IT 026: How To Go From Aspiring Coach To Fully Booked Coach & Legit Girl Boss
it026
Check out the Podcast in iTunes here, or read the transcript below. Also, I share a bonus video at the very end of this post, so make sure to check that out, too.
I often get asked how I made the switch from aspiring coach, to full-time coach and entrepreneur.
And I completely understand this question, because I asked it for the longest time.
I asked this even after I became a certified coach and went through coach training. Even after I completed B-School with Marie Forleo. Even after I spent a ton of money on my initial websites (which by the way, I never used).
I still felt like I wasn’t a real entrepreneur.
I went to networking events with my flashy new business cards, feeling like a complete fraud.
Women gravitated towards me and my passion, and that scared me because deep down, I felt I was a faker.
I felt like I was on the outside looking in at a pretty glass window, filled with happy, beautiful entrepreneurs who spent their days working in beautiful cafes, traveling the world, and mingling with other amazing women entrepreneurs. I craved being one of those happy entrepreneurs whose lives felt so effortless and care-free.
I Felt Like I Needed To "Fix Myself" Or "Learn More" Before I Was Ready
I spent a lot of those beginnings years trying to find ways to fix myself and to earn my right to take up space, and to hang my shingle as a coach. I attended conventions, retreats, read self-help books, bought online programs, and made tons of to-do lists.
I coached for free, I traded coaching, and charged really low fees to get experience. I went back to a corporate job so I could pay my bills, and spent my free time doing a lot of things I thought entrepreneurs did – I made a logo, made business cards, networked locally, made lists (seriously, I made a lot of lists).
But even after all of this, I still felt like I wasn’t the real deal. I couldn’t figure out how to make the leap, and I didn’t know how to turn pro. And I was working REALLY hard – nights, weekends, holidays.
So what happened? What’s the “secret?”
It’s not really a secret, it’s actually a simple truth that I know all successful entrepreneurs can relate to.
If you can relate to anything I’ve said so far, pay attention to what I’m going to say next because this is IT lightworkers, this is the secret sauce.
I made a decision to be successful.
I decided I was going to be successful, no matter what.
I decided to no longer be available to my bullshit, my lies, the excuses that I told myself. I decided to no longer be available to going back to a job, to make money while I built my business. I decided that I was SO OVER living a life that felt completely un-aligned and that I was done with it – that I was going to take that hard action that I needed to move forward (more on this later).
In that moment, I decided that I was going to do everything I could to make it as a coach. Not tomorrow, not next month, not next year. Starting NOW.
One of my mentors and coaches, Gina DeVee, has a quote that I love – she says “go after it like your hair is on FIRE.”
Don’t get me wrong – before that moment, I was trying really, really hard. But at the end of the day, I still had a job to fall back on in case I failed. I could always work on my business on the side, I told myself. The truth is, I hadn’t burned my bridges to my mediocre life.
Which meant that it was still a very real possibility to me to fail.
Everything Became Clear After I Decided Success Was the Only Option
I knew that success was the only possibility because I would not STOP until I got there. I invested in the best coaching for me, the best business and marketing training, the best website, designers, support, software.
I decided to show up for my business by being consistent in my content, my Instagram, my newsletter, my Podcast. To get on calls with potential clients, even though it scared me.
Once you decide to succeed, and make yourself available to nothing less, everything becomes easy.
The aching question of "but-what-if-I-fail" is no longer there.
You act as if you are going to succeed because you have a conviction that you are. And that’s what makes it so.
When I decided to succeed in my business, I made some other decisions that were tough, and looking back, I know that's why I didn't make the decision earlier.
3 Big Life Decisions I Made After I Decided To Succeed
First, I left my 9-5 job and moved back in with my grandparents to work on my business full-time. This wasn’t easy – I was already married, and felt super ashamed of doing this, and to top it off, my family was anything but supportive of my dreams.
Second, as you may know, I was forced to re-examine my marriage with a man I LOVE with all my heart, because I knew there was healing that needed to happen in that area before I could be successful. This broke my heart, but now, our relationship is so much stronger because of it.
Third, I got into credit card debt to pay for the programs I knew would take me forward. I grew up in a household that things credit card debt was REALLY bad and shameful, but I had to get over that because I wasn’t going to get the money anywhere else (I had no savings, and no one would help me).
If I didn’t do decide to take those hard actions, I wouldn’t be typing this up at a gorgeous beach-side café in San Diego, while I’m prepping for my next coaching call.
But the decision to take those actions was a no-brainer, once I decided to succeed. It was scary, but it was still OK because I kept the bigger picture in mind.
Without that decision, those actions wouldn't have been worth it because that would have meant risking my whole life for no promised payoff.
Make sense?
Alright lightworkers, I truly hope that this has served you today!
Let me know in the comments below what action you need to take to move forward and decide to succeed!
P.S. Watch this video for extra inspiration!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aI0csRLFbXg