My pal and US super-coach Bradley Grinnen had an experience this week which eerily mirrored one of my own.
He was talking to a lady who’s spent two years getting certified to be a qualified life coach. She’s now “ready” to start blogging, podcasting and showing the world her chops.
My conversation was with a guy who’d transitioned from full-time employment, but waited until he’d got his coaching qualifications so he could hit the ground running.
Let’s just itemise some problems with that approach – the idea of only giving yourself permission to start work once your “studies” are complete:
- There is no coaching qualification I’m aware of that teaches you how identify, attract and engage with your ideal clients
- The hardest part of being a coach is finding people who will pay you to coach them
- Being highly skilled at coaching nobody doesn’t achieve anything for you, or the wider world
- Generally, getting coaching qualifications costs money which you could otherwise have spent on learning how to find clients
- It also costs time (way more valuable than money) which you could have spent learning client attraction
Look, I get it.
- You need to feel confident in being able to deliver results
- You don’t want to be stumped for an answer
- You have to come over like you know what you’re talking about
- You need to project an air of authority
- You have to actually get results
I get all of that.
But here’s the good news:
You’ve already got it.
It’s who you are.
Now go out and find someone who’ll pay you to talk to them.
Jonny
PS – To make that whole finding-your-ideal-client thing even easier, I’m running my FREE Facebook Group Masterclass at the end of April, designed for coaches and therapists who’d like to build a thriving Group like Jonny Hates Marketing. Register here, but hurry – places are limited and going fast.