Three years ago I was waiting to hear from my publisher that The Prosperous Coach, the book Steve Chandler and I had written, was live in the Amazon store.
I spent the first 15 years of my working life as a high school teacher, so it didn’t quite make sense on the inside as I realized that I was about to become an author in the field of coaching.
Three years later and we seem to have struck a chord in the coaching world because the book still sells every single day. Getting close to 25,000 copies sold at this point.
And Steve, Maurice and I get messages from coaches every week about the impact this book is having on their lives, their business and – more importantly – their clients.
Two years ago I partnered with Mindvalley to launch Evercoach and to take the message of The Prosperous Coach to an audience of tens of thousands of extraordinary coaches and consultants.
I feel very privileged.
And it’s still pretty exciting, to be honest!
Here’s the chapter from The Prosperous Coach on turning Pro as a coach:
CHOOSE YOUR LEVEL OF ENGAGEMENT.
OR BE A STRUGGLING COACH.
Here are some powerful contrasts and distinctions that we see between Struggling coaches and those Pro, Part-time, and Personal Growth coaches who are thriving:
The Struggling coach wants to coach anyone and everyone. They are afraid to ask for money. They want to wait until everything is perfect before they charge for coaching. They spend their time, energy and money on “getting the word out.” They think that marketing is essential in order to sign clients.
The Pro coach is committed to coaching, no matter what. Failure doesn’t stop them. They are not embarrassed by their mistakes. There’s no turning back.
The Part‑time coach learns to love their full‑time job. It’s what brings in the cash to allow them to do the coaching they love in their spare time.
The Personal Growth coach loves coach trainings and reading and seminars as ways to deepen their understanding of life, business, money, health and relationships.
• • •
The Struggling coach thinks that because they give advice to their friends they will be successful as a coach. They coach without permission—friends, family and colleagues—and they cannot distinguish between impactful coaching and unsolicited advice.
The Pro coach learns to love selling coaching. And they know that cash is not the only way to be paid for coaching. You can be paid in experiences. You can be paid in relationships. You can be paid in learning. You can be paid in referrals.
The Part‑time coach understands that limitation creates value. Only having a couple of hours a week for coaching makes them more attractive as a coach, not less.
The Personal Growth coach learns to love supporting their friends and family (with their full permission).
• • •
The Struggling coach thinks getting clients is the “hard” part. They seek more and more information about how to “get” clients. They want more and more information on the latest, newest “magic marketing system.” And they think that they just need to find a guru to teach them the “right” way.
The Pro coach knows there is no “hard” part. They love the business side of coaching as much as they love coaching.
• • •
The Struggling coach tries to please everyone.
The Pro coach serves people and does not try to please them.
• • •
The Struggling coach wants to be comfortable. They want to be liked. They people-please. And they wonder why their clients miss sessions and don’t show up on time.
The Pro coach knows that being uncomfortable is the only way to grow. And because they create such powerful agreements, their clients never miss or are late for a session.
• • •
The Struggling coach has huge dreams that overwhelm them.
The Pro coach has huge dreams, and takes tiny steps every day.
• • •
The Struggling coach is scared to ask for money or to state bold fees because they are afraid of rejection.
The Pro coach knows there is no such thing as a high-paying client. Your fees are just a filter for the clients you’d love to coach.
• • •
The Struggling coach spends their time creating a beautiful website, stunning business cards, requesting “likes” for their Facebook group and sends out tweets on the hour.
The Pro coaches their butt off.
• • •
The Struggling coach has never invested in their own coach. They don’t see the message this sends, that they don’t even believe in coaching enough to invest in it for themselves.
The Pro coach understands that receiving coaching is part of their professional development. They model the power of coaching by devoting a significant part of their time, energy, focus and income to
being coached by the best coaches they know.
• • •
The Struggling coach thinks money is like oxygen.
The Pro coach knows that money is just money.
• • •
The Struggling coach thinks confidence is a requirement before taking action.
The Pro coach knows that confidence is a result of taking action.
• • •
The Struggling coach tries to sell the concept of coaching.
The Pro coach sells by giving people a powerful experience of coaching.
• • •
The Struggling coach seeks more and more credentials.
The Pro coach knows that credentials are irrelevant because the only question clients ever want an answer to is: Can you help me?
• • •
The Struggling coach is reactive.
The Pro coach is creative.
Love. Rich