Sometimes it feels …. ‘awkward’ to put ourselves ‘out there’
If you are afraid, if you quake, if you have a fear of putting yourself out there as a coach you’re not alone.
We’re given messages about being ‘nice’, ‘be seen and not heard’. And who wants to be the obnoxious person shouting ‘look at me! Look at me!?’
But when you’re setting up a coaching business you have to get yourself out there.
You have to be seen – otherwise how will your potential clients find you? How will they discover how much you can help them and how much better their lives will be through working with you?
How will you pay your bills, build your dream, escape your day job if you don’t have any clients?
There’s no getting around it. Building a coaching business (actually, building any business) requires you to be visible.
And that can be scary as f*ck!
So how do you walk that line between obnoxious attention vampire and best kept secret in your field?
Clarity, Courage and Support.
Clarity
You need to know who you want to get in front of (physically or virtually)
What you want to tell them how you can help them.
Tell them what the changes are that you can make together. How their life will be different. How it will be better. Specifically.
You need to tell them what you want them to do once they’ve seen you (Not book you right away – that’s like asking for marriage on the first date.) You want the first step you want clients to take to be something small and manageable –visiting your website, liking your Facebook page, signing up for your free offer, asking you a question.
You need to think about these things so that you know what to say, how to say it and where to say it. You need to feel comfortable explaining what you do for your clients in a language they’ll understand.
Courage
It can feel scary vulnerable to be seen. So courage is an essential part of getting yourself out there. But you don’t need do go all ‘jump out of a plane’ courageous – leaning into your stretch zone and step at a time works wonders.
Where do you need to get to in terms of visibility? Making your own video? Talking in front of a live audience? Running your first group program? Hosting a webinar? This is your end point.
Don’t go straight to your end point.
Instead find the opposite end of the scary spectrum – the places you feel most comfortable. Ask yourself how you can carry some of those comfortable elements with you as you step into the stretch areas. Every time you lean into your stretch (the in-between place betwixt comfort and scary) you grow that comfort zone.
Support
Find your support network. The one’s who’ve got your back, will encourage, bolster and celebrate with you. Ask around – fellow coaches, entrepreneur and people who ‘get’ what you’re trying to do. Want a ready made group you can tap into straight away? Join the Coaches Collective on Facebook. It’s a private coaches’ mastermind I created because I wanted to surround myself with like minded, fellow travelers.
I describe it as like a gorgeous tea room filled with comfy sofas, a really cool bookshelf and the best array of beverages (your choice), think of this group as your co-working space and creative salon.
If this sounds like somewhere you’d feel at home, pop on over – you’ll be made most welcome.