Last month I was invited by a super sweet woman who I met briefly at a conference to take part in her online summit.
The topic?
How to hit consistent $10K months as a coach.
Here was my (probably longer than she bargained for) response:
Hi love,
Thank you for your invitation. I’m honored you thought of me.
As a rule, I only email my list about people who’s work I am deeply familiar with, so if promotion is required, I’m going to have to politely pass.
Additionally, I’m not sure I’m the “right” person to speak on this topic. Though I fit your technical definition, my thoughts may conflict with your message.
In short? The “10k month” milestone (so often touted as an “I’ve made it” badge among coaches) is NOT the dream I “sell” or stand for.
1) I believe it’s misleading…
For starters, what constitutes a $10k month EXACTLY?
Is this booked income (people paying you this amount over the course of several months) or banked income (actual money in the bank)? And are we talking gross profit? Or take home profit after taxes and expenses (which can be quite high when you’re starting out if you “do all the things” experts recommend, like hiring a coach, running FB ads, launching a website, etc.). These can be VERY different numbers that new coaches don’t take into consideration.
2) The fact that we so often only talk about a single month‘s revenue disturbs me.
It’s SO indicative of the fast-cash nature of the coaching industry. I’m honestly less interested in learning from someone who has had a few 10 or even 100K+ months but has only been around for 6 months (those of you reading this who are not in the coaching industry, this is actually not as unusual as you might think). I’m MUCH more interested in learning from someone who has been at this game for at least 5 years and perhaps has less “flash” but more SUSTAINABILITY.
3) While I’m all for money being a less taboo topic (and think when people share their numbers it can be inspiring), money alone provides an incomplete picture of “success” in my book.
I’ll be the first to cheer on a woman making 6 figures running her dream business….but I also want to know:
- How are her intimate relationships?
- When’s the last time she had belly laugh, an adventure, or heck, a good night’s sleep?
- How does she FEEL in her body when she wakes up in the morning?
- Is she GENEROUS with her time and resources?
- Do her clients feel like they are getting amazing value (and renew again and again)…or does she run a business of almost exclusively 1-time buyers?
These are IMPORTANT questions to ask when you’re thinking about hiring someone (or feel stuck comparing yourself to another coach who seems to be “crushing it.”).
If you feel comfortable having me on, knowing that these are my views and that I am unable to promote this to my list, I’d be happy to.
Warmly,
Rebecca
Now, I do not intend for this post to be a downer. Simply a call for greater transparency and real-talk in this industry in service of sustainability.
Does this strike a chord (or hit a nerve) with you?
Leave a comment below and let me know 🙂
