to have continuous adventures!
I wanted to share this story with you today because it highlights two things I consider crucial to your business success:
Emulate before you innovate.
Find a training program that paves the way for your success. Find a community to support you and help you and guide you when you get stuck. Then, learn in motion, just like I did.
Be sure to seek continuous guidance.
When you do, you’ll find that you have the opportunity to enjoy the adventure that running a business can absolutely be!
To help you get started, I’ve created an important (and complimentary) resource designed to give you a path to follow as you begin taking important steps in launching and growing your coaching business. It’s called 12 Proven Strategies for Launching & Scaling a Coaching Business Now and you can download it, here, now.
Regarding your business, or your the early stages of your business, maybe you’re doing so many different things; and it doesn’t matter what you’re doing, you can’t seem to create the success that you dream of, that you know is possible, that you see happening for other people, but it’s not happening for you. And a lot of times, our subconscious is playing a part in this. And I just want to bring this out into the spotlight, so you know what’s going on the inside. Because when you know that, then you can change things on the outside. And here’s kind of how this progression happens when you first get started, and, setting up your business or in the early stages. A lot of times, you don’t know what you don’t know, right? Like my guess is you’ve never started a business before. And so, this is brand new territory. You’re good at what you do, right? Being a great coach is one thing having, a thriving coaching business, it’s altogether different. So, you don’t know what you don’t know – and then that leads to flying by the seat of our pants. There’s like this path, that this choice that you have, right? And most of the time, it’s this our passion, and, our enthusiasm about starting this new venture gets the best of us, and, all of a sudden, we’re just flying by the seat of our pants; figuring it out as we go along. And that leads to “oh crap! now what?” and all of a sudden you’re in reactionary mode. When it comes to your business, you learn, “oh my gosh I need to do that,” “oh I didn’t know that okay I got to do that.” All these people are telling you things, and, you’re in this oh-crap reactionary mode. That’s stressful, really depleting on the energy. It has a lot of other consequence as well. And when we’re in that mode, all we can be is uncertain. Like uncertainty is ruling things. Lack of confidence is what shows up. This react “oh my gosh. should I forget something is?” “Something slipping through the cracks?” “Do I know about this?” “What don’t I know?” “What else is going to show?” And all of a sudden, this doubt takes over – and when that happens, these villains start rushing forward. You feel like a fraud; you’re not good enough; things aren’t good enough; your business isn’t good enough; you’re comparing yourself to other people, and, I could go on and on with the villains that are showing up. And that’s what’s ruling your thoughts, your energy, your behaviors, your actions. You’re trying to have sessions with prospects, are trying to find them, and, all of this is clouding your judgment. And subconsciously, when these, when these villains kick in, and, this uncertainty, and, this lack of confidence in this doubt is prevailing. This is it permeates everything, right? It’s like this – these enter, this energy that’s mixed in and permeating through everything. And so when you’re, you know, your mouth is saying “I need clients, I want clients, I want to make money,” but subconsciously, you’re digging your heels. And you’re like no, because if I if I put myself out there, they’re gonna discover the fraud that I am. They’re gonna realize I don’t have my stuff together. When really, what you want to be as professional. And you want to be of profound service but you feel like anything but that in that moment right so you’re cutting your subconscious is screaming no; while your mouth is saying yes. And you’re in this tug-of-war with yourself, right? So, does this sound familiar? And it’s so common with so many entrepreneurs, because they don’t know. What they don’t know they’ve never done this before, right? And there’s a way to turn this around. The first is just to realize this – to realize that there’s this disconnect, and, then to make a commitment to learn what you need, to know about setting up a business. Because there are some important things that you have to know, and, what I find is that a lot of people, they just put their attention on “let me try to get more clients, okay?” That marketing strategy didn’t work. Let me go try another marketing strategy, and, they just keep trying different marketing strategies; hoping the next one will work. Meanwhile, they’re not taking care of things behind the scenes in their business, and, behind the scenes, and, their energy. So, their subconscious keeps them at this tug-of-war.
You hit a plateau. You feel it doesn’t matter. What you do, you can’t grow beyond the few pro bono clients you have, or the revenue ceiling that you’ve hit. And it’s what happens behind the scenes, both in your business, and, in you energetically where you can make a big difference. So, I just want to put that out there because sometimes you’re a tug-of-war with yourself; and you don’t even know it. So just drop that rope. Make the commitment to learn what you need to learn; about the business of coaching.
Share this below if there is some else – colleagues of yours, or other peer coaches that are out there, that are struggling with getting clients, and, making money. Most of the time, it’s not because of marketing, and it’s no because they’re not a good coach. Usually, it’s because they don’t know. What they don’t know, and the business side of things. So share this with the people that you know are tag some folks below. Because in the coming weeks, we have got some resources to help you know what you need to know. All the pieces, the steps, the sequence, so that you can confidently move through your business and get yourself into alignment; so that you can feel confident. Putting yourself out there, being seen because the world is ready and waiting for your work. We are in a great time of transformation. And I believe that coaches and entrepreneurs are going to change the culture across the globe. So, we’ve got to get you out of your own way so that you can get into agreement with yourself and get your business up and running and thriving. You can share this with those you know, and, tag some people who could really stand to learn these resources because I can’t wait to get my hands on you and their business
Have you met Nan? You can actually click below, and, read her story – about how she started her business; but I wanted to hop
in here and just share with you what I love about Nan’s story, and, what has inspired me about her story.
You see, well she’s a woman. After my own heart, she knew to get organized upfront to get her business the kind of set up behind the scenes before she got going. So, you know I’m gonna geek out on that. And that’s exactly what man did, but it allowed her to do something else. And this is what I really admire about Nan. And what I’ve loved watching her, on her journey because she was organized behind the scenes right from the very beginning, she had everything in place, as she could attract clients, get them, convert them. All that has worked out for him. What she wasn’t clear on was her niche. She knew she wanted to serve people. She knew she wanted to help people, and, make a big impact; but she wasn’t clear on exactly who they were, and, where to find them, or
how to articulate it. Most of all, because she was organized behind the scenes, she wasn’t distracted or stressed. She could put all of her attention and energy, and, getting really clear on the people she’s meant to serve. How to articulate that out in public, how to put
herself out there, and, as a result, she began to acquire prospects and clients pretty quickly. And what it’s really allowed her to do is to think bigger, and, dream a bigger business.
Now, I’ve known Nan for years now. She’s been on this journey through her coaching business. And I’ve had the honour to support her in that. And she continues to scale to the next level, and, then scale to the next level, and, then continues to keep growing in exactly the way she wants her business to grow – defined by her. You know, I might want my business to look a certain way, maybe you want your business to look a different way. And Nan, maybe she wants her business to look different again. But what I love about nNan is, she’s crystal clear on what she wants her business to look like, and, her lifestyle, to look like, to match, and, be able to support her family, and, she does it! Because she’s organized behind the scenes, and, she’s clear on her niche.
Those two powerful combinations has allowed her to think bigger, and, dream bigger. See, if you are inspired by her story, you can click on the link below. You’ll read about Nan’s story, and, then you’ll also see that we have – a collection of 11 other successful entrepreneurs, and, their story may just inspire you.
You are here to do great things in this world. You have these gifts, and, these talents you were born to do this. Now, we just got to
get some of the details in place. To make sure you can do this, and, make that big impact. I love what you do. See what you’re inspired by Nan’s story. I can’t wait to hear. Comment below let me know how it affects your journey.
When Nan Reed Twiss launched her Coach for Higher coaching practice, she did it right the first time: she began using The Coaches Console from the start.
Nan believes doing so saved her from dealing with the challenges of automation and organization—and spared her from discovering the hard way what she didn’t know in terms of running the back end of her business.
Of course, all business owners face challenges, and although Nan skipped the technology-related ones, she did struggle with defining her niche. She wanted to be really clear about who she wanted to serve, so she could develop an effective marketing strategy.
This was several years into her coaching practice, and by then, the inner circle that had led to most of her clients wasn’t enough to fuel the larger business she wanted to build. She was afraid her client base might dribble away. And although business was steady, she knew that with the addition of online and group programs, it could be even better in terms of enabling her to be affordable for more clients, serve more people, and make more money—all while enjoying time freedom.
With that in mind, Nan enrolled in our Easy Breezy Coaching Business Bootcamp.
During our time together, Nan changed and refined her niche, and rewrote her website to reflect her new direction. As a result of this refined niche and marketing, she built her community—through networking, workshops, and increased business opportunities.
In addition to building her community, she built her client base! While she signed some clients right away, others came to her several years later—but she said all those new clients were directly traceable to what she did in Bootcamp.
As Nan began to experience the results she desired, she also experienced an expanded sense of optimism and possibility, she said, like, “Maybe I really can do this.”
She realized that as she grew her client base and added income streams to her business model, she was earning enough money that maybe she wouldn’t have to rent out her summer happy place on the lake, which meant she could spend more family time there.
The proof that Bootcamp worked for Nan is in the numbers: she nearly quadrupled her pre-Bootcamp annual income as a result of the changes she made.
In fact, she said that although she hadn’t compromised her family time at all, the increase in her income has allowed her to reserve an entire month for her family to spend at their lake house two years in a row.
Although Nan had our integrated software solution in place from the beginning, what she experienced in Bootcamp encouraged her to step up her game—to think bigger than she had been.
She said, “Bootcamp set higher goals for me than I had been setting for myself—and it worked.”
If you’d like to read more real-life success stories inspired by the Easy Breezy Coaching Business Bootcamp and The Coaches Console, download your complimentary copy of 12 Proven Strategies for Launching & Scaling a Coaching Business Now, here.
PS: Nan’s goal is to help her clients deepen their learning and produce extraordinary results in their lives, careers, businesses, and organizations. She brings more than twenty years of experience as a coach, consultant, facilitator, and educator. Her clients include senior partners at top management consulting firms, middle managers at Fortune 500 companies, small business owners, and gang kids in Oakland, California. Whatever the engagement, her clients become better at motivating, inspiring, and bringing out greatness in others – as well as in themselves – to make a positive difference in their world professionally and personally.
I see it time and time again people enrol into a program. They have great learning but their struggle is still there. They roll into a program they have great learning but the struggle is still there. Like over and over again, you have all of this learning; but the struggle still exists. Like why is that?
So, I’ve been really dissecting this and it brought me to two conclusions. The first conclusion that I want to share with you is there are two big obstacles to success that I see common among entrepreneurs. It’s like this double-edged sword. Right, as an entrepreneur, we have the freedom and flexibility of being our own boss, and working out of our own home. Being able to work on our own time, schedule, and, all that but the other side of that coin is isolation. Isolation is one of the biggest obstacles to success.
For an entrepreneur, the second thing is learning. Without doing just great learning, does not create transformation. It creates great learning but not transformation. And so the struggle still exists. And you just keep looking at it from all different kind of vantage points. Right? And what we really want is transformation not learning. Transformation is active – it’s not passive. You are involved in that and when I really looked at the people that experienced transformation, I look at a lot of our clients and a lot of the people in our community. And I just finished up we just had a two-day workshop with our accelerators in our accelerator program.
When I look at what creates the transformation, there’s these four pillars of transformation that are common with everybody. There is the knowledge and great learning that is certainly an ingredient. Plus there is an added layer of support around the learning. So it’s not just great learning but it turns it into new habits, and, new patterns in their life new perspectives. And then there’s the component of community, the third pillar is there must be community as entrepreneurs. Especially as those of us that are women, we thrive in community. It’s where our creativity flourishes. It’s where we are at our best.
So when you have knowledge plus support wrapped in community, and then the platform to implement what you’re learning. Learning without doing is the death of your transformation. You must have learning. And you must have doing. They have to exist so you need to have all four of those to really experience transformation. So, make sure the next time you’re investing into something, whether it’s a program, an event, whether you’re investing just your time, your money, your energy, make sure that you have all four of those things president. What you’re investing in knowledge, support community, and, platform, those things will help you be active in your transformation. That’s where the real work is done. That’s where the real reward is done. And I want you to create the business beyond your wildest dreams, so you can live the lifestyle beyond your wildest dream. And transformation is where that happens.
So comment below! What is one of those four elements that you want to see more of in your business journey on your way to transformation on your way to success of creating that thriving business which one of those four maybe all four may be a combination. Comment below which one of those four knowledge support community or the platform which one would you like to see more of in your business. I can’t wait to see where you are on your journey.
Bright shiny objects – it happens. We all have experience with it, and, for entrepreneurs, when they’re first stepping out, and, starting their business. You know that’s a big step out of your comfort zone. And what happens when you step out of your comfort zone, resistance shows up. Fears get louder. Frustrations come into play. And when that is taking over, we are quick to grab onto whatever bright shiny objects might be around; so that we can try to make ourselves feel better, and, try to have control in the chaos of being out of our comfort zone, right? In over the last few years, we have entered into this information-overwhelmed kind of stage; where people are just: “let me do this, let me dive into that, oh that will help me this, will fix that, that’ll be the thing that I need.” And it’s this whole if-then thinking: “if I do this, then everything will be great.” “If I just learn this, then I’ll get my business up.” “If I just do this, I’ll get clients.” “If I just do this, I’ll start making money.” And it’s this whole reactionary “if-then” thinking that these bright shiny objects continue to cycle within us, right? This also causes us to master unnecessary things. Things that other people have told us are important, because it’s important for them. But they tell us that we need to know, this thing, or else, and, it causes us to spend our time, energy, and, attention, diving deep on things that really don’t matter.
And I want to help you to stop falling prey to the bright shiny object that whole reactionary syndrome, right? And one of the things that we wrote about in one of our blog posts, was what I use in my business is called a business opportunity filter. And I have set up certain parameters that help me understand when something catches my attention, because as entrepreneurs, we’re creative. So, we’re going to have lots of creative ideas. We’re gonna see lots of really incredible things, and, we then as the business owner, have to decide – is this a yes? is it a nice thing to do? is it necessary is? If neither one of those is it a yes, not now, maybe later. Like we have to discern that for ourselves. Otherwise, everybody else is going to tell us what’s important. So, when you can have this business opportunity filter to help identify your priorities, what your return on your investment, when you put your time, energy, and, investment into something, what’s the return gonna be, when is that going to have it, is there social proof, and, evidence of it, and, then it comes down to this do you, and, will you have the support and the community around you to be accountable. And giving it your all if you don’t, why are you doing it? You’re just in that rut of if-then, if-when thinking; and you’re in that reactionary mode. It wreaks havoc on your emotions. It wreaks havoc on your intellect. You’re less creative, you’re less healthy, and, it like covers all aspects of us as humans. And I want you to bring all of yourself to your business, so you can bring all of yourself to your community, in your clients. So, set up a business opportunity filter so you are the one in control of what you want to say yes to, what’s a no, and, what’s a yes but not yet, sound good. What’s something that you can do today that allows you to put those parameters in place, and, put the other ideas kind of on a parking lot, maybe dump them into a document, and, once a month you review them to see if you need to pull them out or not. But take control of these bright shiny objects. You are in control of your business.
The key here: my desire became greater than my fear.
Emulate before you innovate.
Be sure to seek continuous guidance.
When Nan Reed Twiss launched her Coach for Higher coaching practice, she did it right the first time: she began using The Coaches Console from the start.