Let’s rewind back to 2003. I was working in my full-time job doing work that I loved, actually. I discovered coaching and began pursuing it as a hobby outside of my job and had discovered that this is what I was born to do!
Then one day, totally unexpected, I was FIRED from my job. WHAT THE ?!?!?! This type-A, overachiever, perfectionist (back then anyways) does not get fired. That doesn’t happen to me! I went through so many emotions in that moment all at once. I was totally shocked, couldn’t believe it. Then I hit the pissed stage, then the embarrassed stage kicked in and I finally landed in fear. In a matter of moments, I actually thought I would be homeless, dying in a gutter, with no food and no clothes… In that moment, that’s how real my fear made everything feel.
After calling a close girlfriend and totally freaking out about what happened to me, she asked me “what’s the worst thing that could happen?!” After barking back at her “didn’t you hear me? I said I’m gonna be homeless, dead in a gutter with no clothes and no food!” She said “Good! I have an extra bedroom, we wear the same size clothes and I have more food in my pantry than I can eat.” What else are you worried about?”
And just like that, my fear dissipated. I faced my worst nightmare head on. And I realized that I was a smart woman, totally capable of whatever I put my mind to and I realized that while this was a total shock, it would not be the end of me. I realized that I could come out of this any way I wanted to.
And in that moment, I made a decision. I decided that rather than go get another job I would turn my hobby of coaching into a business. After all, this was my new found calling!
The only problem was I had NO experience in starting a business! I had only ever been an employee. I had no idea where to even begin, what to do or how to get started. I just knew I did NOT want to get a job and I needed to make money quickly.
And because I was also recently divorced at the time and on my own for the very first time in my life, I had to work smarter, not harder to get my business doing!
I became obsessed with learning everything that needed to be in place behind the scenes of my coaching business so it was organized and streamlined in advance before I dared to even try to get clients. I knew that when someone said YES to hiring me, I wanted to be 100% confident I could deliver on what I promised and I wanted to make sure nothing slipped through the cracks; after all, folks were going to be paying me for my services!
And because my super power is organization and efficiency (really, I geek out over this), it wasn’t too long before I had my entire business set up and launched. And within six months I had a full practice of 18 full-paying clients and was on my way to making over $50k in my first year… and I was having a blast and I hadn’t even finished my coach training.
Our stories and experiences don’t define us; but how we respond to them is where the real power lives!
In our upcoming Livecast, I’m going to share with you stories from 12 other coaches and their journeys, the obstacles they faced in starting their business, how they overcame them, the actions they took, the strategies they implemented and the results they’re now experiencing!
Follow me here, on our Public Page, to be notified when I go live with my 12 guests; real coaches getting real results… will you be the next success story?
My dad, my greatest hero, become my biggest naysayer. I’ll never forget that lunch. It was one of the most gut-wrenching days of my early career. I was brand new in my business and the steady revenue hadn’t kicked in yet. I had expenses and my debt was increasing quickly. But I just knew this business was going to work!
At lunch one day I was talking with my father (who is one of the most amazing men I know) and was sharing my financial struggles with him. And he, as only a dad can do, tilted his glasses to the tip of his nose, peered over the top of the rims and said to me “Melinda, it’s simple. Your outgo is more than your income. You just need to get a job.” UGH! Did he really just say that to me?!?! I mean my greatest hero, my raving fan, my true believer…. Really? He just stopped believing in me and my dreams?? Yep, he sure did! It was like a knife in my heart slicing out my dreams. Now, my father, at the time, meant that in deep love and in support of making sure I was taking care of myself while pursuing my dreams, but I couldn’t hear that until the gift of hindsight had kicked in. That day at lunch, when those words came from my dad’s mouth, the only thing I heard was “give up on your dream Melinda, it’s no use.” I stood up from the table and with every ounce I had in me I looked at my dad, said a few choice swear words and said to him “oh yeah, watch this!” In the coming months, I made darn sure I had my stuff together in the back end of my business so there was no way I was going to fail. Failure was not an option!
And I knew that to the degree I had my back end set up, the systems and processes in place, the way I set myself up to support my clients so I could over-deliver, making sure I had the mechanisms in place to make it easy to grow my list by leaps and bounds (not just by one or two here and there) … I knew that to the degree I had systems and an infrastructure in place to support everything necessary to grow my list, get clients and make money, that I would experience that same degree of success! While most of my colleagues were focusing on the latest marketing fad, I was focusing on the back end of my business being so organized, streamlined and automated that it didn’t require much of my time to handle it all so I could eventually spend more focusing on marketing and working with my clients – instead of like my colleagues, scrambling around behind the scenes, highly stressed trying to figure out how to make it all happen. I had already done all that so when I did start marketing, it was like a machine of endless referrals and clients! And in a few short months I had a full practice of 18 paying clients and raving fans that would then refer me tons of new clients into the months and years to come! Because I spent just a bit of time getting my stuff organized behind the scenes I was confident I could deliver what I was promising and powerfully serving my clients to get outrageous results. And this, this made all the difference in the months and years to come.
Now I can say thank you to my dad… for in that moment when he, out of deep love, became my greatest naysayer, he became my greatest motivating factor! And because of that single moment in history, and me taking on the challenge, my business is now well beyond the 7-figure mark and I’m supporting thousands of other coaches to do the same!
In fact, I’m offering a free Masterclass to share what I learned with you as well – Coaching Business GPS: The Step-by-Step Guidance and Magic Behind an Easy Breezy Coaching Business. Click below to reserve your free spot and join me as I share with you the 3 secrets successful coaches implement to create a thriving business that runs itself. Plus, I’ll be taking you behind the scenes so you know the TRUTH about what it really takes behind the scenes to make all the magic of your business happen… And when you implement the 1 strategy I’ll be sharing during this free masterclass, it will be way easier and less time consuming than you think!
So, click on the link below and reserve your free spot on this upcoming Masterclass.
You know that sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach when you get that letter that starts with “We regret to inform you that we are unable to offer you….” Maybe you don’t. But I sure do! It happened when I applied to college! I wanted to double major in Interior Design and Music so this particular school was perfect for me!
I was PISSED when I got that letter and rejected me! I was an ideal candidate! Everything about my application was spot on… except for me SAT scores (another embarrassing story for a different post). Other than that, there was no reason they shouldn’t have accepted me. Other friends got accepted that had worse scores than me and a lot less on their college resume! I couldn’t believe it!
Anytime I saw someone wearing a sweatshirt from that college or their car had a bumper sticker from that college I always thought to myself “What do they have that I don’t? They don’t want it as bad as me! It’s not FAIR!!!”
Oh, I was pissed!
That rejection didn’t stop me! It became my rocket fuel for my desire! My desire WAS going to become a reality!!!
I found out the exact pieces I needed to have in place so I could transfer in… and for the next two years, at a local private college, I became persistent and excelled in implementing those precise steps, it caused me to do even better, honing my skills and talents. I rose to the occasion, took persistent and took consistent action.
My dream may have been delayed by 2 years, but I made it… with flying colors! I transferred to the college of my dreams and the final 3 years of school were the best years ever! And I became an even better version of myself in the process.
Even if it feels like your dream is not unfolding like you thought or your dream seems to be shut down, DON’T GIVE UP!!
Keep taking guided, consistent action. Find out what it takes to make your dream a reality and then commit to doing it! Sometimes a “NO” is just an invitation from the Universe for you to say a bigger, louder YES!
That’s why I’ve put together The Coaching Business Roadmap To Success. A complimentary resource with the exact pieces and the precise sequence to set up your entire coaching business – from start to finish! Now you can simply take each step and turn your dream into a reality!
Click on the link below and grab your roadmap today!
I was at a Summit with some colleagues and potential referral partners and standing there in front of them, for my “Hot Seat Coaching,” I revealed that I didn’t have a clue what I was doing when it came to messaging… I had made it this far into my business career and I did not know how to talk about the results I helped people get. I did not know how to create marketing copy!
For them, it came easy. Most of the folks in the room were masters of marketing!
I’m a systems gal, not a “copy” gal… I love making things organized and efficient behind the scenes… not writing copy or marketing messages… I geek out over features and how the work… not over describing the end-result impact…
So, when it came to marketing in my business, I only knew how to talk about the features – my services and all about coaching… I assumed the prospect I was talking to would make the correlation about how coaching (and later in my case for software) would benefit their lives. I didn’t know I had to spell it out for them, much less how to actually articulate it or write about it in my messaging.
Sitting in front of that room at that Summit, it felt like I was “found out.” It felt like they knew I was the fraud I felt like inside…
They were all so gracious and provided such great insight, coaching support and ultimately showed me so much love that I couldn’t help but to transform this moment for myself!
I mean some of these folks could potentially get me in front of hundreds and thousands of potential ideal clients. So, I got super busy teaching myself everything I needed to know about copywriting. I knew marketing. I knew networking. Now I needed to know messaging and copywriting.
I couldn’t afford to hire an agency at the time to just do it for me… boy that would have been nice and don’t think I didn’t try. It was up to me. I had to learn this. I had to overcome this obstacle so when I created my marketing content people would understand the message I was conveying and they’d be interested in what I was offering. I could, however, afford to hire a coach who taught me how to write copy. It took 2 ½ grueling years of disciplined effort, consistent action and accountability from a writing coach to transform this feature-focused gal into a value-driven and result-based copywriter. I began to create compelling copy that generated hundreds of thousands of dollars in promotions and clients… And eventually I knew our market, our ideal client and our messaging so well that when I could afford to hire an agency I was equipped to hire the RIGHT fit for my message, passion and calling. I wasn’t blindly just dumping this necessary task into someone else’s lap without fully understanding it myself first.
As a result, I intimately know my ideal client. I deeply know their challenges and desires and because of that, I can create endless streams of resources, content, material and programs that generate revenue and serve my prospects and clients beyond their wildest dreams. And because I have the infrastructure in place behind the scenes, I can scale as big and as quickly as I desire.
In fact, that is why I’ve created The Coaching Business Content Creation Template to save you years of grueling struggle and embarrassment! In this Content-Creation Template I share with you the core foundation of creating compelling copy!
Click below to grab your copy and create compelling copy that easily attracts those you wish to serve! I walk you through it all in an interactive fill-in-the-blank template to make it Easy Breezy!
It’s finally here… our FREE Business Building Quest 8-day Workshop Series and to bring you the fastest and funnest way to start and scale a coaching business!
In this Opening Ceremony, I’ll share with you:
~ Your schedule of events
~ Free business and marketing resources, trainings and step-by-step guidance
~ An invitation to ask a different question
~ The 4 Stages of learning to share with your clients
We kick of this workshop series tomorrow (Monday) and the free resources we’re about to unveil will set you up to work smarter and not harder, make your life WAY easier and have a heck of a lot more fun while you set up, launch and manage your business!
Plus, I reveal my 3 secrets to exude passion and joy, to maintain your energy and expand your capacity to receive… even in the midst of the challenges of starting your business!
To follow along in this Workshop Series and get more details, support and fun, join our Coaching Lifestyle Facebook Group
Between September 2015 and December 2016, my life was filled with seemingly never-ending, unexpected tragic, devastating events that took me away from my business for extended periods of time… my mother passed away unexpectedly, close friends had a total-loss house fire and I lost my 5-year old Godson in that fire, family members got sick, surgeries… it just wouldn’t stop. And these weren’t just little things that I could ignore because I “had a business to run.” These were life-altering, life-threatening situations that required my full, undivided presence and attention. And that meant that I had to stop working IN my business and ON my business; sometimes for several weeks and in one case two months at a time. My mother was one of my best friends and shaped me into the woman I’ve become today. She was one of my true-believers for my business! She was a bright light that impacted the lives of many! And my Godson, Logan, his zest for life reminded me all the time to stop and smell the roses (or in our case, eat some macaroons and drink some lemonade) every chance you get! There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think of these two beautiful souls.
A few weeks into me being away from my business with my mother while she was sick, it dawned on me “wait a minute, my business is still running and I’m not even there!” Because I had my business organized and systems and processes in place in the back end, much of my business was automated and running itself… and because it was organized, automated and streamlined, it was easy for team members to quickly step in and run it for me… my business continued, even in my absence. I didn’t have to choose between business and family. My business was running, revenue was being generated, clients were being supported, programs were being launched and at the same time I was able to put my attention on my family and my own self-care.
This continued off and on over several months and as it turned out, when we reached the end of 2016 we discovered we’d had our best year ever! Because we had the back-end infrastructure in place that allowed my team members to step in and basically do my job, the business continued to thrive. (Thank God for organization and for team members)
I never wanted to be in a place where I had to choose between my business or my family. Both are equally as important to me. Heck, when you launch your own business, it’s like giving birth and it’s your baby.
I was and still am deeply…profoundly grateful for my sense of organization, efficiency, infrastructure, systems and to my team for keeping the business thriving.
Sadly, for most entrepreneurs their business is 100% dependent on them. If they have to stop working, their business ceases to exist! It doesn’t have to be that way… with a little bit of time and attention on the back-end of your business your system can run the business and you can manage the system (or a team member).
When you know the pieces and the best practices and what to put in place in the back end so your business is running like a well-oiled machine… that’s the power of a leveraged and optimized back end. You never know what is going to happen in your life… there is never a time like the present to get prepared so your business can thrive no matter what life brings your way!
In fact, I’ve created The Ultimate Coaching Business Blueprint so you know EXACTLY what you need to have set up in the back end so your business is organized, streamlined and automated. I’ve also created an accompanying video training, “The Fastest & Funnest Way to Scale a Coaching Business,” where I take you on a deep dive of understanding these pieces and how the work together in the back end of your business!
So, click the link below and grab your copy of this FREE resource today!
